EPALE Community: Share your good practice examples and successful projects on digital adult learning

Participating schools have noticed the love for the subject diminishes as the students get older and are worried about the fact that exams may have an influencing fact over this phenomenon. Furthermore, it is being noted that unfortunately, the teaching has become more textbook-based and somewhat mechanical. Hence, the need of this project is for the schools to encourage the teachers to: i) implement more practical activities and group work. ii) invite people from outside into school including parents. iii) engage teachers in activities that help students to find out what prior knowledge students already had of a topic before teaching it iv) teachers need to engage actively with students' existing capabilities. v)contextualized learning would help students to connect concepts with things they were familiar with. vi) tasks that foster a stronger sense of ownership that would then promote their growing sense of independence and maturity. vii) promote more collaborative learning that in turn would promote greater discussion and work together on shared tasks.

Dear EPALE Users,

The first stage of the free of charge training of ICT teachers under the Cisco Networking Academy program has finished on the 8th of February 2019.

As part of an AMIF-project, we developed online course material for highly educated learners of Dutch with an interest in work or finding a job. It can be used by a single student, while class and teacher are involved in other activities.

In the New Media Age we are constantly surrounded by all kinds of information, from political issues to advertisements and marketing, which gets to us with no filter other than our own capacity to critically assess its validity. Biased information appears to be particularly difficult to decode for the less media-literate demographics; while the rates of digital literacy have proved to disregard age or educational level, the Open Your Eyes project targets specifically adult learners and educators and seeks to improve their digital literacy by providing them with tools to identify fake news and fight the spread of disinformation online. 

The Brooklyn Museum in New York created a mobile app that helps you visiting museum and learning from exhibitions. The innovation of this tool lies in its simplicity. App allows you to ask questions about viewed works of art and get answers in real time. Thus, there are no ready answers to hypothetical questions, but they are prepared for specific, individual questions that appear when someone visiting the museum. At the technical level, the application is a communicator that allows you to connect with educators who are in museum galleries at the same time. Their task is to answer any doubts raised during the visit, in particular, questions about the meaning of exhibited works of art. The most interesting questions and answers are then posted on the website. A good educational tool combining a traditional educational method with mobile app. See https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/ask 

The Directorate for Digital Literacy and Transversal Skills in collaboration with St Margaret College embarked on the Family Project which was organised for the first time in Maltese schools. The concept of the Family Coding programme, which focuses on the creative use of the school tablet as part of the One Tablet per Child initiative, is to invite parents/guardians together with their children who are in Years 4, 5 and 6, to discuss how these can be used in computational thinking processes. In these sessions, parents/guardians and their children had to collaborate together to plan and create a digital story from scratch and availed themselves of a spherical robot to engage in problem solving activities. Unplugged activities were also carried out to acquaint parents/guardians and children with the aforementioned thinking processes. This initiative also endeavoured to make our schools accessible to the wider community to foster the students’ digital competences while collaboratively working with their parents/guardians hence bridging the digital divide.  

Association "Edukacja-Młodzież" has completed the project "Gastronomy and Hotel-Activity on the Labor Market TRIO" financed from the Operational Program Knowledge Education Development (PO WER) co-financed from the European Social Fund. As part of the project, two types of mobility were organized: - mobility of graduates of gastronomic and hotel and related departments from the Pleszew poviat, ie graduates up to one year after graduating from a school, ie a vocational school or technical school, and neighboring poviats (Krotoszyn, Jarocin, Ostrów Wlkp.). Trainees left in 5 groups of 5,11,11, 2 and 2 people, in total 31 people left - mobility of the staff (10 persons) - teachers of vocational subjects, vocational counselors and managerial staff - ZSZ and Middle School with Adaptation Units to Work in Pleszew. Mobility of both groups was preceded by pedagogical and cultural-linguistic preparation. The project was carried out from September 1, 2016. until June 30, 2018 in cooperation with two partner organizations: Azzura Società Cooperativa Sociale and Umbria Training Center. The objectives of the project are: exchange of European experience, promotion of innovative working methods, establishing direct international cooperation, learning about different organizational solutions, comparison of Polish and Italian vocational education system, acquiring new professional qualifications, learning about Italian culture, acquiring freedom in international communication, learning topics related to issues professional education of pupils / students, learning innovative solutions in teaching content and managing a vocational training institution. The results of the project are: professional and personal development of project participants, adaptation of best practices and transfer of knowledge, establishing international cooperation, deepening knowledge in the field of vocational education, increasing language competences. Participation in the project contributed to obtaining additional skills: experience in a multicultural environment, strengthening adaptive and personality skills. All these factors in the long-term will increase the mobility of all participants and improve their functioning on the open European labor market.

Dear colleagues 

We have organized trainings in the library where young people from Youth Centre teach elderly people to use smartphones and tablets. The most interesting thing is that young people are very happy in doing so because they get a teaching experience. 

