Category: News

Project partners will participate on April 4 at 18:00 hours (CET) in the webinar “DigitalTA: Building a European model for teacher transition.”

Organized by the Association for Teacher Education in Europe (ATEE), a partner organization of the project, the event will be attended by Josep Alemany, DigitalTA project coordinator and teacher at UNEATLANTICO; Thomas Prola, Project Manager at FUNIBER; Rachel Lenihan, lecturer at the University of Limerick (UL) in Ireland; and Jiří Kropáč, researcher at the Palacký University of Olomouc in the Czech Republic.

The early research carried out during the first year of the project will be analyzed during the event.

We will first review the shared European experiences regarding the processes of initial and continuous practical teacher training. The report presented by the project partners aims to address the needs of educational challenges around the world, especially in transition, as well as to seek bridges on how to react to needs in initial preparation, transition, and cooperation among practicing teachers.

The speakers will also focus on another research project aimed at developing a harmonized European model of practical training to provide guidance and support to in-service teachers. The purpose of this report is to present the basis of the reflective model of online guidance and accompaniment for students and education professionals who are in the first years of their professional practice in primary and secondary schools. It is based on a pedagogical approach to meet the needs of teachers beginning their training, taking full advantage of the potential of information and communication technologies.

The event is free of charge. Those interested in accessing the program should register at the following link.

The project’s main objective is to improve the practical education of pre-service and in-service school teachers throughout the countries of the European Union, thereby reducing the number of school dropouts.

The project, led by the European University of the Atlantic (UNEATLANTICO), also counts on the collaboration of different European institutions: Artesis Plantijn University of Applied Sciences (AP), University of Limerick (UL), Univerzita Palackého v Olomouci de Olomouc, Uniwersytet Jana Kochanowskiego w Kielcach, the Segovia Teacher Training Center and the Swiętokrzyskie Centrum Doskonalenia Nauczycieli.

The Ministry of Education of Cantabria (Spain) will collaborate in the Erasmus+ DigitalTA (2022-25) project led by the European University of the Atlantic (UNEATLANTICO) with the participation of multiple European academic institutions.

This collaboration was consolidated after the signing of an agreement by María Mercedes García Pérez, General Director of Innovation and Educational Inspection of the Government of Cantabria, and Josep Alemany Iturriaga, Project Manager of the DigitalTA project and professor at UNEATLANTICO.

The agreement signed at the Regional Ministry is of utmost importance for the project’s successful development, and reflects how well both institutions agree on projects aimed at improving education in Cantabria and the European Community.

It is worth recalling that the Erasmus + DigitalTA project (2022-25) aims to improve the practical education of teacher training students and young teachers in European Union countries, reducing professional attrition when transitioning between learning to teach and teaching to learn.

This collaboration, under the coordination and supervision of the Technical Unit of Evaluation and Accreditation (UTEA), with further collaboration from the Teaching Consultancy responsible for the Development of Digital Competence in Cantabria, will include the dissemination and divulgation of the project’s activities, among other actions.  Furthermore, it will involve participation from different stakeholders (graduates, master’s students, professors, etc.) during the design of the digital tools and pilot experiences of the project, review processes and co-design of the digital tools, as well as in the pilot training sessions. Their support will also be available during the design process of the new tutoring/mentoring tool, participation in the pilot experiences, and during the development of the platform.

A teacher training program is a program that equips teachers with techniques and modern pedagogy strategies that helps them to better connect with, manage, and teach to their students in a manner which ensures that all students are learning and benefitting.

The partners of the European project Erasmus + DigitalTA (2022-25), led by the Universidad Europea del Atlántico (UNEATLANTICO) held a presentation at the university campus located in Santander on the 30th of September, 2022. The project is aimed at proposing the design and implementation of a digital resource open to all educational agents that improves the transition of studies and practices of student teachers and novice teachers.

