11 December 2024
University of Deusto
On Wednesday, 11 December, researchers Rocío García and Iratxe Menchaca, members of the eDucaR team, participated in the Coffee-Talk event on International Educational Cooperation Projectsat the University of Deusto, a space designed to promote the exchange of experiences and knowledge in international education. During the event, they presented two outstanding Erasmus+ initiativesthat reflect the commitment to innovationandcollaboration in the field of transnational education.
Iratxe Menchaca presented Soundscapes. Soundscapes is a European project led by InovLabs, an educational startup from Portugal, developed in collaboration with the University of Deusto, the Ellinogermaniki Agogi School in Greece and the Nuclio Centre for Astronomy and Education in Portugal. This project focuses on designing STEAM educational resources for primary and secondary school students, using data sonification and Design Thinking methodology. Students analyse and represent data through music or sound, addressing issues such as sustainability and emotional education, while developing skills in computational thinking, project-based learning, inclusion and diversity. In addition, work is underway to define a reference guide material for teachers and an open portal or wiki has been created for teachers and researchers interested in replicating and extending the use of sonification in education.
The Erasmus+ Rural Virtual Classroomproject, presented by Rocío García, responds to the challenges of rural education by creating a real-time collaborative virtual space to strengthen rural schools. This project, led by the company Estela Cántabra, together with the University of Deusto, the Associació d´Iniciatives Rurals de Catalunya, the Instituto Omnicomprensivo di Bobbio (Italy) and the Roscommon LEADER Partnership (Ireland) and the Vytauto Didziojo University (Lithuania), has developed Ágora, a platform to support schools and teachers in rural areas throughout Europe. It also offers a collaborative learning space where teachers can create projects and working groups to help one another. Moreover, through its virtual classrooms, teachers can collaborate in real time and exchange ideas and knowledge.
Both projects demonstrate the University of Deusto's commitment to educational internationalisation and cooperation, placing innovation at the service of inclusion and the development of key competences in different contexts.
