Duration: November 11, 2022 - November 6, 2023
SELFIEforTEACHERS tool: https://education.ec.europa.eu/selfie-for-teachers
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The aim of the project is to explore the personal, institutional and systemic factors that influence teachers’ utilization of the SELFIEforTEACHERS (SfT) tool to support their self-reflection and professional learning design to further develop their digital competence. The study is for Primary and Secondary school teachers and it is undertaken in collaboration with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC).
A consortium of researchers from Cyprus, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Spain, and The Netherlands, in collaboration with the JRC conducts the research project. It is coordinated by the Media, Cognition and Learning Research Group in the Department of Communication and Internet Studies at the Cyprus University of Technology.
Duration: January 1, 2021 - June 30, 2023
Project website: https://www.ihub4schools.eu/
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
iHub4Schools focues on accelerating whole-school digital innovation in and across schools through establishment of Regional Innovation Hubs. This will be achieved through:
Partners of the project with the University of Helsinki are Tallinn University (Estonia, project coordinator), University of Bergen (Norway), University College London (UK), Ecole polytechnique federale de Lausanne (Switzerland), Vilniaus Universitetas (Lithuania), Shota Rustaveli State University (Georgia), STEPS srl (Italy), and Hariduse infotehnolootia sihtasutus (Estonia).
Duration: August 1, 2019 - June 30, 2022
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The DETECT project aims to raise awareness amongst educators and support them in developing critical digital literacies in relation to the use of digital technologies and social media. This will involve reconceptualising the notion of digital literacies that is tailored specifically to educators’ personal and professional needs within a school context.
The main outcomes of the project will be 1) a Scoping Study and a Critical Digital Literacies Framework created based on the study; 2) Online Toolkit to exemplify best practices and affordances in relation to critically using digital technologies within a school context, both for educational purposes or for teachers’ professional development, 3) a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) to support teachers with developing their critical digital competences, and 4) academic outputs including scientific and professional publication and presentations to disseminate the project outcomes more widely.
The coordinating organization of the project is University of Hull from Great Britain. Other partners come from Italy, Spain and Finland.
Duration: August 1, 2018 - December 31, 2019
Project website (in Finnish)
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The project investigates and develops methods and tools for supporting the development of global competencies both in educational and work contexts: questionnaire instruments for self-evaluating group work practices, web-based application for collecting data (Experience Sampling Method App) and for self- and co-reflection of results (Competence Wall) as well as pedagogical models for teachers, trainers and facilitators.
The project is funded by Business Finland.
Duration: September 1, 2017 - December 31, 2019
Project website (in Finnish)
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The project focuses on investigating and developing pedagogical practices in virtual classrooms as well as the pedagogical expertise of teachers and student teachers in teaching virtually. The service of Digiluokka from Tutorhouse is applied in the project; its goal is to offer students in upper secondary schools more possibilities to complete courses that are not organize in their schools.
The project is part of a larger project of the university of Helsinki for developing teachier education (name in Finnish: Kestävää tutkimusperustaista opettajankoulutusta ja uutta luovaa opettajien osaamista rakentamassa), funded by the the Ministry of Education and Culture in Finland (see Oppiminen uudistuu).
Duration: September 1, 2015 - August 31, 2019
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
ARONI is a research project funded by the Academy of Finland, carried out together by University of Tampere, University of Jyväskylä and University of Helsinki.
The consortium aims to make a pedagogical breakthrough by developing a new instructional model for teaching online inquiry competences (OICs). To achieve this goal, the consortium will develop research instruments to assess students’ OICs and teachers’ pedagogical practices in the classroom. The research instruments are used to explore pedagogical gaps empirically both from students’ and teachers’ perspectives. The findings inform the development of the instructional model within the theoretical frameworks to which the multidisciplinary consortium is engaged. The instructional model is exposed to a rigorously designed evaluation.
From the University of Helsinki, researches participating in the project are Auli Toom (principal investigator), Liisa Ilomäki, Minna Lakkala and Hanni Muukkonen.
Duration: March 1, 2017 - March 30, 2020
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal.
The project purpose is to support partner higher education institutions in Megong area (especially Laos) in terms of international collaboration, curriculum revision, teaching material, introduction of e-learning teaching methods with the aim to provide good forestry professionals and academics for the forest sector in the Mekong region. The project also aims to upgrade learning tools such as forest measurement instruments, computer equipment, reading materials at library and software to support research and practical training activities by local students and staff.
The project is conducted by VITRI (Viikki Tropical Resources Institute) of University of Helsinki, Finland The project is funded by the Centre for International Mobility (CIMO), Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture through the HEI ICI- International development cooperation programme for higher education.
