TEA LEAF PROJECT Teaching Ecology through Apps : Learning Engagement AND Fun Children, and thus parents/teachers, explore their worlds all the time with ICT tools. Misconceptions about biodiversity/ecology are deeply engrained and if we wish to transform learning at school at a deep level: learners need to encounter stimuli in such a way as to bring about real change and the learning must be transformative. This project will explore the use of serious games (called “apps”) by experiments conducted by teachers and their pupils (from upper primary school to lower secondary school), who will be in permanent contact with a team of researchers and academic advisors, and supported by an in-service training programme developed for this purpose. Everyone will work together (teachers, researchers, trainers) in order to identify good practices, and then to disseminate them within the participating organizations. The analysis of this iterative process is at the heart of the action research project. This includes also the analysis and improvement of the apps used and tested in this process. The experimenter-teachers (75 teachers from 5 countries) will link together across the project (European dimension) and they will be able to acquire certification during the 3 years’ experimentation to validate their skills from one of the university in the partnership. They will be able then to become resource persons within their schools network. To improve learning about biodiversity using serious games, there are three approaches that can be taken: 1/ the use of ready-made apps, currently available 2/ the production and evaluation of designer-made apps 3/ the production and evaluation of child-made apps These represent two directions: A/ top-down (teacher-led, transmissive and emphasising constructivist learning) B/ bottom-up (child-led, and constructivist) In the course of the project we aim to move from 1/ to 3/ and thus from A to B in an iterative process with feedback. Due to all this elements, here are the expected results: • In-service training course for teachers • Website • Portal of communication • Teachers learning community • Teachers resource book • Research papers • Academic book • Pre-service course for students • Conferences on national bases • Certification for teachers involved in the project with summer course in Dublin • International closing conference / symposium / colloquium in 2017 in France. The project team is : Direction de l'Enseignement catholique de la Mayenne (UDOGEC FR), St Patrick's College ( a college of Dublin City University IRL), Zapadoceska Univerzita V Plzni (West bohemia University Pilsen CZ), Univerza V Ljubljana (Faculty of Education SL), Universidad de Almeria (SP). This project is coordinated by Direction de l'Enseignement Catholique de la Mayenne (UDOGEC FR).
TEA LEAF PROJECT / Teaching Ecology through Apps : Learning Engagement And Fun Teaching biodiversity, ecology with serious games: from action research to innovative practices: · How? What practices? With what tools? · What benefits for students? · What professional development for teachers and future students? The TEALEAF project is an ERASMUS + project within the framework of the strategic partnerships for school education, which took place from September 2014 to August 2017. Three years of research and research by a group of researchers and teachers (primary and secondary), led by an international team of researchers, teacher advisors and teacher trainers. The partners supporting this project are: - -DUBLIN (Dublin City University) Ireland, - PILSEN (ZAPADOCESKA UNIVERZITA V PLZNI - West Bohemia University) CZ Republic, - LJUBLJANA (UNIVERZA V LJUBLJANI) Slovenia, - ALMERIA (UNIVERSIDAD DE ALMERIA) Spain, - LAVAL (Direction Diocésaine de l’Enseignement Catholique de la Mayenne (UDOGEC/DDEC53)) France. Experimentation and collaborative work in action research workshops in each country and in a summer course in Dublin City University in July 2016 took place for all the teachers involved in the project (48 teachers from 5 countries). About 900 students/year participated in these experiments , around 3600 students during 3 years (primary school, college and students with special needs in secondary schools). This research-action work (teachers, researchers, pedagogical consultants, trainers) allowed analysing practices to identify the relevant steps to achieve the project’s objectives. This analysis is at the heart of the action research project. It includes examining and improving the applications used and tested in this process, as well as creating serious games. The project’s partners, in the long term, keep the same developmental objectives for different publics: - training resource teachers for primary and secondary schools through in-service training - training future student teachers in initial teacher preparation, - providing adapted educational resources, including for pupils with special needs, - developing teachers’ learning communities in school networks on the theme of biodiversity using serious games in order to perpetuate their network of resource teachers. The productions resulting from this project are numerous and diversified: - website, - surveys of teachers' populations in each country, - creation of a continuing education program - experimentation from the in-service course with 48 teachers from 5 different countries - testing of existing serious games - serious games creation - conferences - Teacher's book - Academic book - publications of research work