Yesterday – after a long delay – I got the sad news that my friend of old, professor Gerhard Zimmer had passed away. As I read from the ‘In Memoriam’ text written by his former colleagues, this has happened already in March this year. At that time I had already left Bremen and was on my way back to Finland. Whatever the cause of delay, it is appropriate to dedicate some words to the memory of my dear friend and to pass my condolences to the ones who loved him.

Here, to be sure, I cannot give a comprehensive overview of Gerhard’s lifework. In this respect I am better off referring the text “Nachruf auf Prof. Dr. Gerhard Zimmer (19. Februar 1943 – 7. März 2020)” (see https://www.bwpat.de/in-erinnerung) and to Gerhard’s profile page at the author archive of the said journal (see https://www.bwpat.de/autor/zimmer). What I can at best do on this blog is to give a brief account on the way we got acquainted, on the time that we have had together in Berlin and on our later encounters. All this is flavoured with memories, how Gerhard supported me as a younger colleague, making contacts with German researchers, getting to know Berlin and sharing experiences of our contexts of work.

Visiting Germany as a an emerging researcher – Gerhard as a true supporter (1989 – 1993)

I learned to know Gerhard personally during my long study visit across West Germany and Berlin in October/November 1989. During five weeks’ time I visited quite a number of research institutes in the field of vocational education and training (VET) starting from ITB (University of Bremen) and ending with several institutes in Berlin, among others the Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung (BiBB). I knew quite a lot of the researchers and their institutes via literature, but of course it was a rich experience to learn to know them and their colleagues in person. This was also the case with Gerhard, of whom I already knew his involvement in the Projektgruppe Automation und Qualifikation. Now that he was based in the department for continuing vocational training (CVT) in BiBB, he could provide interesting insights into the development of qualifications (based on the field studies) and on the initiatives to enhance the competences of skilled workers (based on the newer pilot projects – Modellversuche).

One year later, during the days of German unification (October 1990) I was again in Germany, on the way to a West-German conference (Hochschultage berufliche Bildung) in Magdeburg (then East Germany) and had a stop-over in Berlin at Gerald’s place. At that time we were able to make plans for his forthcoming visit to Finland, to attend the Finnish Educational Research Association (December 1990) as a guest speaker alongside Ulrich Teichler (Higher Education research) and Gerald Heidegger (also VET research). In that context Gerhard also visited with me another Finnish conference on VET research – and to his great surprise realised that he could follow fluently the the presenter who spoke Swedish. Some time later I was again in Berlin with a delegation of VET teachers for business administration. This visit provided yet another opportunity for exchange of information and sharing knowledge.

Nächste Station: Berlin – Gerhard as a local guide

From 1994 to 1995 I worked as a national seconded expert at Cedefop (European Centre for the Development of Vocational  Training). At that time Cedefop was still located in Berlin, whilst Finland was in the transition process of becoming a  Member State of the EU. Moreover, BiBB was still located mainly in Bremen (but the clock was ticking for the relocation to Bonn. Anyway, at that time we were almost next door neighbours. So, there were several joint meetings and then we had also some cultural activities. From the latter ones I remember especially our joint visit to Bertolt Brecht’s summer residence outside Berlin.

During this period I learned to know more closely several of Gerhard’s colleagues in BiBB and in its partner organisations. A special highlight of that time was the conference in Köln (Cologne) on Accompanying research as contribution to VET research (Modellversuchsforschung als Berufsbildungsforschung). For me the participation in this conference was of great importance, having read quite a lot of reports of this genre of research and now being able to witness the discussions in person. Also, looking back, the conference proceedings that were published provide important insights into the development of such research as well as visions for future research. Here, among Gerhard, I need to mention his colleague Peter Dehnbostel as major contributors from BiBB and from the host oragnisation Peter Sloane and his team. Another highlight of that period was the inaugural event of the German activities of the EU action programme Leonardo da Vinci that took place in Berlin. (Little did I know, how much I would become involved with the implementation of that programme in the years to come.)

