The specific objectives of the project are to: --Develop the capacity of primary school teachers in applying game-based learning to their classrooms using open source software for addressing literacy goals in line with the school curricula; -- Provide advice and support to teachers on how to use the Toolkit for developing games using open source software focusing on specific theories, methodologies and models, the Play for Literacy Gamekit and the elearning platform --Increase students’ motivation to participate in literacy activities through game play --Combat low levels of literacy and engage at risk students, by using technology creatively --Prepare students to meet the literacy demands of the 21st century, continue studying, find and maintain employment later in life, cope with fast-paced technological change, and develop as citizens --Empower stakeholders to use innovative pedagogical methods and game-based practices through the utilization of open source software to enhance students’ literacy skills.
Based on the 2018 results from PISA, the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment, the EU has not yet met its benchmark to drop the number of underachieving learners below 15% by 2020. Most partner countries did not meet this benchmark either, since in Cyprus the percentage of underachievers in reading was 43,7%, in Greece 30,7%, in Austria 23,6% and in Italy 23,3%. The report shows that more than one in five 15-year-olds in the EU (21.7%) had poor reading skills. Regarding digital literacy, only 47% of 15-year-old students in OECD countries possessed the necessary skills to distinguish between facts and opinions, understanding the connotations of information (OECD, 2021). In most partner countries, specifically Greece, Austria, and Italy, students’ scores in reading performance were below the mean average of the participating countries (457, 484, and 476 out of 487, respectively) (OECD, 2021). This impacts students’ chances to continue studying, find and maintain employment later in life, cope with fast-paced technological change, and develop as citizens. The numbers reflect the grim picture of literacy in Europe, which needs to be reversed, for the EU to achieve its educational, social, political, and economical goals. To shift the above paradigm, the European Commission’s Digital Education Action plan 2021-2027 highlights the potential of digital technologies to improve educational practices. This pinpoints the improvement of teachers’ competences in using innovative pedagogical approaches, becoming creators that will support learning and develop learners’ digital literacy to tackle disinformation. To respond to these demands, a transnational consortium of 7 partners from 6 different EU countries namely, Spain, Italy, Austria, Ireland, Greece, and Cyprus, came up with the Paly4Literacy initiative. Based on the potential digital games have in engaging young learners and dramatically improving learning, the project aims at exploiting game-based learning to tackle the low literacy levels. Specifically, the Play4Literacy project aims to address low achievement in literacy skills by supporting primary education teacher’s competences in designing game-based learning in line with their school curricula. By applying an early intervention approach, beginning from Primary Education, the project contributes to the ET 2020 benchmark that fewer than 15% of 15-year-olds should be under-skilled in reading.