SPACE – Agents of Change in Education (2016-2019)

Partners

Dundalk Institute of Technology; Artesis Plantijn Hogeschool Antwerp, Belgium; Stord Haugesund University College, Norway; CMSM – Curso de Musica Silva Monteiro, Portugal; Speel je wijs, Netherlands; RESEO – European Network for Opera and Dance Education.

Project Description and Outputs

This project explored STEAM education and the main aim was to establish an international student-run entrepreneurial organisation. The outcomes were a network of in-training teachers trained in the delivery of innovative cross-disciplinary art/science educational modules to primary students, based on a collaboration with a leading European research and industry entity: the European Space Agency’s Technology Centre (ESTEC). The SPACE project aimed to allow creative arts students to be inspired by technological innovation, and to contribute to it.

During the project students and staff from DkIT travelled to the partner institutions in Norway, Belgium and Portugal working collaboratively with students and teachers in these institutions, while staff also participated in training at the European Space Agency’s Technology Centre (ESTEC) in Holland. A variety of methods and approaches were used throughout the project including ‘Write a Science Opera’ (WASO) which is a transdisciplinary, inquiry-based approach to teaching at the intersection of art and science in schools. Students worked on a variety of outputs including designing lesson plans and workshops which incorporated the elements of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) education. All participants attended the final conference in Portugal in March 2019 at which results of the project was disseminated to teachers and practitioners. The workshops allowed the audiences mind to be opened up to the wonderful and diverse world of STEAM which aims to eclipse the former STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) as to place an emphasis on interdisciplinary approaches to education that are valued and brought together rather than divided like elements of STEM.

Other outputs created during the project included the development of an app, a WASO guidebook, a STEAM repository, a WASO pedagogy framework and website. The ‘Neptune App’ which allows users to explore the planets in our solar system while also making music, exploring sounds from space and uploading your own students. The WASO guidebook includes step-by-step instructions for teachers on how to implement WASO in classrooms and includes physical and vocal warm ups to inspire the students. The STEAM ‘Recipe’ Repository includes some of the ‘recipes’ (resources) developed during the project. Examples include a recipe which explore shutter speed of a camera and guides students to paint with light, a recipe which explores global warming and plastic waste through music making and a recipe that explores how magnets work and using them to create art.