We have launched our Seven Smart Steps project to engage in the renewal of pedagogical culture in response to the ever-changing needs of society. The concept underlying the project aims to make digital pedagogy methodology widely available to the professional community and to develop the necessary competences of teachers. We would be pleased if you could follow our initiative.
A change in pedagogical approach
“Surveys on the use of ICT content in education show that teachers mostly use the opportunities offered by virtual environments for traditional purposes such as demonstration and motivation. The use of digital tools is not clearly associated with a renewal of methodological culture, and we therefore want to support the development of teachers’ digital pedagogical competences. We aim to empower professionals to choose and, where necessary, create digital learning materials and teaching solutions that are best suited to the subjects, the educational objectives, the learners’ interests and abilities.”
7 smart steps
In the framework of the project, we are implementing a seven-step (7 smart steps) adaptation process, whereby we have developed a “training” for teachers to develop digital curricula and acquire new knowledge about ICT tools, digital teaching aids and their role in everyday education. Accordingly, the project will organise 7 workshops for participants, providing them with joint technical and professional-methodological training. The programme will focus on the development of skills in the use of digital teaching aids and the development of competences in curriculum development. We aim to develop a useful skill structure and approach that can be used in teaching in the long term. At the same time, the collaborative work will result in a high-quality curriculum, produced by practicing teachers, with content aimed at the 8th grade exit level, which will be tested in real school settings by teachers with the help of their 270 students. The 21 teachers involved in the collaborative work will produce curricula in the following areas: reading comprehension, history, science and mathematics.
Innovative methodology – differentiated, adaptive, individual learning paths
The innovative methodology we have developed will be adapted to the independent curriculum development of the participating teachers. The essence of the methodology is that it enables a differentiated, adaptive learning along individual pathways. In the background, an Individual Learning Pathways (ILP) background application allows students to follow different learning pathways according to their abilities and current knowledge. The path taken, i.e. where the student goes next, changes depending on whether the student has succeeded in the task given. To simplify the process considerably, the student moves up a level for a correct answer(s) and down a level after several failed attempts. A key concern for us is to reduce performance anxiety by ensuring that each student progresses at his or her own learning pace, according to his or her own ability. We try to avoid giving students tasks that are too difficult or too easy, and instead aim to provide them with a challenging set of tasks that is appropriate to their level.
The Tanlet educational tool and the content is available free of charge to all interested parties.
For more information about the project, please visit:https://sevensmartsteps.hu/
You can read the newsletter in pdf format here.