Meaningful and successful personal and professional life of today and the future requires the person’s ability to adjust to the constantly changing environment, the ability and inclination to constructively react to changes, act in accordance with constantly renewing and increasing information. The ICT are very useful here, but we need to able to learn, more exactly to manade our learning; therefore, the idea of lifelong learning is raised as one of the most important educational aims and one of the essential expected outcomes. Learning to learn is understood as the person’s wish and readiness to take up new tasks, the ability to control cognitive and emotional processes while learning and apply acquired abilities in various contexts. for this purpose we also could use ICT. 

We would like to share with you two good examples of E-learning initiatives implemented by the Ministry of Education and Vocational Trainning in Spain: That's English (English language online learning) /es/blog/el-programa-thats-english-una-experiencia-e-learning    and Aula Mentor (Online courses for adults) /es/blog/un-buen-ejemplo-de-iniciativa-e-learning-aula-mentor

I‘m librarian and EPALE ambassador from Lithuania. I want to share one example of successful project from our country. Family Digital activity Hubs in four Latvian and Lithuanian libraries were established by implementing a cross border cooperation project. Family Digital Activity Hubs (DigiHubs) started working in Utena, Zarasai, Daugavpils and Preili libraries in February of 2019. Special DigiHubs’ spaces were established in 4 libraries and equipped with all the needed equipment: computers, interactive screens, 3D printers, Lego robots, Kinect, virtual reality and interactive bicycle sets. Attractive educational content has been developed: virtual reality and interactive bicycle tours, Kinect quizzes, mobile applications, Lego robots, and 3D programming workshops. Mentors for the DigiHubs have been trained and are able to provide assistance and training for DigiHubs users. Today, these hubs serve as technology cognition centers where all people can come and get acquainted with the advanced technologies and interactive educational content. Families, young and old people can learn together continuously acquiring important technology skills. More information on developed methodologies is available online: https://joom.ag/kqua 

Slovenian Institute for Adult Education – SIAE (https://www.acs.si/en/) deals with the basic skill of digital literacy from different perspectives. In addition to the description that Mateja Pečar presented yesterday, we are now introducing an educational film (https://youtu.be/OLd4gIdw17o) about this basic competence. It was created in the ESF project Adult Competences Development 2016–2022 (https://pismenost.acs.si/en/projects/development-of-adult-competences-2…). This a personal story about a retired man, Mr Bojan Rus, that shows how obtaining knowledge, skills and abilities in the nowadays digital environment is necessary in order to be digitally competent. Digital competence can help you save up and fill your daily life with challenges. The user of the video study resource is presented with a personal story and learns about the digital competence. The user thus builds their understanding about how often in life we come across digital environment and how our daily routine and the field or work are intertwined with digital and technological solutions. The movie is 24 minutes long. It includes the Educational part, Let’s recap and the trailer introducing the basic information about 8 key competences. During the educational part of the movie we learn more about the 8 key competences and see a detailed presentation of the digital competence. The Let’s recap part of the film summarises the information we learned in the educational movie about the digital key competence. In the last minutes, the trailer provides us with the basic information about the 8 key competences. All of them will be presented through the series of the educational movies titled On the Path to a Successful Life educational movies. 4 of them are already available with English subtitles (https://pismenost.acs.si/en/projects/development-of-adult-literacy-2011…). Educational Movies on key competences SIAE has started to develop a concept of educational movies about key competences to provide basic information on key competences to adult learners. Movies are multimedia tools, especially useful for those adults who have more problems with written texts and therefore easily accept information through video. The main focus in the movies is on the personal experience of an individual and the development of the particular key competence through a change the protagonist has undertaken. Educational movies are practical tools for animation and gaining the motivation of learners from various vulnerable groups. They have a motivational character and address learners through role models that have everyday problems but solve them through learning. Introducing a personal story causes the identification of participants in the field of adult education, and learning as the act of a protagonist in a video makes them think: ‘I can do it too, I have to do something.’ Emotional personal stories, therefore, engage learners in decisions to take individual actions, for example, they visit educational institutions and get information on learning programs. The educational part of the video is structured in such a way that spectators learn about all the main characteristics of the chosen key competence in a relaxed and humorous way. The didactic form of the movie is adapted to vulnerable groups of adults, so the educational content is presented in a very clear and simple way. Movies can be used either for the independent individual learning or as a tool for group work and learning, as warm-up motivation and/or as a summary for repetition. Educational movies with English subtitles are available for free at https://pismenost.acs.si/en/projects/development-of-adult-literacy-2011…;

In ARGO-Alternative Therapeutic Program for Addicted Individuals (www.argothes.gr) we have a group called "Digital Empowerment". Digital Empowerment is a creative approach to the teaching of information and communication technologies and it is also an effective entry point for its members, who are people that have either disengaged from the learning process or lack confidence with new technologies. This group helps develop communication skills, using creative tools and information techniques, always focusing on people’s lives, through stories, pictures, music, video and narration. Digital Empowerment puts the member of the group in focus, as it builds on the member’s experiences for their involvement with the group, through the development of a short video. You can watch some of these videos, created by members of the group here: https://www.argothes.gr/digital-empowerment-el/

Welcome to the fourth day of online exchange of good practices in digital learning. Last day I provided an overview of the projects mentioned. I will provide a full summary later. I am looking forward to yet another productive day of exchange!

