ARETE opportunities for primary school teachers

ARETE-Pilot teachers-update_News_600x400

If this is your first time hearing about the ARETE project, it aims to test the usefulness of Augmented Reality (AR) technologies in education. In this regard, European Schoolnet is recruiting teachers to trial the WordsWorthLearning and CleverBooks interactive Augmented Reality solutions in primary schools.

Jump to PILOT 1 if you are an English teacher or a Special Needs Assistant (SNA) in a primary school where English is the main teaching language.

Jump to PILOT 2 if you are a primary school STEM teacher in either geography or geometry to 4th or 5th graders during the next school year.

 

Pilot 1

ARETE is running an exciting study to investigate how Augmented Reality (AR) technologies can help students improve their English literacy skills. To study the impact of AR technologies on English literacy attainment, ARETE Pilot 1 will test a unique application, provided by WordsWorthLearning. The application was developed by a Consulting Speech & Language Therapist with over 30 years clinical experience and who is a specialist in resolving specific learning difficulties, including dyslexia. We believe that the integration of more AR features into an already proven WWL programme, will result in even further gains in literacy attainments and make the learning process more fun for those participating.

European Schoolnet will need 38 English teachers or Special Needs Assistants of pupils in the 4th-6th grade of primary school (aged between 9 and 12 years old in September 2021), who typically underperform in standardised English literacy tests, to participate in ARETE Pilot 1 activities. We are looking for teachers who are active in schools where English is the main teaching language and come from EU and H2020 associated countries. Moreover, teachers should feel comfortable communicating in English, be digital savvy and keen on applying technology in their teaching.

All the teachers participating in ARETE Pilot 1 will receive educational products and access to software free of charge. Moreover, at the end of the pilot, every teacher will be provided with a report concerning his/her classroom progress made during the pilot. In addition to that, all the pilot participants will gain unique experience of implementing augmented reality in the classroom. For more information about the activities and the role of Pilot 1 teachers, the selection criteria and the aim of this pilot, please read the ARETE-Pilot-1-Call-for-PT-briefing.

Teachers are invited to apply for the call through the following link (successful applicants will be appointed on an ongoing basis): https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ARETE-Open-Call-for-Pilot-Teachers-Pilot1.

The selected teachers will be officially informed by a confirmation email sent by European Schoolnet.

All applications must be submitted in English.

 Important:

  • The final selection of teachers will be validated by the Ministries of Education in the corresponding countries. EUN will not enter into any detailed discussions or exchanges with any applicant as to why their application was not successful.
  • Selected teachers will be responsible for getting any permissions from the school necessary for their involvement in the ARETE Pilot 1 and the completion of the tasks outlined above.
  • To carry out the activities between September 2021 and June 2022, each selected teacher will be requested to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with EUN, which will include: 1) the description of tasks and benefits for pilot teachers, students and parents; 2) the description and purpose of the research being carried out within ARETE Pilot 1; 3) data management provisions, namely storing the consent forms of pupils and parents.

 

Pilot 2

ARETE Pilot 2 investigates the impact of Augmented Reality (AR) technologies on STEM skills learning and retention. To study whether AR helps students to acquire STEM skills and retain the complex information for longer, ARETE Pilot 2 will test two immersive AR applications for learning Geography and Geometry, provided by CleverBooks. By using either application, pupils will develop both their spatial and visual cognition by learning the foundations of Geometry and Geography through critical thinking by engagement with and understanding of abstract objects.

European Schoolnet is recruiting up to 160 primary school teachers (of pupils in the 4th or 5th grade as of September 2021), who are actively involved in teaching geometry (mathematics) or geography topics in primary education to participate in ARETE Pilot 2 which will test AR solutions in relation to learning STEM subjects. The following countries will be prioritised (up to 20 teachers per country):

1. Croatia

2. Greece

3. Italy

4. Poland

5. Portugal

6. Romania

7. Serbia

8. Spain

9. Ireland

10. Sweden

11. Turkey

*Pilot teachers may be recruited from UK, additional European Union and H2020 associated countries (outside the main group listed above). The language of materials for participants from outside this group will be English.

We are looking for teachers who are willing to test cutting edge education solutions in real classroom settings. Moreover, teachers should feel comfortable communicating in English and be digital savvy.

All the teachers participating in ARETE Pilot 2 will receive educational products and access to software free of charge. Moreover, at the end of the pilot, every teacher will be provided with a unique report concerning his/her classroom progress made during the pilot. In addition, your participation in the ARETE Pilot 2 will help us to develop and improve new technologies and digital tools for education. For more information about the activities and the role of Pilot 2 teachers, the selection criteria and the aim of this pilot, please read the ARETE-Pilot-2-Call-for-PT-briefing-final.

Teachers are invited to team up with another teacher from their school and apply for the call through the following link (successful applicants will be appointed on an ongoing basis): https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ARETE-Open-Call-for-Teachers-Pilot2.

The selected teachers will be officially informed by a confirmation email sent by European Schoolnet.

All applications must be submitted in English.

 Important:

  • The final selection of teachers will be validated by the Ministries of Education in the corresponding countries. EUN will not enter into any detailed discussions or exchanges with any applicant as to why their application was not successful.
  • Selected teachers will be responsible for getting any permissions from the school necessary for their involvement in the ARETE Pilot 2 and the completion of the tasks outlined above.
  • To carry out the activities between September 2021 and June 2022, the selected teachers will be requested to sign the Memorandum of Understanding with EUN, which will include 1) the description of tasks and benefits for pilot teachers and students; 2) the description and purpose of the research being carried out within ARETE Pilot 2; 3) data management provisions.