Teaching Laboratory - A Transformative Instruction Programme for Upper Primary School
Univeristy of Lower Silesia ·Poland
About this project
<p>The project will develop an innovative curriculum for grades 4-8, integrating all learning forms (lessons, extracurricular activities, interdisciplinary projects, tutoring, e-learning, and the student's work).The program promotes an integrated view of learning, teaching, and development. The aim is to move away from the dominance of classroom teaching and the transmission of content to education for the future supporting students' independence and well-being, incorporating new technologies (ICT), developing creativity, communication, criticality, and cooperation at school. They create conditions for the transformation of learning activities into student development. The project team consists of 4 researchers from Østfold University College in Halden, 4 researchers from the University of Lower Silesia in Wroclaw, and 22 teachers from Spark Academy in Poznan. All students will be actively involved in the development of the program. The methodology used will be formative interventions, engaged qualitative research, Galperin's theoretical and methodological learning concepts. The project team's collaboration will include workshops of the Teaching Laboratory, direct observations in the school, research lessons, networked analysis of multimedia data in Portfolio. The project will include the following stages: development of a school research plan; evaluation of the existing teaching; design and testing of new teaching solutions; development of publications - to improve the quality of education. <br> A SPARK ACADEMY TEACHING LABORATORY HANDBOOK will also be prepared, that will enable teachers from other schools to initiate changes in classes 4-8 adjusted to local conditions, in accordance with the idea of education for the future. Polish and Norwegian researchers will publish the research concerning the new teaching quality that transforms interrelated learning and teaching activities.</p>
Bilateral cooperation results
The donor country partner, Østfold University College (HiØ), contributed specialized knowledge to the project, derived from Prof. Irina Engeness's years of studies on transformative learning within Piotr Galperin’s framework. Researchers from DSW consulted with the HiØ team on how external actions are transformed into internal psychological processes during social educational interactions. They also discussed the importance of deliberate planning and support in the teaching process, which proved crucial for developing new teaching methods. The collaboration between Polish teachers and researchers also benefited from the study visit to Halden, organized by HiØ. Teachers from SPARK and researchers from DSW had the opportunity to observe lessons, engage in discussions with Norwegian teachers, hold joint meetings and reflections at the HiØ campus, and analyze various educational approaches, such as interdisciplinary projects, working with students with special needs, and mathematics teaching methodologies.This exchange of experiences allowed teachers to learn innovative teaching methods, which they could implement in their work, such as exploratory tasks in mathematics or interdisciplinary projects. Polish and Norwegian partners continue their collaboration. The University of Lower Silesia and Østfold University College signed a cooperation agreement under the Erasmus+ program for higher education institutions, covering the exchange of students and academic staff. They also plan to prepare scientific publications that delve into topics developed during the project: Visualization of knowledge in problem-based learning and project work; Professionalization of teachers through the collaborative transformation of teaching practices. The Spark Academy Foundation and Østfold University College have prepared an application for a research grant under the Erasmus+ program: AI LITERACY – applying artificial intelligence tools in English language teaching.
Project partners
- Østfold University College Donor project partner· Norway
- Spark Academy Foundation Project partner· Poland