From Berlin to Thessaloniki and back to Finland – occasional encounters but of importance (1995 – 2004)

In the year 1995 Cedefop was relocated to Thessaloniki, Greece and I became a temporary EU official working there from 1995 to 2002. From that point on I was no longer a Finnish liaison officer based in Berlin (with main contacts with the German experts in the city). Instead, I was working for the European research community in the field of VET, facilitating collaboration and knowledge sharing among European projects. So, I was mainly engaged with colleagues who were preparing and managing EU-funded projects or facilitating them in national agencies. At this phase I was very much working together with colleagues at ITB.

During this period BiBB was also relocated to Bonn and some of the colleagues chose to leave BiBB. So, firstly Gerhard and then latterly Peter Dehnbostel took professor positions in VET research at the University of Armed Forces – latterly renamed as Helmut-Schmidt-University – in Hamburg. The challenge for the new professors was to set up new curricula with focus on VET beyond vocational teacher education. The professor chairs were allocated to curricula that provided civilian career options for young army officers after their contract periods in the army. Concerning their research activities, Gerhard engaged his team with Open Distance Learning (ODL) and with eLearning in VET and vocational higher education. Peter was busily involved with studies on new competence frameworks based on validation of non-formal learning and on trade unions’ initiatives to promote continuing professional development. Altogether, they created an intellectual neighbourhood that enriched the VET research culture in Germany.

During my time in Thessaloniki I had less chance to follow these developments in Hamburg. Yet, when I returned to Finland and sought for a new orientation, my contacts with Gerhard and Peter became important anchor points, alongside ITB in Bremen. This became apparent during the conferences in the year 2003 (ABWF-Quem Zukunftsforum in Berlin and ECER in Hamburg). In the next phase the study visit with vocational teacher educators from Jyväskylä to Hamburg and Bremen opened new doors to me. I am very grateful for Gerhard, Peter and their team members as well as for colleagues in ITB for their support during this period.

Letzte Stationen: Bremen & Berlin (2005 -2018)

As a follow-up of my re-established contacts with my German colleagues I started to work as a senior researcher at ITB in 2005. Once again, I was in the middle of European projects and international networking. However, this time I was busily involved also in preparing funding bids and jumping from previous projects to new ones (which were not necessarily direct follow-up activities). Thus, paradoxically, the contacts with my friends in Hamburg started to fade away. And also, both Gerhard and Peter went on retirement and stayed in Berlin and in Bonn.

Then, after several years of silence, I took the initiative to arrange a “Klassentreffen” with the friends of old from the Berlin period of BiBB. I was attending a concert in Berlin and alongside that trip I wanted to meet Berlin-based friends. In this context I had a lengthy session with Gerhard at his place – revisiting our shared experiences and memories of different phases of our careers. Now, we had also new topics to discuss, based on my work at ITB and the projects working with digital tools to support project-based vocational learning. And – looking back – we could also value the work of the Projektgruppe Automation und Qualifikation as an early representative of social shaping of work and technology. At the end of the day we then had an inspiring dinner near the old premises of Cedefop in Berlin with several friends from the early days.

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I guess these memories give an impression of Gerhard Zimmer as a colleague and friend – a person with whom I had shared interests and shared values. Now he is gone but good memories are there.

Rest in peace, Gerhard!

Earlier this week we received the sad news that Kerstin Engraf, our friend and colleague from the Learning Layers project, had passed away. This was very shocking to us, because we had always learned to know her as a very lively and energetic person and we were expecting her to keep healthy. None of us could have expected this to happen. Below I try to summarise some of my memories of her in a nutshell.

Rembering Kerstin as a key actor in developing continuing vocational training at Bau-ABC Rostrup

We (researchers of ITB, University of Bremen) learned to know Kerstin Engraf at the beginning of the Learning Layers (LL) project when Bau-ABC Rostrup, the North-German training centre of construction centre joined in the project as an application partner. During the project most of our work focused on the apprentice training that was managed by full-time trainers (Lehrwerkmeister) and coordinated in Bau-ABC by Melanie Campbell. However, Kerstin, as the head of continuing training (CVT) of Bau-ABC, was interested in being involved in the development work and participated throughout the lifetime of the project. Moreover, she was supporting the launch of a follow-up project that focused on developing digital tools for training and learning in the CVT schemes of Bau-ABC. During this period we came to understand the complexity of the CVT schemes and the management of the sets short-term courses provided by external lecturers and trainers. And we realised that Kerstin had a complete overview and she knew how to manage the system through and through.

