Winning with eTwinning. Education students are more ‘classroom ready’ than their peers

Education students are learning to some of the best ‘virtual classroom’ teaching standards in the land after a programme at the University of Northampton received a stamp of assurance.

The first of the University’s two Digital Learning Across Boundaries (DLAB) Erasmus+ projects has received an eTwinning Quality Label from the British Council.

eTwinning is a free online community which allows schools to find partners to work on projects virtually that will bolster the learning of their students, give them access to professional development opportunities and resources and raise their teaching standards.

The Quality Label is official proof that DLAB has reached a European standard based on the quality of its teaching, use of technology and impact.

Receiving the label means University of Northampton teaching students involved with the project have an extra skill under their belts and are more ‘classroom ready’ than their peers.

DLAB 1 was a collaboration between a team of the University’s Teacher Training lecturers and students, teachers from Northampton International Academy and eight other schools and universities across Europe.

Part of DLAB 1 focused on how to help schools add art to science, technology, engineering and maths subjects, turning ‘STEM’ into ‘STEAM’.

This is because art can enhance different stages of STEM work. It can provide inspiration at the beginning, help make connections between learners while work is ongoing or engage an audience when communicating results. It can bridge the gap between science and the arts, maximising STEM learning.

DLAB 1 resulted in the creation of an online course to help schools achieve this that lead to the British Council’s recognition.

Now the team have moved on to ‘DLAB2: Developing Changemakers’. The first part of this will look at how virtual reality (technology that immerses the user in a wholly digital environment) and augmented reality (technology that adds digital elements to a live view, often by using the camera on a smartphone) can be used to help get young people who are addicted to gaming to better engage with their physical health.

To do this, the DLAB team will use ‘Exergames’ (physical activity apps) to see how they can get gamers off the couch and taking part in more exercise. This phase is expected to conclude in August 2020, when the DLAB team move on to a new focus about crossing personal boundaries.

Dr Helen Caldwell, Senior Lecturer in Education, said: “eTwinning is a very ‘up to the minute’ style of teaching adopted by schools across the UK and is a very impactful and powerful way of working with a classroom in another country – you get the very definite feeling you are going somewhere together.

“There is a real spirit of collaboration with eTwinning so it will be fascinating to see how DLAB 2 pans out and if we can turn the negative stereotype of gaming on its head.

“I’ve seen first-hand the rich stream of exploration and innovation with our students – both at home and abroad – so receiving this official stamp of the quality from the British Council for DLAB is wonderful.”

Find out more about Teacher Training at the University of Northampton.

Find out more about eTwinning.