21st May 2018

Design learning scenarios with Europeana content and resources

This week is a really engaging one . I have seen some interesting tasks which have been carried out also by using Europeana.

W e have been introduced to 5 learning scenarios accompanied by classroom videos, reflection interviews or student interviews produced by teachers. By exploring these five scenarios, we have discovered some interesting tools and innovative approaches, such as Augmented Reality, Project-Based Learning or IBSE, that will help to develop 21st-century skills and make learning more fun and engaging for students. We have also learnt how to work in a cross-curricular project or teach STEAM subjects with Europeana content.

The main aims of this module:

1.Explore 5 learning scenarios which use Europeana resources

2.Learn about tools and selected methodologies, such as PBL, Augmented Reality or STEAM subjects

3.Find examples of 21st-century skills for students in the context of learning scenarios, and how Europeana can contribute to their development

4.1 Introduction to the learning scenarios of Europeana DSI-3

The aim of the Europeana DSI-3 project (September 2017 – August 2018) is to continue reaching educators and mainstreaming the use of cultural heritage in the classroom. To accomplish this, it organised a Developer Group of teachers (18 teachers from across Europe) who produced a set of learning scenarios, and open source, professional development materials for teachers based on the Europeana Collections. The 18 teachers from Finland, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain cover a range of disciplines and curriculum topics in primary and secondary education, such as STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects, but also art and languages.

More information about the Europeana DSI-3 project can be found here.

If you are interested in seeing all the learning scenarios the Developer Group has created, you can access them here by typing the key word Europeana.

Useful links

http://fcl.eun.org/europeana-dsi-3

4.2 Project-based learning and augmented reality with Europeana

The Past of Alsace

This learning scenario addresses the history of Alsace, which is a region currently in France, by the German border. By comparing different maps, students will become aware of the construction of their country borders. At the same time, they will reflect on the kinds of problems and political tensions that had to be solved in the 20th century, which led to WWII.

By working collaboratively, students will select Europeana WWII resources, discuss ideas, and use ICT and augmented reality tools to produce a learning outcome, including video records, images and so on.

If you are wondering how Europeana can be used in a project-based learning (PBL) methodology to learn about augmented reality, keep reading!

According to the Buck Institute for Education, project-based learning is a teaching method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an authentic, engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge. Wikipediadefines augmented reality as a direct or indirect live view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are "augmented" by computer-generated perceptual information, thus altering one’s current perception of a real-world environment.

Teachers using both PBL and AR claim that their use in the classroom is beneficial, as augmented reality changes the way that students interact with their world and the way they learn their subject matter. Besides, if you work with printed AR-enabled worksheets, you allow students to keep working with AR from home, which will keep their interest and engagement alive outside school. This aspect is very important, as it enables students to foster a positive relationship with education and technology, and they can advance at their own pace.

The scenario that Gilles has created allows students to link the past with today’s political problems, by combining project-based learning and augmented reality. In order to carry out this project, students have to find various resources (maps, photos, videos) about their region, Alsace, or any other region facing political tension. Once they have conducted the research, they construct an augmented reality product, also discussing how peaceful citizens can contribute to solving the initial political tension. This way, students have not only gained history knowledgeand technical skills by working for a period of time to investigate Alsace and its origins, but they have also become more motivated and engaged thanks to augmented reality. The combination of these two approaches makes teaching and learning more rewarding, as they help to connect students and schools with communities and the real world, which boosts students' engagement and motivation to work.

If you are interested in using PBL in your school, take a look at this page, where you will find the information you need to create a successful project that will maximise student learning and engagement.

If you want to know more about Augmented Reality, the International Society for Technological Education has a great number of resources on producing printable AR worksheets that can be adjusted to fit any age group and subject matter. Moreover, you can investigate the topic of AR further by reading A Scannable Solution for Your Classroom by Monica Burns, which provides educators with examples of how to use AR with QR Codes efficiently.

4.3 An Inquiry-Based Science Education lesson with Europeana

I really liked this lesson plan based on IBSE

The scenario Story of Darwin and the Comet Orchid that Matteo has created revolves around Charles Darwin and how he was able to predict the presence and shape of an insect from the study of an orchid shape, years before the insect was discovered. The insect was not discovered until after Darwin’s death. The activity presents the story using original material (books and letters) and biological samples included in the Europeana archive. This scenario is suitable for a Biology course, specifically a lesson about co-evolution, a process that happens when two different living beings evolve together. The Story of Darwin and the Comet Orchid is an inquiry-based activity suitable for high school students.