Remembering Kerstin as a contributor to the Construction pilot of the LL project

Looking back, I remember that Kerstin was keenly interested initial workshops with which we started to give shape for the Construction pilot activities. At the earliest phase we discussed the prospect of developing a digitized version of the “White Folder” of the apprentices of Bau-ABC. In these discussions we learned a lot, what the trainers expected of the digital support for a culture of action-oriented learning and self-organised learning. These ideas were taken on board, when the co-design work started to shape the Learning Toolbox (LTB) as a digital toolset to support working and learning processes in the construction sector.

Once the design idea had got its shape, Kerstin was eagerly promoting the idea at special events of construction professionals. I still remember her active support for the LL project activities at the national conference of well-builders and borehole builders (Brunnenbauertage) at Bau-ABC in May 2014 and at the North-German trade fair Nordbau in August 2014. In between we had had the LL project consortium meeting at Bau-ABC. Alongside the meeting we had a demonstration space for Bau-ABC apprentices and trainers. At each corner of the meeting room we had demonstration tables with laptops or tablet PCs to present particular digital tools, toolsets and platforms that we were developing. Thanks to Kerstin’s organisational talent we could manage a carrousel event in which over 100 apprentices and trainers rotated through each demonstration table as small groups whilst members of project team presented briefly the work with the tools.

A very special contribution to the project was the preparation of the Bau-ABC videos (August-September 2014). These were designed give the project consortium an idea, what the trainers and apprentices were expecting of working and learning with the Learning Toolbox. This was of vital importance, since the design work was at a very early stage and the we only had a mock-up version of the toolset to be programmed. In the production of these videos Kerstin was eagerly involved and demonstrated her enthusiasm when editing the videos. Below you see exemplary video that presents the work with trainers’ blogs (predecessors of Learning Toolbox stacks). Here the handwriting of Kerstin is clearly visible (the speed and the music).

Later on, Kerstin was actively involved in developing and implementing a new kind of training concept – the Theme Room training – for all training staff of Bau-ABC. The idea came from the trainers themselves and they had already discussed some key principles, how to put it into practice. Kerstin and Melanie Campbell brought this into discussion in the LL project and it was implemented as a local training campaign during November 2015. The aim was to provide all Bau-ABC trainers basic multimedia competences with focus on vocational learning. The training was run by a pair of peer tutors (one from the trainers and one from the researchers). The training was shaped for four themes (that were covered by respective digital learning space) and the training took place on Friday afternoons. Kerstin was involved in the planning but chose to take the role of learner – and enjoyed it greatly.

Remembering Kerstin as a participant in the consortium meetings

Because of her primary duties Kerstin was not always able to participate in the transnational consortium meetings. But when she had the opportunity, she was very present in many ways. In particular she was actively covering the meetings with photos that were uploaded into the Facebook group “Learning Layers”. And she was also interested in covering the social and natural environments of the meeting venues. Some of these photos she shared on her Facebook page. Thus, we can refresh our memories of the meetings, the sites and extra-curricular activities in Graz, Innsbruck, Tallinn and Espoo. And of course, the project consortium meeting at Bau-ABC Rostrup and the social events at the nearby Bad Zwischenahn (including the lake cruise on the Zwischenahner Meer) were highlights to her and to all of us (as the photo below shows).

These memories have only been glimpses to the time when we worked together and to the activities that we carried out together. I hope that they have given a picture of a friend and colleague whom we learned to appreciate. Kerstin has gone but the work that we have done bears fruit and the good memories bring us forward.

Rest in peace, Kerstin!