I teach Italian as a second language to adult people. For my job I created the site La scuola con me (The school with me): it contains materials available for free to everybody who wants to teach or learn Italian as a foreign or second language.

This is interesting topic and it's very needed in the adult education, but we shouldn't focus on only the new technology. It should be a part of the projects. Why? Becuase we observe addiction of mobile, social media, internet. Usually it's problem of young people, but it can be the problem of adults and seniors. We should always remember about balance between new technology and real life. New technology should be a tool, it shouldn't subsitute face to face contacts.

The Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) "Together Old and Young: An Intergenerational Approach" is one of the main outputs of the Erasmus+ project TOY PLUS: Together Old and Young – Practitioners Learning and Upscaling Skills that started on the 1st of November 2016 and finished on the 31st October 2018. 

The Lifelong Learning Platform is partner in an Erasmus+ project called DIGIT (Digital identity). The project seeks to boost adult learners' digital competences for a responsible use of online identity. Through this project, the consortium aims to investigate digital identity implications for adults and provide the necessary educational instruments and supporting tools for adult educators. 

The study 'An in-depth analysis of adult students in blended environments: Do they regulate their learning in an 'old school' way?' (VUB - university Brussels) aims to address the self-regulation strategies used by adult students in blended environments. More on EPALE.

Sve je veće interesovanje starijih osoba za kompjutersku tehnologiju i Internet. Medijska popularizacija savremene tehnologije i koristi koje pojedinac može da dobije od nje, dosta je tome doprinela. U svakom gradu postoji realna potreba za sprovođenjem projekta informatičkog opismenjavanja građana. Penzioneri i nezaposlena lica, zbog svoje loše finansijske situacije, i pored želje da budu u toku sa savremenim tehnologijama, nisu u mogućnosti da sebi priušte kurseve koje škole računara organizuju. Biblioteke su oduvek bile stubovi kulture, pa i danas, kada je došlo do ekspanzije elektronske tehnologije i Interneta, od ključne je važnosti da biblioteke bude te koje će da pomognu u opismenjavanju građana da rukuju novom tehnologijom. Bibliotekari su ti, koji treba da ih obuče za rukovanje savremenim načinima dolaženja do informacija. 

We have a small scale project with 3 other partnering countries about how students with low level of ICT or Literacy can evaluate themselves where they stand. Also we suggest how this can be used for teachers or teaching advisor to plan their future studies. How they can improve their skills. We call it easy-easier. We will soon have a digital version uploaded on our webpage, where the students can do drag and drop and get their results digitally. Our webpage is www.licted.eu. 

Danube University Krems, Department for Continuing Education Research and Educational Management has been coordinating a pioneering European project about the use of public libraries as safe and inclusive learning environments funded by Erasmus+ Programme. The project LIB(e)RO aims at the establishment of an online platform based on the inclusion and involvement of libraries and librarians in order to provide minor refugees a safe place where they can learn the culture and language of the host countries. The project targets minor refugees who are at risk of social exclusion due to their difficulties and librarians and social workers who have been working or might work with minor refugees. With this goal in mind, LIB(e)RO underlines that an inclusive educational approach is the most important key to successful integration into a new language and cultural region and to strengthen them. In this context, public libraries offer ideal and untapped places that meet all the conditions for a safe and socially inclusive, intercultural learning environment and also as the main "media" in language acquisition: e-learning infrastructure, face-to-face encounter, and books. In the project LIB(e)RO, inclusive education means implementing an e-learning platform, which allows for active learning of language and culture in the study room of the public library and the start of lifelong learning in Europe. This learning platform provides a variety of opportunities to introduce and develop language skills in terms of reading, writing and speaking to acquire different levels of competence and linking this over with intercultural content and information about the life and structures in Europe. On the other hand, this e-learning platform also provides professional support for the librarians to perform according to the new demands on their role and position as a stakeholder in the process of lifelong learning. Librarians can gain basic information and know-how in order to introduce socially inclusive learning approach to make their libraries safe and socially inclusive places for learning. They can learn participatory processes such as how to organize their respective library so that socially inclusive learning is enabled and is encouraged and may even hold sessions for youth, possibly accompanied by other professions and experts. The acronym, LIB(e)RO, combines Latin word "LIBER" for book and "liberare" for freeing by the small "-e" as a symbol of online learning platform into the verb "LIB(e)RO" (I free, I discard, etc.) and it provides a unique opportunity in the current refugee debate for Europe. Books that are combined with socially inclusive education, embedded in a powerful digital educational landscape, enable young people to process their experiences and to "liberate" themselves by allowing them to develop and take up learning paths for themselves. The project consortium has been working on the project since October 2016 with a great synergy that comes from the expertise and the hands-on-knowledge of its partners from Austria, Germany, and Greece. You can reach our learning platform at https://ilias.uni-passau.de/ilias/goto.php?target=cat_69544&client_id=i… where you can choose between trainers and learners’ part and work on interesting and relevant topics in three languages, German, English and Greek. There are videos to introduce both the project and how to use the platform. Please go and try and let us know. LIB(e)RO has already been tested by several libraries in Lower Austria, Vienna, Passau and Athens, but we are always looking for new users. Moreover, LIB(e)RO has been nominated for IFLA Section Library Services to Multicultural Populations (MCULTP) 2019 Award in recognition of good practices. The MCULTP Award is for inspiring reports of relevant and useful practices and ideas for multicultural library services. We will be presenting LIB(e)RO in 2019 IFLA World Library and Information Congress in Athens in August. You can visit our website (http://libero.uni-passau.de/) and Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ProjectLibero/) for more information.

