Educational and socio-cultural competencies of contemporary teachers - educational course and portal

Description

The new socialization problems, also those connected with new sociocultural-phenomena (e.g. new media platforms, globalization) are clearly visible in contemporary schools. The drawbacks of increased social media usage are exclusion, violence and addictions. The aim of the project is the preparation of a modern educational course (and educational materials - a multimedia portal and handbooks). The course will be prepared by Polish academics (AMU) and will cover also practical educational experience of the Icelandic educational system (in cooperation with Polish School in Reykjavik). The presence of the Icelandic school in the project gives the opportunity to gather knowledge concerning educational measures from an institutional level. The Icelandic teachers will benefit from information exchange while using new educational materials (monographs in English). The project products will be used by the following groups of beneficiaries: lecturers and trainers preparing active teachers and teachers-to-be for their jobs, teachers and tutors, scientists interested in socialization problems in a school context.

Summary of project results

Dynamic changes resulting from the development of new media and the transformation of traditional socialising environments, for instance families and schools, have produced a sense of chaos and helplessness in many teachers and pedagogues working with young people. “Schools nowadays focus their activities mainly on teaching, while the broader sphere of socialization and education remains a difficult challenge,” says Jacek Pyżalski, PhD, project coordinator. “Nonetheless,” he continues, “teaching and educating are two sides of the same coin, and in the long term, any problems in one area will translate into failure in the other.” The aim of the project was to develop a modern academic course and a multimedia portal (featuring educational videos, presentations, worksheets etc.), and to publish three monographs (in Polish and English) to provide a consistent knowledge resource on contemporary educational problems (e.g. exclusion from a group, new addictions, eating disorders) and teachers’ educational competences. The project provided an opportunity to construct an educational course on the basis of not only Polish national diagnoses conducted by researchers from the Faculty of Educational Studies, Adam Mickiewicz University (UAM), but also based on the Icelandic experience. The materials developed under the project are addressed to the following groups: teacher trainers (both initial and in-service teacher training), teachers, educators and researchers in the field of education and cultural change. With the cooperation of the Icelandic partner, an educational portal has been created offering videos, papers and presentations: www.kompetencjenauczyciela.pl. The portal also contains links to full versions of relevant books. Both the portal and its publications are available free of charge. Major outcomes and impacts: (1) modern multimedia materials for lecturers, trainers, teachers and educators; (2) launch of a new portal: www.kompetencjenauczyciela.pl offering open access to numerous helpful publications; (3) UAM graduates of educational studies are better prepared to deal with the most difficult educational challenges, including bullying, exclusion from a group or cyberbullying.

Summary of bilateral results

The Icelandic experience on contemporary challenges in the education sector was very useful for the project promoter. According to OECD studies, the education system in Iceland shows a good response to contemporary social and educational challenges, which results in one of the lowest educational inequalities (caused by gender or learning difficulties) in Europe. A significant achievement was the huge commitment of relevant professionals who followed the project on social media. This helped disseminate the materials on a much larger scale than initially planned. The educational materials produced under the project are currently used in educational courses provided by the Faculty of Educational Studies, UAM. They will be fully used following the completion of the project. The project partners intend to continue their cooperation with a focus on bullying prevention methodology.