The overall objective of this project is to support the development of sustainable institutional capacity in Hamelmalo Agricultural College (HAC) in Eritrea through enhancing the of teachers methodological and pedagogical competencies, strengthening curriculum and training of staff. Only then, HAC will be capable of to contribute to development of society, economic growth and sustainable development of Eritrea.
The main actor in the project from VITRI is Dipjoy Chakma. Researchers Liisa Ilomäki and Minna Lakkala from TEdu participate in the pedagogical training of university teachers during the project.
Duration: September 1, 2014 - August, 31, 2018
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
CLiC is a research project funded by the Academy of Finland, carried out by the Discovery Group at the Department of Computer Science, University of Helsinki, in collaboration with the researchers of TEdu.
The project investigates 'computational linguistic creativity', i.e., the ability of computers to act in verbally creative ways. In the project, basic research to develop novel data mining inspired methods for computational linguistic creativity is carried out, especially for supporting human creativity. In addition, novel ways of applying the results are explored: to use the methods as pedagogical tools in primary and secondary schools. The project involves a strong multi-disciplinary team combining expertise in computer science, data mining and computational creativity with experts on the pedagogical use of digital technology in education.
Duration: November 1, 2015 - December 31, 2017
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The project is conducted by VITRI (Viikki Tropical Resources Institute) of University of Helsinki, Finland in cooperation with Hamelmalo Agricultural College (HAC), Eritrea. The project is funded by the Centre for International Mobility (CIMO), Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture.
The overall objective of this project is to support the development of sustainable institutional capacity in Hamelmalo Agricultural College (HAC) in Eritrea through enhancing the of teachers methodological and pedagogical competencies, strengthening curriculum and training of staff. Only then, HAC will be capable of to contribute to development of society, economic growth and sustainable development of Eritrea.
The main actor in the project from VITRI is Mohamed Elfadl. The researchers Liisa Ilomäki and Minna Lakkala from TEdu will participate in the pedagogical training of HAC teachers during the project.
Duration: Decempber 31, 2015 - Decempber 30, 2017
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
SMILE was an EU-funded ERASMUS-project aiming to reduce dropout in secondary schools.
The project aimed to bridge gaps between research knowledge in the field of technology in education and educational practice on the one hand, and policy making on the other.The project was coordinated by the European Schoolnet.
The project created a brokerage system that includes research-based answers to practitioners’ and policy makers’ questions concerning digital competence and digital games in education. The database is open to everyone and various people working in the field of education should be able to benefit from it.
Liisa Ilomäki participated in the project from TEdu, and her responsibility was to bring research-based framework in the project, as well as coach teachers in writing descriptions about their pedagogical practices.
Duration: January 1, 2014 - June 31, 2016
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The KNORK project builds on a need for easily applicable pedagogical approaches supporting novel knowledge work and digital competencies. The project develops and tests pedagogical methods, supportive ICT tools and teacher training models to improve these competencies and practices in secondary and higher education applying the "trialogical" learning approach that defines principles for sophisticated collaborative knowledge creation practices. Especially rich use of technology and cross-fertilization practices between educational levels as well as educational institutions and work life organizations are promoted. The pedagogical models and supportive technologies will be experimented and refined in four countries across Europe (Bulgaria, Finland, Italy and Sweden). All development work in the project will be made in collaboration between researchers, teachers and other experts through workshops, field-testing and co-design activities.
The results will be disseminated throughout the project lifetime both locally inside participating institutions, nationally to educational policy makers and authorities and internationally through virtual forums and social media channels. As outcomes, the project produces new teaching methods and inter-institutional collaboration practices for the participating institutions; pedagogical examples, materials and ICT tools to be disseminated and re-used widely by educators in secondary and tertiary education in Europe; as well as guidelines and scientific reports for policy makers and educational authorities to adopt the project outcomes for assuring the sustainability of new pedagogical practices among teachers, educational institutions and communal authorities. An online teacher training package and pedagogical support material will be put openly available to promote the re-use of project outcomes among educators, researchers and other stakeholders for advancing knowledge work and digital competencies in educational settings.
Duration: June 1, 2014 - December 31, 2017
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The aim of the development and research project is to investigate the quality of teaching in Helsinki Summer School, to identify the current best practices and strengths, and to find out methods for developing it to be the most wanted academic summer school in the Europe.
The concrete aims for the work are the following:
Duration: January 1, 2012 - June 30, 2013
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The ProWo-project provided research-based ideas and models about how to advance students’ modern working life competences in university education. During the project, teachers, students, and other stakeholders develop new ways to organize university courses based on collaborative knowledge creation, digital technology and cross-fertilization of practices with work life representatives. Participants of the project were teachers from various faculties at the University of Helsinki. The project was funded by the Network for Higher Education and Innovation Research (HEINE).
