“Expanding Learning Spaces” workshop

 

i3 conference, porto, portugal

 

25 april 2001

 

 

 

The purpose of the workshop is to explore the new limits of the learning environment, expanded significantly with the introduction and establishment of ICT in Education, and track the development of pedagogical and technological innovations contributing in the design of the school of tomorrow. The school of tomorrow has to be able to emit and absorb along different wavelengths, be immersed in contemporary culture, be open to the emotions, facts and news of its time. Learning will be just initiated in school and the structure of teaching and learning will be broader, covering not only the school environment but also home (with its broader meaning of society) and the playfield, bridging in addition the differences between school (theory) and world (practice) by dealing with everyday life problems and situations. Students’ daily activities could give input for learning and create an omnipresent learning environment for teaching, based on a constructionist approach, shifting away from classroom learning to “daylong” learning.

 

The workshop “Expanding Learning Spaces” will investigate innovative implementations and theoretical frameworks for the following subjects:

 

·          Expanding the limits of the Classroom

·          Equal and parallel development of pedagogical and technological innovations.

·          Adoption of a user centred approach to the new educational tools

·          The new roles for the student and the teacher

 

The workshop attempts to answer the issue of re-engineering the school for tomorrow, as proposed by pedagogical and technological innovations, and is aiming at discussing the settings for the improvement of quality and accessibility of learning through ICT (embedded IT, communication channels, web-enabled electronic tools). What is the role of the pedagogical community in the development of the innovative technology? Is the technological innovation designed with educational targets and criteria when it comes to educational applications?

 

Emphasis will be given to ethical considerations and evaluation based on a human-centred approach, both crucial parameters for the successful implementation of ICT in school praxis, examining in parallel the new demanding role of the teachers and the new relationship between schools and their environment.

 

The programme of the workshop (version 5-2-01, Draft)

 

·         Introduction (Dr. S.A.Sotiriou, Ellinogermaniki Agogi)

 

·         The School of Tomorrow (Carlos Oliveira, European Commission)

 

·         Expanding Learning Spaces: The Lab of Tomorrow Project (Prof. N. Uzounoglou, National Technical University of Athens)

 

·         Todays Stories Project (Prof. Walter Van de Velde, Starlab)

 

·         Storytelling technologies and KidStory: Innovation in the classroom (Angela Boltman, College of Education and Institute for Advanced Computer Studies, University of Maryland)

 

·         School + Project (Prof. Juana M. Sancho Gil, University of Barcelona – to be confirmed)

 

·         The HandLeR (handheld computers for lifelong learning) (C. Baber, The University of Birmingham)

 

·         Adoption of a user centred approach to the new educational tools (F. Scheuermann, Institute for organisation and learning, University of Innsbruck – to be confirmed)

 

·         Ethical considerations and evaluation for the successful implementation of ICT in school praxis (Prof. S. Vosniadou, University of Athens)

 

·         Equal and parallel development of pedagogical and technological innovations. (Dr. Stavros Savas, Ellinogermaniki Agogi)

 

·         Intelligent Systems Support for Learning Concepts and Methods (G. Neumann, Otto-von-Guericke-University of Magdeburg)