My recent posts on this blog have focused on the digital toolset Learning Toolbox (LTB) that was developed in the EU-funded Learning Layers (LL) project to support vocational and workplace learning. At this point it is worthwhile to mention that the developers of the LTB have made good use of the quiet period when they have not been able to travel to visit interested partner organisations and run face-to-face workshops with new users. So, instead, they have prepared new introductory web pages and demonstration pages for the time when they can activate their contacts again. Below I want to give insights into the main introductory page (available in English, German and Spanish) and into a demonstration page (available in German).

Support page for new users of the Learning Toolbox

As I see it, the new support page for new users speaks for itself (see below two screenshots and links to the respective pages):

Here you have the link to Support page in English: https://support.ltb.io/

And here is the link to the Support page in German: https://support.ltb.io/wie-konnen-wir-ihnen-helfen/

Insights into the demonstration page on uses of Learning Toolbox (in German)

In a similar way the demonstration page – “Introduction to the Learning Toolbox in one minute” speaks for itself. Below you find four screenshots of the introductory texts (the one minute information package) and then a longer video presentation (slideshow with audio introduction and subtitles in German).

Here is the link to this demonstration page: https://support.ltb.io/learning-toolbox-kurz-und-knapp/

The video presentation gives more detailed information on the use of Learning Toolbox in vocational and workplace learning with an audio slideshow. Here we have four screenshots that give insights into the contents.

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I think this is enough of these introduction and demonstration pages. In my next post I will discuss further videos that demonstrate innovative use cases of Learning Toolbox in specific construction trades.

More blogs to come …

In some of my recent posts I have discussed the impact of the corona crisis on education, training and learning as well as on conferences that are of interest to us. In my latest blogchat session with developers and promoters of the Learning Toolbox – Gilbert Peffer and Werner Müller – I was able to get more insights into the current activities in the field: What is happening currently with the use of LTB to support education, training and learning during and after the lockdown period? What is happening with the use of LTB as support for conferences that are being organised as online events? I will start with the conferences and then proceed to the field activities in education and training.

What news on the use of Learning Toolbox (LTB) in conferences

As I have told in my recent posts (on the impact of the Learning Layers project), the Learning Toolbox (LTB) was developed primarily to support vocational and workplace learning. However, a very successful spin-off prospect emerged when LTB was used to prepare ePosters (supported with mini-posters on poster walls or cubicles). This kind of complementary use of ePosters alongside other modes of presentation started to spread already before the corona crisis.

Now that many conferences have sought ways to convert face-to-face events into online events, the prospect of using ePosters as a major solution has been taken up by several conference organisers. Here, new arrangements have been made to keep the ePosters visible online already during a pre-conference period. Then, during the actual conference period, particular sets of ePosters have been discussed in batches in online sessions. Now this mode of work is taking up and will probably sustain even after the exceptional period. For the developers and key promoters of LTB this has reduced travelling to conference venues and participation in face-to-face events. Instead, they have done more online tutoring and customisation of the use of LTB with supporting online communication services.

What news on the use of Learning Toolbox as support for vocational and workplace learning

Whilst the lockdown has given a push to conference organisers in finding new solutions to prepare online events with larger scale, the picture in the field of vocational education and training (VET) varies. As we have seen it, the transition from classroom teaching into online learning has been implemented rapidly in general education and higher education. For vocational and workplace learning such a transition has not been an easy exercise. In particular the intermediate training centres (that support work process oriented learning in simulated learning spaces) have gone through hard times. In Germany these organisers have been interested in promoting the use of LTB in education and training. Now, due to the lockdown, some advanced training centres – in particular the training centre Bau-ABC Rostrup – have managed to provide LTB stacks to support independent learning of apprentices during the closure period. However, in other training centres the lockdown has interrupted the process of getting a core group of trainers to promote the use of LTB in several trades. Moreover, the reopening of the centres just before the examination period has provided additional challenges.

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I think these were the most important messages that I need to share in my blog. In addition to these general impressions I had some further thoughts concerning the designed Multiplier Event of the ongoing TACCLE4 CPD project that we want to organise by the end of the project. As I see it know, it is not likely that we can organise it as a face-to-face event – whether before the summer holiday period or shortly after it. And since we need to organise an online event, we still have to think about the arrangements and the timing.