Duration: December 1, 2012 - December 31, 2013
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The goal of the project was to make a scoping study of the use of ICT in education and needs for developing in upper secondary schools in Vantaa city.
The focus was on investigating how well the upper secondary schools are prepared for the ICT-based matriculation examination, how well the current teaching methods and ways of working support the change, and what actions are needed to realize the change.
The report of the study (in Finnish) is available in the web:
Lakkala, M. & Ilomäki, L. (2013). Lukioiden valmiudet siirtyä sähköiseen ylioppilastutkintoon: kahden lukion tapaustutkimus. Vantaa: Vantaan kaupunki, Sivistystoimi.
Duration: Aprli 1, 2012 - December 31, 2013
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The aim of the project was to follow and investigate the development project of the basic education unit and Media Center of the City of Helsinki focusing on developing the pedagogican use of digital technologies. The focus in the development project was on supporting collaborative studying, changing the working culture in schools, and developing the networking and peer learning of participating teachers. The development themes of Media Center were the following: 1) the use of ePortfolios in monitoring learning and supporting learning to learn; 2) the pedagogical use of video-based distance education; 3) pedagogues for mobile learning; 4) the use of social media in education, and 5) the pedagogical use of virtual rality and augmented reality. The development projects in seven schools were examined in the study.
Duration: July, 1, 2009 - May 31, 2011
Project website
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The project was a large multidisciplinary joint venture between 13 research units, schools from 12 cities and 28 companies in Finland. It focused on investigating the usage of modern technology and related advancement of pedagogical and knowledge practices in comprehensive schools. The project was funded by the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (TEKES). TEdu research group participated in Workpackage 1: Pedagogical models and technological innovations (Pedagogiset mallit ja teknologiset innovaatiot).
The project was coordinated by the University of Jyväskylä and it related closely to the Information and communication technologies in school's everyday life program (Tieto- ja viestintätekniikka koulun arjessa), coordinated by the CICERO Learning network at the University of Helsinki 2008-2011.
The project produced,e.g., an intermediate report (in Finnish: "Opetusteknologia koulun arjessa") and a final report (in Finnish: Opetusteknologia koulun arjessa 2).
Duration: February 1, 2010- April 30, 2011
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The LINKED project aimed to bridge gaps between research knowledge in the field of technology in education and educational practice on the one hand, and policy making on the other.The project was coordinated by European Schoolnet.
The project created a brokerage system that includes research-based answers to practitioners’ and policy makers’ questions concerning digital competence and digital games in education. The database is open to everyone and various people working in the field of education should be able to benefit from it.
In the project, the researchers from TEdu (Liisa Ilomäki, Minna Lakkala and Anna Kantosalo) were responsible for producing artciles concerning digital competence.
Duration: December 1, 2006 - January 31, 2011
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
KP-Lab project aimed at facilitating innovative practices of working with knowledge (“knowledge practices”) in education and workplaces. It conceptualized a new approach on learning and cognition (“trialogical approach”). It conduct research and provide pedagogical methods to foster practices and competencies for knowledge creation among students and professionals. It aimed at finding methods to crossing boundaries between educational and professional communities. Tools supporting reflection of interactive processes and in managing creation of knowledge and organizational transformations was developed and explored.
A series of KP-Lab courses and extended pilots was organized. Theories, pedagogies, and technologies were be disseminated to fields of European education and workplaces. The KP-Lab vision differentiated three basic elements, the integration of which provides at the same time the challenge and the source of innovativeness for the project: 1) theoretical considerations, 2) research in cases concerning knowledge practices prevailing in educational and professional contexts, and 3) technological development and research.
Duration: November 1, 2008 - January 31, 2010
Project information in the University of Helsinki research portal
The FICTUP project 1) created innovative training materials describing concrete pedagogical activities using ICT; 2) experimented with a close tutoring process among expert and novice teachers; and 3) produced some recommendations for training institutions based on the experimentations.
The training materials were first composed of a textual description for each educational unit. Each case was associated with three pedagogical short videos describing transversal ICT skills brought to play in the pedagogical activity.
During the project, the material and tutoring process were tested in real conditions by a novice teacher. The processes were observed, analysed and evaluated by researchers. The final objective was to use the experience to adapt and improve the experimented training methodology and to propose it for further exploitation by educational institutions.
In all, the project produced pedagogical training materials and case studies about the tutorin process from nine cases in four countries, including two Finnish examples from elementary level: Exploring growth factors and School children's web journal. The final report includes guidelines for the FICTUP tutoring model.