Developing All -Round Education (DARE+) was an innovative project on informal and non-formal learning in the context of the European Higher Education Area and student-centred competence-based learning, arising from the realization that institutions pay too little attention to the enormous learning potential of informal and non-formal contexts. It centred on the design and piloting of multiple instruments for the acquisition, evaluation and accreditation of six generic competences, grouped in two broad areas or tracks: the education of cooperative citizens, on the one hand, and communication, on the other, designed to be used in both formal and non-formal contexts. The competences chosen for their centrality to personal development in higher education were the following: Track 1. Cooperative citizenship, citizens who are able to work collaboratively and to take an active part in the society they live in. In the early stages of the project, emphasis was on team work and leadership, and thereafter, on project organization and management, and social entrepreneurship, with the aim of increasing learners’ capacity to analyse societal problems collectively, to offer solutions, to plan and manage projects, with the ability to analyse the impacts. Track 2 dealt with communication. During the early stages, the project centred on communication, the capacity to listen and convey messages, to debate and to present a case. It then moved on to intercultural communication and conflict mediation. The aim was to strengthen the capacities of learners to contribute in multicultural societies where conflicts of understanding and values are a significant obstacle to growth and development. Partners (five universities and two university networks) on the project were chosen because of their prior experience and expertise in the field of generic competences, and/or in the field of informal and non-formal learning contexts. • University of Deusto, Bilbao, Spain (International Tuning Academy) • University of Groningen, Netherlands (International Tuning Academy); through the International Tuning Academy, the project was also able to incorporate Professor Darla Deardoff of Duke University, USA, a leading world expert on intercultural communication • University of Uppsala, Sweden • University of Padova, Italy • Trinity College Dublin, Ireland • University of Granada, Spain (coordinating institution) • Education for an Interdependent World, Brussels, Belgium (network of university halls of residence) • Coimbra Group of Universities, Brussels, Belgium (network of longstanding research-driven universities with strong local and international engagement). The project firstly identified and systematised the experiences of the different partners in approaching these generic competences; the team then proceeded to jointly design stronger pedagogical proposals for the development of each of the competences in different educational and national contexts. Methodologies and activities to complement formal educational approaches in informal and non-formal contexts were explored. In particular, the role of halls of residence, which offer excellent opportunities for developing generic competences, were incorporated, building on the centuries-long experience of most of the partner universities, and seeking to generalize the lessons from that experience to the broader EHEA. The methodologies were piloted both at local level at each partner institution and at European level with intensive summer programmes for a number of learners who had previously participated in the local activities. In order to ensure the quality and coherence of all these activities, together with the dissemination and sustainability of the project activities, three train-the-trainer seminars were also held. Finally, the project addressed the assessment, certification and recognition of learning in informal and non-formal contexts, and formulated recommendations for different stakeholders: universities, university and student networks and associations, halls of residence, higher education authorities. The multiple instruments designed over the lifetime of the project are all open and available at the project website www.dareplus.eu, and include: • A print and on-line publication collecting best practices already in place at partner universities, together with definitions and rubrics for each of the competences addressed and a proposal for the assessment of competence acquisition by portfolio. For universities, networks and associations, halls of residence, trainers. • A fine-tuned and detailed definition of competences and levels of acquisition in the form of rubrics. For universities, networks and associations, halls of residence, trainers and learners. • Model programmes and activities for international train-the-trainer seminars. For universities, networks and associations, halls of residence, trainer trainers. • A wide variety of blended learning instruments and activities for local use in informal and non-formal contexts during the academic year. For universities, networks and associations, trainers, halls of residences, learners. • Model intensive international summer study programmes. For universities, networks and associations, halls of residence, trainers. • Model (self-)evaluation instruments. For universities, networks and associations, halls of residence, trainers and learners. • Recommendations for universities, university and student networks and associations, halls of residence, higher education authorities. Following the project, partner universities are exploring ways of incorporating this kind of learning activity and its recognition to their teaching and learning in general on a permanent basis, each in its own context and with its own internal constraints. The recommendations have been widely disseminated to stakeholders of all kinds. Universities and networks from beyond the project consortium have also expressed interest in adopting the approach. The consortium plans to continue to update and disseminate the materials, and to organize learning activities at local level and where possible on international level for both learners and trainers. In particular, the consortium is studying the applicability of the learning and assessment materials for student refugee populations, where the need for flexible, adaptable and recognizable approaches is key to attending the huge and pressing needs of learners in the short and medium term.
Developing All Round Education (DARE+) is an innovative Project in the context of the European Higher Education Area and student-centred competence based learning. The project has brought together a prestigious and complementary group of partners, including leading world expects in the fields covered. The Consortium included seven universities (Trinity College Dublin, University of Deusto, University of Granada, University of Groningen, University of Padova and Uppsala University), an international non-profit association (Education for an interdependent World, EDiW) and the Coimbra Group of Universities. During two years (2014-2016) the DARE+ partnership has evaluated how university students could improve the DARE+ generic competences (ie. Teamwork, Leadership, Project Development and Management, Social Entrepreneurship, Communication, Intercultural Competence and Conflict Transformation) through the combination of formal learning with structured competence acquisition experiences outside the classroom. As stated in the project proposal document, the DARE+ project sought to “rethink in terms of opportunities of developing generic competences – various activities and initiatives that university students can get involved in during their free time.” The identification and analysis of the aspects of the generic competences which can be developed in non-formal and informal environments would lead to a better recognition and further development of learning in non-formal and informal contexts, as well as raising awareness about the development of the above-mentioned competences in such contexts both among students and educators. The main activities undertaken by DARE+ can be summarised in the production of intellectual outputs, the design and implementation of mobility and local activities and the dissemination of results through the DARE+ multiplier event. Along with the DARE+ publication, intended to be a reference tool for students to develop any or all the generic competences, the DARE+ project designed and developed a rubric for assessing each of the competences (DARE+ Rubric), a series of materials for dissemination purposes, a methodological and pedagogical model for the design and implementation of Intensive Summer Programmes, an evaluation system in relation to levels of competences (DARE+ Portfolio) and a strategy for the adaptation of methodology for recognition of prior learning (DARE+ Recommendations). Regarding the mobility and local activities, they have served as the testing ground for a sample segment of the targeted audiences of the project: students and trainers. Two Summer Intensive Programmes and three Train the Trainer Workshops were carried out focusing on each targeted audiences, respectively. Finally, the DARE+ multiplier event allowed for presenting the results of the project as well as raising interest in the assessment and accreditation systems developed, which, ideally, will lead to an impact at a regional and national level. The implementation of DARE+ has resulted in the design of innovative materials, piloted in real-life learning situations which constituted rich learning experiences to students and tutors involved directly in the project. The impact of DARE+ includes the establishment of a close-knit international network of partners committed not only to facilitating and recognising non-formal and informal learning, but also to highlighting the importance of the acquisition of generic competences. Additionally, DARE+ has led to the publication of materials in open format, which will remain available even when the project is formally over, as well as recommendations to universities, networks, associations and authorities at all levels regarding the need to advance in the recognition of the learning taking place in non-formal and informal environments. The partnership of DARE+ believes that the project has made a significant contribution, setting the basis and developing the tools to further work on the evaluation, assessment and recognition of generic competences in non-formal and informal contexts. Along with the materials designed, tested and made available by the consortium, DARE+ has engaged in the incorporation of the assessment and learning tools, and in the recognition of the above-mentioned competences in non-formal and informal environment. In this sense, policy recommendations have been designed in order to support decision-making at a national and local level.