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Promoting Innovative Teaching & Learning to Enhance Student Learning Experience in Eastern Partnership Countries (PRINTeL)

Project Duration: 18.07.2018 – 18.07.2021

Project Number: 585760-EPP-1-2017-1-AM-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP

Status: active

Project Members & Partners

• Yerevan State University (Armenia) – Lead Beneficiary and Project Coordinator
• National Polytechnic University of Armenia (Armenia)
• Vanadzor State University after H. Tumanyan (Armenia)
• National Center for Strategic Research in Higher Education (Armenia)
• Ilia State University (Georgia)
• Georgian Technical University (Georgia)
• Iakob Gogebashvili Telavi State University (Georgia)
• Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)
• Universitat de Barcelona (Spain)
• Universidade do Porto (Portugal)
• Linkopings Universitet (Sweden)
• FH Joanneum Gesellschaft mbH (Austria)
• Belarusian State University (Belarus)
• Brest State Technical University (Belarus)
• Yanka Kupala State University of Grodno (Belarus)

PROJECT AIMS

• To enhance student learning experience in the partner countries (PC) in accordance with the ET 2020 objectives by promoting development and innovation in teaching & learning (T&L), supporting integration of technology and research, and dissemination of good practice.
• To modernize HE in AM, GE and BY in line with the Bologna agenda and to establish cooperation in education & training between EU and the partner countries and amongst PCs by promoting virtual mobility of teachers and students, and enhancing lifelong learning resources & means.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

1. 1.To strengthen Teaching Staff Development Centres (TSDC) in the PC HEIs by enhancing capacities of staff and trainers, modernizing infrastructure and introducing innovative teacher training and academic leadership programmes.
2. 2.To build up capacities of the partner HEIs’ teaching staff by developing their innovative and technology-enhanced T&L skills and abilities of competency- and research-based teaching.
3. 3.To establish a Virtual Academy of Teaching & Learning (VATL) as an international community of teachers, staff and students interested in using and sharing Open Educational Resources (OER) for the improvement of technology-enhanced T&L.
4. 4.To promote greater awareness on the types and methods of innovative and technology-enhanced T&and to disseminate best practices within and between HEIs in the PCs.

About 30 staff & 100 trainers will be trained on innovative T&L methods and ICT-based interactive and e-learning technologies for TSDCs. 28 technology-enhanced teacher training (TET) classrooms, 9 multimedia content building studios, other e-learning facilities and 5 new TET courses will be set up in PC HEIs.

 The project places a strong emphasis on the capacity building of a wide cohort of teaching staff in PC HEIs by utilizing a multiplier effect via “train the trainer” initiative. The trained trainers will adapt & deliver newly developed TET courses to over 530 university teachers.

 The project will provide PCs' HE communities with an interactive professional communication, mutual learning and virtual mobility platform & Open Educational Resources - the VATL, to promote innovative T&L practices and continuous development of teaching staff.

 As a result of the project implementation 6 virtual VATL’s communities of teaching practice around particular teaching approaches & disciplinary groups, an annual virtual forum on innovative T&L, as well as internal institutional incentives will be established to promote awareness on innovative pedagogy and excellence in T&L.

METHODOLOGY

The declared objectives of the Project will be fulfilled through:

• Conducting trainings and workshops for a wide range of staff and teachers in the PC universities;
• Adopting new innovative teaching and learning (T&L) practices;
• Establishing a common virtual platform for creating, using and sharing Open Educational Resources (OERs);
• Organizing study visits, information seminars and dissemination conferences in PCs;
• Disseminating the project results and materials to the wider academic communities in the PCs.

Throughout the Project implementation exchange and transfer of knowledge, expertise, know-how and good practice between EU and PC universities will be a vital point for attainment of the project objectives. 

EXPECTED RESULTS

• About 30 staff & 100 trainers of TSDCs will be trained on innovative T&L methods and ICT-based interactive & e-learning technologies.
• 28 technology-enhanced teacher training (TeT) classrooms, 9 multimedia content building studios, other e-learning facilities and 5 new TeT courses will be set up in the TSDCs.
• The Project places a strong emphasis on capacity building of a wide cohort of teaching staff by utilizing a multiplier effect via “train the trainer” initiative. The trained trainers will adapt and deliver newly developed TeT courses to over 500 university teachers in their respective HEIs.
• The project will provide HE communities of the PCs with an interactive professional communication, mutual learning and virtual mobility platform and OERs - the VATL - to promote innovative T&L practices and continuous development of the teaching staff.
• As a result of the Project implementation 6 virtual communities of teaching practice around particular teaching approaches and disciplinary groups, an annual virtual forum on innovative T&L, as well as internal institutional incentives will be established to promote awareness on innovative pedagogy and excellence in T&L.

PRINTeL website - https://printel.am/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ErasmusPlusPRINTeL/

PRINeL Leaflet - https://printel.am/uploads/page/pdf_en/PRINTeL%20Leaflet_Final.pdf