As we have a short time to complete the tasks for the project, we need to opt for a prerecorded webinar or a series of short webinars. And with this arrangement we need to think of a flexible mode of participation  within a flexible time frame. In this way we can probably adjust this event to the time constraints of the designed participants – teachers and trainers in the field of VET. As we have seen it, it is essential to provide new impulses at a time when the potential participants have time and energy to work with the content we provide for discussion.

These were my preliminary thoughts. I need to have further discussions with my colleagues who are supporting me in the TACCLE4 CPD project. Let us see where we can get in the coming times.

More blogs to come …

Normally I am populating this blog with reports on field visits and project meetings or on emerging results. Right now we are in the middle of a very quiet period. The hitherto normal activities of education and training providers have been closed due to the spread of the corona virus. And in a similar way all face-to-face meetings – whether project meetings, field visits or workshops with local/regional partners – all such events have been cancelled or postponed. So, it is very quiet right now. But yet, it is worthwhile to look at the possibilities that digital tools and online services may provide under such circumstances.

Indeed, as Graham Attwell mentioned in the online meeting of our TACCLE4 CPD last week, this crisis has been a strong push for teachers and trainers to move their activities online. What has been so far considered as a sideline opportunity – something complementary to the ‘regular’ teaching and training in presence – has to be considered as the remaining main option. From this point of view teachers, trainers and university lecturers are making rapid progress in implementing new online learning solutions in their own context. And at the same time developers of online learning platforms and software solutions are doing their best to support such transitions. All this is reflected in many online conferences and meetings. So, even during this quiet period, there are several new developments that need our attention.

From this point of view we discussed the role of our next transnational meeting – which we cannot organise as a face-to-face meeting but as an online meeting. Nevertheless, we agreed to book time slots to catch up with these new developments in online learning and in knowledge sharing within online communities. Also, we discussed the prospects to organise the forthcoming Multiplier events of the project as online events (and to use new formats for such events). Here, we need some time for further planning. BUT, if we want to capture the most valuable fruits of the new developments, we would need to organise the events at a time when our target groups – teachers and trainers – are getting back to the new normality after the period of lockdown. Therefore, I hope that the funding agencies are flexible enough to extend the working periods of projects like ours.

At any rate, I am trying to bring myself back to working mode (at least after the Easter period) and catch up with my friends and colleagues who are closer to new developments. Let us see, what all we will find out.

More blogs to come …

During the last few weeks it has been exceptionally quiet on this blog. Partly it was to be expected, partly I was hit by the new circumstances – ‘force majeure’ as they call it in French. I had announced that I will stop working regularly from my Bremen-based office (or home office) and enter a transitional period (including some travelling and preparation for the retirement). Yet, what I and we all have experienced after my departure from Bremen has been a surprising shock that goes beyond anything we could have anticipated.

During the last few weeks I have been following news on the spread of the corona-virus all over Europe (notably in Germany and England), the United States and in Finland. I do not want to comment the developments here – it has been a hard ride everywhere. However, at a certain point the family members started to urge us to get back to Finland from our faraway location – and they were right in doing so. Sooner than we could anticipate the flight connections were narrowed down before a complete standstill. It was a stroke of luck to get back home before it was too late.

Now, being safe in the home country and staying at home for the required two weeks it is a relief to get settled in peace and quiet. Yet, this is not a holiday period and we know that we need to keep ourselves busy. However, at the moment we do not know, what kind of ‘new normality’ we shall enter when the period of lockdown is over in Europe. What we can expect is that many things will change and that we have to think many things over.

For me personally this goes along with my transitional period. I will not return to regular working from my office at ITB. As I have said, I am on the way to retirement and I will finish my current projects from remote locations (with some short periods in Bremen when possible). Yet, in order to keep myself on track, I will tr¥ to go on with blogging on some of my key themes. In particular I will try to catch up with some of the new developments in organising online learning and online events during this period. In particular our current project TACCLE4 CPD is in a good position to draw conclusions for training of teachers and trainers, how to use digital tools and online learning services in the context of social isolation. There is a lot to be learned in this respect

More blogs to come …

In my previous post I told that I will be travelling quite a while and get back to office at the end of May. But I also mentioned that we (me together with my colleagues Ludger Deitmer and Jan Naumann) are planning a Multiplier Event on using digital tools to enrich vocational learning culture. And we will be working together to develop our ideas further. Here I have put on paper our first ideas:

1. What kind of event are we planning?

We are planning a Bremen-based and German-speaking Multiplier Event of the TACCLE4 CPD project to be hosted by ITB on Friday 12th June 2020.