Teacher training programs are of different types and forms: There are short term, medium term and long term programs which are conducted online or offline. The teacher needs to understand from the perspective of the student as to what would make a classroom session significantly more intriguing. Every training course designed for teachers offers practical classroom sessions as an integral part of the course, with each candidate being mentored for making the classroom teaching sessions more engaging and interesting for the benefit of the students.

Here are some of the benefits of teacher training:

Professional growth

When teachers attend training programs, it gives them the opportunity for continuous professional development – to learn new ways, methods, strategies, skills and tools. When teachers get upskilled they automatically feel confident, happy and motivated to achieve greater things with their students.

Better student management

As a teacher it is important to know, understand and analyze students effectively. Only then can they know how to teach their students. Teacher training programs help teachers to better understand and therefore, better manage their students.

Dr. Rachel Lenihan from the University of Limerick (Ireland) spoke about how their school is working on building partnerships from campus to classroom and making sure students are supported during their transition to teaching, as well as providing support for current teachers, both in and out of the classroom.

Impacts students indirectly

A teacher training program not just impacts teachers but also students. A single teacher who is upskilled can go on to impact thousands of students. Teachers have a big role to play in nation building because students are the citizens of tomorrow.

At the end of the conference after students had the opportunity to ask questions, Dr. Jiri Kropac from the Univerzita Palackého v Olomouci in Olomouc (Czech Republic) answered a question about what values the DigitalTA project is hoping to defend in teacher training at universities. “We want to transfer our values to students,” answered Kropac, “and even if we cannot get them to believe them, we want to give them the opportunity to think about teaching morals in a different way”.

It is also important to not only train new teachers, but also continued training for teachers who have been working for a long time. Even the best teachers will begin to lag behind if they don’t continue to strive for excellence. The reason why continuing teacher training is so important for educational excellence is simple: teachers need to be given regular training opportunities in order to stay at the top of their game.

Jesús Solera from the Centro de Formación del Profesorado e Innovación Educativa de Segovia (Spain) discussed the importance of facilitating training of teachers both in pre-service training and in-service teaching. This includes enhancing the detection of training needs of the teaching staff, and using evaluation as an instrument for improvement.

Teacher training gives the teacher a theoretical and practical education on the nuances of teaching students how to accomplish their greatest potential. Without this training, the teachers will not be in a position to provide proper guidance, and that will affect the foundation of the education being built.

The project is aimed at proposing the design and implementation of a digital resource open to all educational agents that improves the transition of studies and practices of student teachers and novice teachers.

The auditorium of the European University of the Atlantic was the scene of a European meeting on teaching transition, carried out within the framework of the Erasmus + DigitalTA project led by the academic institution and in which different European universities and educational centers participate in.

The event was attended by a group of professors from UNEATLANTICO and representatives of the collaborating institutions of; Univerzita Palackého v Olomouci in Olomouc (Czech Republic), University of Limerick (Ireland), AP Hogeschool Antwerpen (Belgium), Uniwersytet Jana Kochanowskiego w Kielcach (Poland), the Centro de Formación del Profesorado de Segovia (Spain), the Fundación Universitaria Iberoamericana (FUNIBER), the Świętokrzyskie Centrum Doskonalenia Nauczycieli w Kielcach (Poland) and the Association of European Teachers (ATTEE).

This activity was attended by students from the UNEATLANTICO Degree in Primary Education, who learned about the teaching transition in other European countries and ask questions to the partners. The meeting was broadcast live on the YouTube channels of UNEATLANTICO and FUNIBER.

In this sense, the representatives of the collaborating institutions held different meetings, activities, and workshops at the University Campus during the past week, getting to know first-hand how the University works and the available facilities for educating its students.

Erasmus+DigitalTA (2022-2025)

The DigitalTA project (2022-2025), selected by the European Executive Agency for Education and Culture (Brussels) among the eleven best projects out of more than 50 in the 2021 call, has much relevance in the Cantabrian, national, and European educational field.

