1. national pILOT programmes
The partnership was carrying out one-year pilot programmes for testing the draft methodological framework in three countries by implementing professional programmes for teachers in Hungary, Latvia, Czech Republic and for developing an evaluation methodology.
Bilateral Meetings
The pilot programmes were supported by those partner countries who did not implement pilot programmes called 'critical friends' with giving good advice and reflecting on the testing of the draft Methodological Framework.
1.1 Hungary
The pilot process took place between Nov 2016 and Nov 2017. It aimed at testing the Methodological Framework by adapting it in three national contexts: developing specific professional programmes that facilitate teachers’ collaborative learning and piloting them.
The overall aims of the Hungarian pilot programme were:
- developing a learning community
- testing collaborative learning
- influencing the schools’ learning culture
1.2 Latvia
The ovelrall aim of the Latvian pilot was to empower teachers (schools) to develop meaningful, multidisciplinary and cross-sectorial local partnerships, and will thus explore collaborative learning involving different stakeholders of the local community.
1.3 Czech Republic
In the Czech Republic the focus was on the development of communities of practice where involved teachers focused on mentoring as a vehicle for collaborative learning.
Piloting the Methodological Framework in the Czech Republic
2. national ADAPTATION workshops
The partnership collected reflection and feedback on the draft methodological framework in three countries through national workshops in the United Kingdom, Finland and Ireland.
2.1 United Kingdom
Its purpose was to share materials on cases and a draft of principles of collaborative teacher learning, and to seek a range of viewpoints on their content and how they may best be presented for use as resources by practitioners and policy-makers. A range of participants was invited so that different kinds of experience and expertise would be brought to the workshop.
2.2 Finland
Collaborative learning has been in many ways a hot topic in Finland at least from the 1980s. As to the Institute of Educational Leadership (JYU),all the degree and professional development programmes during the 21-year existence have been based on collaborative learning using such concepts as dialogue, mentoring, tutoring and practicum. For the EFFeCT Project, we decided to have the peer-mentoring VERME approach as our perspective. During the last decade, a national peer-mentoring system has been formed for teachers coordinated by the Finnish Institute for Educational Research (JYU). For the EFFeCT, an agreement was made with the Finnish Principals’ Association to collaborate in the project to develop the Methodological Framework for educators’ collaborative learning through establishing a national peer-mentoring system for principals.
National workshops were organised together with the Finnish Principals' Association for sharing practical experiences in mentoring, coaching, designing a national peer mentoring program.
Finnish report on the national adaptation workshop
2.3 Ireland
The Irish national workshop, part of the Irish contribution to the evaluation of the draft Methodological Framework (DMF),took place with an invited group of teachers/educators from the region around Limerick.
The purpose was to ascertain how appropriate or adaptable the DMF would be for practicing teachers, institutions, policy makers and others engaged in education in the Irish context.