University of Konstanz: For a culture of digital transformation
Project to promote the digitalisation-related competencies of future teachers receives funding approval in the amount of EUR 2.5 million for an additional funding period as part of the national “Qualitätsoffensive Lehrerbildung” (quality enhancement campaign for teacher education)
The University of Konstanz’s project “edu 4.0 – Lehrerbildung für eine Kultur der digitalen Transformation an Gymnasien und Beruflichen Schulen” (edu 4.0 – teacher training for a culture of digital transformation at secondary and vocational schools) has successfully passed the first application phase for the additional funding period of the “Qualitätsoffensive Lehrerbildung” of the German federal and state governments, which focuses on both “digitalisation in teacher training” and “teacher training for vocational schools”. Subject to final approval, the inclusive project application addressing both secondary and vocational (Economics and Business Education) teacher education programmes will allow the University of Konstanz to draw upon funding in the amount of EUR 2.5 million.
The “edu 4.0” project was initiated by the Binational School of Education (BiSE), the central institution responsible for teacher training at the University of Konstanz. The application was submitted by Professor Malte Drescher (Vice Rector for Teaching and Curricular Affairs), Professor Stephan Schumann (BiSE vice speaker, Economics and Business Education), Professor Thomas Götz (BiSE speaker, Empirical Educational Research) and Junior Professor Christiane Bertram (Didactics in the Social Sciences). The primary aim of the project is the interdisciplinary development of structures, opportunities and measures that promote the digitalisation-related competencies of future teachers.
“The development of new digitalisation-related courses and advisory services is a collaborative effort at our university, drawing on expertise from our Communication, Media and Information Centre (KIM), Academic Staff Development (ASD) and the individual departments”, explains Professor Malte Drescher, Vice Rector for Teaching and Curricular Affair at the University of Konstanz. “This is how we will further expand the network interlinking individual academic disciplines, didactics and the educational sciences in Konstanz, thus making the best possible use of existing synergies in regard to 'digitalisation’”.
The central purpose of the “edu 4.0” project is to develop an interdisciplinary “in-house expertise”. To this end, a team of experts from different disciplines and with various functions and “digitalisation” competencies will be assembled, thereby pooling the university's existing expertise in this area. Future teachers will gain access to this expertise via newly designed training programmes for lecturers and digitalisation-related courses for students. This team includes colleagues from the Thurgau University of Teacher Education (PHTG), which has been a long-term collaboration partner of the University of Konstanz. The project also aims to collaborate with schools in the Lake Constance region and with the state seminars for the training and continuing education of teachers in Freiburg, Rottweil and Weingarten, which supervise teacher traineeships. The project will officially commence on 1 March 2020.
A total of 43 projects at 64 universities were selected to receive funding from March 2020 to December 2023. The funding is intended to complement the “DigitalPakt Schule” funding programme for the German states. It will be used to strengthen the media skills of future teachers and to promote the further development of innovative teaching and learning concepts. The German federal government is providing up to EUR 500 million for the 2013-2023 funding period as part of the “Qualitätsoffensive Lehrerbildung”.
Facts:
- Subject to final approval, the University of Konstanz will receive funding in the amount of EUR 2.5 million as part of the additional funding line of the “Qualitätsoffensive Lehrerbildung” (quality enhancement campaign for teacher education) with a focus on “digitalisation in teacher training” and “teacher training for vocational schools”
- Project name: “edu 4.0 – Lehrerbildung für eine Kultur der digitalen Transformation an Gymnasien und Beruflichen Schulen” (edu 4.0 – teacher training for a culture of digital transformation at secondary and vocational schools)
- Project duration: 1 March 2020 until 31 December 2023
- Funding amount: EUR 2.5 million; funding provided by: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in the context of the “Qualitätsoffensive Lehrerbildung” programme
- Project leader: Binational School of Education (BiSE) at the University of KonstanzThe primary aim of the “edu 4.0” project is the interdisciplinary development of structures, opportunities and measures that promote the digitalisation-related competencies of future teachers at the University of Konstanz
- A total of 43 projects at 64 universities were selected to receive funding of up to EUR 79 million