The GREAT project focuses on learning, teaching and using new technologies and being adequate about using the digital competences. It cannot be denied that it is compulsory to keep up with the technology. In order to be able to use it in a positive way, first teachers should include the usage of technology in their yearly plans and curriculum. Technology is playing a critical role in how curricula are being developed and implemented. This is reflected in a huge movement in many countries to create STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) curricula to prepare students for lifelong learning and the demands of the future Through this project the children who have difficulties to learn many abstract concepts,will be familiar about the contents of new technologies thanks to the coding and robotics .The children will have a better understanding and will have the ability to think in three dimensions.Reading books or just studying is not enough for us to reach information. Because even in a second, a new invention emerges and we have countless new automatic vehicles. The world of science brings technology to today's inventions and brings the products we use with coding and robotics to the points we cannot imagine.All of them come from the perfect harmony of coding and robotics. Therefore, starting from the early ages, coding and solving the robotic language,they will continue their lives without confusion as they will understand the content of the new inventions which they will encounter during their lives.Primary school students will be introduced to coding through Block Based Coding through robotics, which involves dragging and matching different “blocks” of instructions. Secondary school students will learn Python programming and utilise Makeblock robots and construct advance projects.Professional Development is the key to success, thus teachers will be equipped with key competences and skills which will assist them to succeed in their professional or academic careers.
The partners wanted to address all of the above, to carry our research and develop the relevant, up-to-date, high-quality content in order to address our target groups' needs. Therefore the following objectives were set, which we wanted to achieve by implementing the GREAT project: 1) empower children to be problem solvers and innovative thinkers through science and technology 2) train children as young as seven (7) years old and older in robotics 3) implement new teaching methods and materials that will encourage STEM teaching 4) conduct progressive series of curricula developments 5) develop course plans and teacher training courses for STEM 6) target teachers at primary, lower secondary and upper secondary level within the area of robotics in schools’ European dimension by promoting closer relationships between teachers 7) increase schools’ European dimension by promoting closer relationships among schools, students and teacher All project activities were developed and implemented in line with the above objectives. Objectives were set with the SMART technique, so we can measure the success of the activities, outputs and all project related processes.
The partners are passionate about high-quality pedagogy, coding and robotics, and about English language education, so we applied for this project in order to research the IT & English curricula in an international environment, so that we can develop high-quality teaching materials, which are not readily available as coding has not been implemented into the curriculum in each partner country. We also wanted to provide the opportunity for students to acquire such skills & knowledge, to show them that STEM can be fun & inspire them to become STEM professionals of our future. Additionally, continuous professional development (CPD) is crucial for teachers to stay current with their knowledge and skills. As CPD is not compulsory in most of the countries, we wanted to find out which topics most teachers would like to get training on, so we can develop such content. We have addressed the following needs (teachers & students): - digital competences in ICT & new technologies - critical thinking, analytical & problem-solving skills - up-to-date careers guidance - New innovative curricula, educational methods, relevant teacher CPDs and Content, Language and Integrated Learning (CLIL) training materials. - English language competences