The IDCAP project will be about three of the eight key competences: mainly Digital Competence and, through this, the Mathematical competence and basic competences in science and technology and communication in the mother tongue. For this reason in relation to our target group, we have chosen the Adult Education priority "Improving and extending the supply of high quality learning opportunities tailored to the needs of individual low-skilled or low-qualified adults" because we will prepare initial and continuing products to this target group. In relation with competences and skills, we have chosen the horizontal priority "Development of relevant and high-quality skills and competences" because we will work with the digital skills and the basic competences in science and technology, in fact, to develop the European key competence "Digital competence" promoting the use of ICT and progress towards to higher qualifications. 

In 2018, Gorenjski muzej (Kranj, Slovenia) started a two-year KA1 Erasmus+ project on digital museum practice in adult education. The starting point of our project was not how to teach adults using the ICT, but how to make use of the already existing knowledge and skills in ICT to offer our adult public new knowledge connected with the activities and collections of our museum and the cultural heritage in general. Our project is focused mainly on possibilities of educating our adult public by way of our web-site and social media. So far we used them mainly to inform our public on our museum, our events and exhibitions. Now we would like to develop a systematic concept of how to use them as additional media of education, next to the already existing classical forms of museum education such as exhibitions, lectures, guided tours, workshops etc.

The comment below includes an overview of the projects already presented in the previous days. Looking forward seeing even more interesting projects today!

Dear colleagues, 

Adult education faces major challenges right now, as well as in the future, with ever increasing diversity and cultural differences, and the need for learning environments and all education to respond to personal preferences and individual differences. With our KA2 project "The future teacher 3.0 as a bridge to accessible and customized adult education" to prepare the teachers for adult education of the future. In our project we want to focus in 1st place on the ICT competencies of teachers but also that they use ICT to improve their lessons. 

EPALE Vlaanderen maakte eerder een EPALE-zine over digitaal en e-leren. Hierin vind je verschillende voorbeelden van online leren in de volwasseneneducatie, onder meer over het SAIL-project van de Vrije Universiteit Brussel, het project 'digitaal op stap' van CBE Antwerpen, over Toll-net dat de digitale vaardigheden van lesgevers in de volwasseneneducatie versterkt, en Nedbox, een website waar anderstalige volwassenen Nederlands kunnen oefenen van KU Leuven. Je vindt het EPALE-zine hier.

Oefenen.nl is voortdurend op zoek naar nieuwe toepassingen om inhoud bij de doelgroep te brengen die aanvullend zijn op de programma’s van Oefenen.nl en het leerrepertoire verbreden. De oefenmaterialen op Oefenen.nl zijn gericht op individueel gebruik. De gebruiker werkt 1-op-1 met de computer. Bekeken is of de mogelijkheid bestaat om oefenprogramma’s te verrijken met oefeningen die gebruikers samen kunnen doen. Er moest een duidelijke link zijn naar het platform Oefenen.nl door bijvoorbeeld te werken met dezelfde inlogcode. Het moest ook gaan om educatieve meerwaarde, niet om techniek. Geen ‘gadget’ maar onderdeel van het multimedia-aanbod rond programma’s op Oefenen.nl. Dat heeft geleid tot de app Samen leren. 

Hello there!

Since new skills are required for planning and using new learning environments with the potential of digital technologies, in the StepUp project the idea is precisely to create and propose some learning activities that make use of the information and communication technologies for the different areas of action of the adult educator.