2. What is the title of the event? What is our key message?

“Digitale Wege in der beruflichen Bildung – Alibi-Ansätze oder Innovationen”

With this provocative title we want to stimulate critical discussion on halfway-thought reforms around digitization in the field of VET. As a contrast we want to give insights into practitioner-led innovations in vocational learning.

3. What kind of an event do we want to have and with whom?

We want to have an event for and with VET practitioners. We want to invite them to think of their own possibilities to shape new learning arrangements with digital toolsets (e.g. with Learning Toolbox) and open educational resources (e.g. with such learning designs that Jan has presented in the OER-report for TACCLE4 CPD).

As participants we want to invite teachers (from vocational schools) and trainers (from training centres) of whom we know that they

1. have an interest in enhancing their digital competences and
2. want to develop vocational learning with digital toolsets and OER.

In this respect we want to give them inspiring impulses and opportunities for hands-on training in terms of peer-to-peer support.

4. What contents for discussion and training have we considered?

From the perspective of TACCLE4 CPD project we discussed two main perspectives:

• Use of Learning Toolbox as means to enhance vocational and workplace-based learning culture – in particular from the point of self-organised learning.
• Use of Open Educational Resources (OER) as support for shaping-oriented learning and for combining different learning paths.

From the perspective of TACCLE AI and VET project we discussed some further perspectives that could be taken up:

• The shaping of “Smart factory” competence centres in vocational schools and their contribution to the development of vocational learning culture.
• The use of humanoid robots as “assistants” to teachers in large classes with  heterogeneous learners and diverse support needs.

5. What further ideas we want to emphasise in the event?

Promoting the readiness of participants to work with new tools:

• Tools with which they can co-shape their own teaching/learning arrangements;
• Tools that they can develop themselves and use in their teaching and learning.

Create an understanding for the unity of culture, structures and technology in order to achieve sustainable innovations in VET:

• Culture – to bring into picture and spread the innovative spirit to develop learning and to engage colleagues and learners;
• Structures – to ensure the acceptance of the new ideas and the readiness of the whole organisation to support new initiatives;
• Technology – to use appropriate technology for working and learning tasks.

(Points from the perspective of unsuccessful practice:

• You may have inspired teachers but if the structures do not provide any flexibility, the innovations remain isolated.
• You may have up-to-date technologies, but if they are not linked to the learning culture, their potentials are not in full use.
• You may have supportive structures and adequate technologies, but if teachers are not able/willing to take initiatives, the innovations do not take off.)

Provide insights into new learning concepts (enriched with digital tools and digital media) and how to work with them:

• Micro-learning (adjusted to vocational and workplace learning with major time constraints)
• Nuggets with max. 5 minutes digital media content to capture the concentration of learners and to stimulate further learning.

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I guess this is enough for the moment. I will get back to this topic in due time.

More blogs to come …

In my previous posts I have presented results that have been achieved in the EU-funded project TACCLE 4 CPD. I have drawn attention to the reports that have focused on promoting digital competences of teachers and trainers in the field of vocational education and training (VET). With this post I want to shift the emphasis from the final products to the process of work that has led to results. Here I want to highlight the collaborative process that has made it possible to achieve genuine results with the theme “Using Open Educational Resources (OER) in the field of VET”.

Before I go any further I need to make the point that I couldn’t have brought such results on my own – as a research in VET with researcher’s view on practice. To me it has been a highlight in this project to work together with my colleague Jan Naumann. Jan has a background in apprentice training for two technical occupations and then a long experience as trainer and as vocational teacher. Having completed his studies in pedagogics of VET he has joined us as a researcher in ITB. With his manifold experience in ‘training teachers and trainers’ projects we could focus on real use cases and teaching/learning arrangements. But we could also bring the documentation and promotion of OER further with our join efforts.