This initiative proposes the design and implementation of a digital resource open to all educational players in improving the transition of studies and practices of student and novice teachers through the creation of a learning community where they can find solutions and answers to their everyday teaching experiences.

This is the only project of its kind led by a Spanish university, which seeks to respond to the European concern of improving the quality of teachers and professors throughout the community through initiatives such as this project, enabling collaboration and relationships between different institutions and countries, while also providing feedback and give rise to a digital environment in which future, novice, and experienced teachers who mentor them will improve their skills based on shared experiences.

The partners of the European project Erasmus + Digital TA (2022-25), led by the European University of the Atlantic in which the Iberoamerican University Foundation (FUNIBER) is a participant, will meet at the university campus located in Santander between September 27 and 30. The objective of this first face-to-face meeting is to share progress on the project, where they will establish and strengthen the bases of the project based on a framework of the different European contexts involved. Moreover, during these days, tasks will be distributed and quality indicators will be designed to ensure their proper development over the next three years.

The project, selected by the European Executive Agency for Education and Culture (EACEA) among the eleven best out of more than 50 submitted in the call for 2021, has a great relevance in the Cantabrian, national and European educational field as a proposal for the design and implementation of a digital resource open to all educational agents toward improving the transition of studies and practices of student teachers and new teachers. All of this is thanks to the creation of a learning community where they can find solutions and answers to the day-to-day teaching experiences. 

Thus, representatives of the collaborating universities of Univerzita Palackého v Olomouci in Olomouc (Czech Republic), University of Limerick (Ireland), AP Hogeschool Antwerpen (Belgium), Uniwersytet Jana Kochanowskiego w Kielcach (Poland), the Centro de Formación del Profesorado de Segovia (Spain), the Fundación Universitaria Iberoamericana (FUNIBER), the Świętokrzyskie Centrum Doskonalenia Nauczycieli w Kielcach (Poland) and the Association of European Teachers (ATTEE), will visit the university campus and get to know the facilities.

These partners will make a presentation about the institution they represent and the role they play in the project and will also have the opportunity to share different ideas and proposals. For four days, meetings, workshops, and activities related to the project will take place, such as the one that will take place at the end of the meeting, in which the partners will talk about the teaching transition in their countries. The students attending will also be able to ask questions, with cultural activities promoting the excellence of Santander and Cantabria.

Professors Josep Alemany, Juan Luis Vidal, Raquel Vallines, Samuel Allende and the academic director of the degree in Primary Education, Dr. Laura García Valladares will all participant on behalf of the European University of the Atlantic. Students of this degree will have the opportunity to attend an activity for disseminating the teaching transition that will take place in the Assembly Hall of the University with the European partners, which will be broadcast live on the UNEATLANTICO and FUNIBER YouTube channels.

The European Commission has announced the first projects selected for the new Erasmus+ Professor Academies. Among these is DigitalTA, led by the European University of the Atlantic and FUNIBER, in addition to other international partners.

The DigitalTA project is a Digital Academy that focuses on the transition of professors from education to practice, competence development for classroom work through case studies, but above all the support of a learning community, a peer community of European student professors, university professors and continuing education teachers, creation of learning communities and case studies to prevent early leaving the profession.

Thus, the Spanish Service for the Internationalisation of Education (SEPIE), the Spanish agency for the development and management of the European Union’s Erasmus+ programme for Education and Training in Spain, organised together with the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM), with the support of the European Commission, a conference to inform institutions interested in submitting projects for Erasmus+ Professor Academies.

Representing UNEATLANTICO and FUNIBER, Thomas Prola said that it is an initiative that seeks to “promote a European culture for teacher training, creating an international network of educators in transition and, in this way, prevent the early abandonment of the teaching profession, a major problem for the countries involved in the project”.

The event was held under a hybrid modality (face-to-face and online), with the presence of representatives of the participating institutions, in the city of Toledo (Spain). The event provided information on the context of the creation of the initiative, key aspects for the presentation of projects, as well as a table with good practices of the selected projects.