You should take a look at the following video where Matteo Cattadori explains how he has implemented his learning scenario with his students: https://youtu.be/V8pWF9xehe4

Details about the lesson are online: http://fcl.eun.org/directory/details?contentId=1117

What is IBSE?

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) is an educational strategy through which students follow methods and practices similar to those of professional scientists in order to construct knowledge (Keselman, 2003). One of the benefits of using IBL is that the students are an active part of their own learning process: they must suggest an experimental activity to peers and design it. IBL is organised into different steps, in which teachers guide the students to think about an experimental idea, design the experiment and present the results to their peers.

There are four levels of inquiry-based learning:

1.Confirmation inquiry: At this level, the teacher uses inquiry as confirmation for already acquired knowledge. For example, the teacher gives a lesson about a topic, then prepares an activity by posing questions and guides students through it to an answer that is already known by them.

2.Structured inquiry: The teacher provides the scientific question and guidelines or structure to the investigation. Students are required to explain their findings.

3.Guided inquiry: The teacher only provides the research question. Students are responsible for designing their own experiments and validating data at the end of the process.

4.Open inquiry: Students formulate their own research questions, design the experiment and present their findings.

4.4 A Physics and Technology lesson with Europeana

Sounds of Nature: recording and analysing natural environment sounds Rafael Montero, Physics lesson

Link : http://fcl.eun.org/directory/details?contentId=1114

It is an interdisciplinary lesson where Biology and Technology teachers work together to deliver a blended lesson. In this lesson, high school students will study recordings of birds from the Europeana repository and compare them with their own recordings of local fauna.

Students have to analyse the pitch and frequency of the audio data. In addition, students have to develop field work to collect real-life data from nature (using their mobile phones) and combine it with their classroom study. While developing the work, problems shall arise, which will be solved by students along the learning process, using the methodology of PBL.

The final product that students will create in this scenario is a poster or infographic. In order to create the infographic, students will have to familiarise themselves with open software tools such as Audacity and Sonic Visualizer. This final product will also enable students to reflect on what they have learnt during the project. Additionally, at the end of the project, results will be freely available for the educational community to work with.

This scenario follows a collaborative learning methodology, as students are asked to work in groups, which helps to improve their creativity.

4.5 A History lesson with Europeana

Napoleon Bonaparte played an important role in European history between 1805 and 1813. As a starting point, this learning scenario tries to capture the emotions that this influential historical person awoke throughout Europe and how they were expressed by creating cartoons. In this way, students can also understand the codes and techniques of satirical images in general.

In this scenario produced by Jean-Christophe, students are work together to complete a task, which in this case is a final presentation about the topic. In order to do so, students are required to read the images and explain their idea about the historical context in which they were created - usually by opponents of Napoleon.

According to research by Laal and Ghodsi (2012), the benefits of collaborative learning are many: it allows the learner to realise her own interdependence with others, and encourages positive interaction and recognition of responsibility. What is more, collaborative learning (CL) in the classroom promotes critical thinking skills, increases results in the classroom and creates learning communities.

4.6 An Art, Language and History lesson with Europeana

It is a project about children’s games in the time period of Finnish independence (1917-2017), organised as a part of a Finnish Independence Day exhibition in the school.

Within this learning scenario, children search for pictures about children from different decades and replicate the games played in the past. On the exhibition day, the students introduce their photos (originals retrieved through Europeana) and replicas/modern versions at their own location (a table in the corridor). If students have time, they complete extra tasks, such as recording interviews with their friends and family members, and search for additional information, such as toys or games used by them.

The project combines the subjects of (local) history, arts, and the Finnish and English languages, and covers skills such as critical information retrieval, media literacy and media usage (Photoshop and GIF). It also develops transversal competences such as linguistic and cultural skills and creative problem-solving, and it promotes digital learning, joy of learning, a collaborative atmosphere and student autonomy, as the students themselves are the drivers of their own learning process. The discussion to select the right picture and the creation of a modern version of the photo allows for collaborative work among the students, which is also very motivating and engaging for them.

4.7 Step 4: The Learning Designer