Preparing the report on uses of OER in the field of VET

When we started working with the report for the TACCLE 4 CPD project we made a decision that we will not try to give an encyclopedic overview on different kinds of OER. Instead, we tried to outline an innovation path (or learning journey) in using OER to shape and enrich vocational taeching/learning arrangements. From this perspective we presented exemplary cases – starting from simple ones and heading to more complex ones.

In the first exemplary case the use of digital tools was not highlighted. Instead – with the process in which apprentices were making their own tools – the pedagogic point was that the learners were producing tools for themselves. Thus, they were invited to think of the use of the tools and of the quality requirements. In the second example a learning path in robotics was enriched with the use of Open Resources (OR) into an integrative project that brought together different areas of vocational knowledge. In the third example the use of OR in a nodal point of hitherto separate learning path helped to link them into an integrated set of learning paths. In the fourth example the use of OER and OR helped to bring parallel learners’ teams (technical, administrative and catering) into a joint learning project – planning and organising go-kart races with self-planned project administration, self-made vehicles and self-organised catering services.

Preparing the supporting power point presentation on two exemplary cases

Whilst the report could provide rather lively summaries of cases that have been implemented in practice, it was necessary to give closer insights into the educational designs. Therefore, we prepared a power point presentation as an annex to the said report. In this presentation we could visualise the development, enrichment and integration of the learning designs in the second and third exemplary case. To us, this provided a basis for discussions, how to build upon such cases.

Preparing the ePoster  to share knowledge on the report and the exemplary cases

However, we didn’t stop working when we had finalised the report and the annexed power point presentation. We wanted to take a further step in using digital tools to promote knowledge sharing on such innovations. Therefore, we prepared an ePoster by using Learning Toolbox (LTB) – the digital toolset that had been developed in the earlier EU-funded project Learning Layers (LL). For this purpose we created an LTB-stack that consisted of three screens (as they appear on the mobile app of LTB). The first screen presents an opening message and then provides access to the report, power point presentation and to a relevant web page for accessing OR. The second screen presents the exemplary case of the single integrative project with additional information and detailed presentation. In a similar way the third screen presents the integrated set of learning paths. Finally we prepared the stack poster that can be used as a mini-poster in conferences.

With this process of work we have tried to demonstrate, what we mean with the concept ‘innovation path’ in the context of promoting uses of OER in vocational teaching/learning contexts. And with using LTB as means to share knowledge we have tried to work with our own tools to deliver our message.

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I think this is enough of this highlight in our project work. Now it is time to take a break and to see what comes next.

More blogs to come …

During the last few weeks I have worked hard to finalise my deliverables for the EU-funded project TACCLE4 CPD. The project develops models for continuing professional development (CPD) to promote digital competences of teachers and trainers. The acronym TACCLE stands for “Teachers’ aids on creating contents for learning environments”. The current project is already the fourth one in the series of TACCLE projects. The earlier ones have focused on classroom teachers and on organising training for interested teachers. The current project has shifted the emphasis to organisational level and to different educational sectors – including adult education (AE) and vocational education and training (VET).

My contributions (on behalf of our institute ITB have focused on the field of VET and made transparent challenges and boundary conditions for promoting digital competences as contribution to vocational learning. In my previous blogs I have discussed this with reference to the particular reports once I have got them completed. Now that I have the full set of  reports ready and uploaded on ResearchGate I want to present an overview, what all has been produced to support CPD initiatives and to draw attention to promotion of digital competences in the field of VET.

Overview of the VET-related reports for TACCLE4 CPD project

Below I just present the titles of the reports and the links to ResearchGate. For further information I refer to the previous blogs and to the abstracts on ResearchGate:

Report One: Policy analyses as background for continuing professional development of teachers and trainers in the field of vocational education and training (VET). DOI:10.13140/RG.2.2.24915.73762

Report Two: Finding new approaches to promote digital competences – Legacy of past projects and new inputs from R&D projects in vocational education and training (VET).  DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.13171.68649

Report Three: Role of Open Educational Resources (OER) in the field of Vocational education and Training (VET) – Insights into uses of OER in vocational teaching/learning arrangements.  DOI:10.13140/RG.2.2.23552.58880 (co-authored with Jan Naumann)

Annex to Report Three: Using Open Resources (OR) and Open Educational Resources (OER) in Vocational Education and Training (VET). Two examples of teaching/learning designs. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.10969.67684 (co-authored with Jan Naumann)

Report Four a: Strategies and Training Models for promoting Digital Competences in the field of Vocational Education and Training – Reflections on Policies, Conceptual Frameworks and Innovation projects. (Co-authored with Angela Gerrard and Werner Müller)

Report Four b: The Theme Room Training 2020 framework – Promoting digital competences of vocational teachers and trainers Report 4b for the TACCLE4 CPD project.  DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.16783.33447

Annexes to The Theme Room Training 2020 framework (Report 4b for the TACCLE4 CPD project) 

As I see it, I have completed a coherent work program starting from policy analyses, continuing with explorations on R&D projects and use cases on introducing OER and then landing to a synthesis report and to framework for shaping CPD measures. I hope that this has been useful.

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I thing this is enough of presenting my contributions to the TACCLE 4 CPD project. Now it is time to shift to more specific themes and working issues.

More blogs to come …

Last week I was happy to announce that I had completed the text to my final deliverable for the TACCLE 4 CPD project – the Theme Room Training 2020 framework for promoting digital competences of vocational teachers and trainers. At the same time I made the point that the mere drafting of such a framework on the basis of the given thematic blocks is not enough. I made it clear to myself and to the readers that I still have to prepare Annexes to the framework – as coordinates, how to work with it. Now I have prepared a set of Annexes and I think that I have done my job to answer the question “so what“. Below I try to give a picture, what the annexes are and what they stand for.

Annexes to the Framework text – what do they stand for?

The first annex that I have prepared is an annotated list of reference materials  to the Theme Room Training 2020 framework. As it is the case, not all thematic blocks have been based on publications. To some extent there are publications that can be referred to. But equally, there are field interviews and working documents and emerging educational resources. I have tried to do justice to all these as relevant reference materials to the framework.

The second annex provides an overview, how the German framework study has interpreted the concepts ‘digitization’ (in education and training) and ‘digital transformation’ (in working life) – and what implications they have on vocational education and training (VET). In addition, the annex presents a selection of thought-provoking theses, with which the research team challenged practitioners and stakeholders to reflect the ongoing and future changes.

The third annex is a seemingly simple interview guideline to discuss the readiness of older and younger learners to take up the use of digital media and toolsets in the context of vocational learning. However, these questions were not the ones that I originally posed in the beginning of my field interviews with vocational trainers. Instead, they were the ones that I identified on the basis of our discussions – I had posed narrower questions, the trainers broadened and deepened the scope.

The fourth annex presents the use of Learning Toolbox (LTB) for preparing ePosters to promote knowledge sharing and transfer of innovation. So far I had promoted the use of ePosters in research conferences and prepared my own ones on the basis of my research papers for the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER). This week I had the pleasure to work with my colleague Jan Naumann to prepare an ePoster on the theme “Use of Open Educational Resources in Vocational Education and Training (VET)”. We were happy to complete our work and to insert the related mini-poster to the annex document. The ePoster can be accessed via the following link.

The fifth annex presents the TACCLE 4 CPD Routemap as a tool for planning the use of ICT resources in education and training and for developing training (or CPD) initiatives for teachers and trainers. I hope that the selection of power point slides gives a picture, what all can be achieved when working with the Routemap.

Altogether, I think that the annexes have given an appropriate push to work further with the themes that were raised in the Theme Room Training 2020 framework. After all, we didn’t aim to provide cookboks with ready-made recipes. Instead, we have tried to raise key themes and give impulses, how to work as innovation leaders and change agents.

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I think this is enough of these annexes and how they complement the framework. Let us hope that these have been useful pieces of work. Time will tell.

More blogs to come …