Hosted by , contributed by Kyriaki_Vakkou on 13 December 2022
In most European countries, the effective integration of Arts in upper primary school is often neglected due to the gradual shift of focus on STEM disciplines. The access to innovative technologies, such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies, can potentially promote the effortless integration of Arts in STEM and the development of students’ ICT skills, imagination and digital creative expression.
European schools participated in the DiSTARS project (with the support of Universities, NGOs, IT companies) which offered the opportunity to combine scientific inquiry with artistic expression (e.g., visual and performing arts) and storytelling, through a storytelling platform and AR/ VR technology. Students of 10-12 years old worked collaboratively in groups to express their visions for the future of Space Exploration. The architecture of the authoring tools (e‐book, 3D rocket development and 3D colony building) allowed for the creations of the students (paintings, models, dioramas and constructions, 3D objects and landscapes, animations, science videos and science theatre plays) to be captured according to their scenarios and be integrated in storylines. Each group of students created a digital story in the form of an e-book (in a 2D or 3D environment) showcasing how they imagine a visit to any planet or moon in our solar system, from the journey and the arrival to the buildings and the life of humans there.
The project consortium offered a pedagogical framework to guide teachers during storytelling interventions. The pedagogical framework defines the essentials features of creative STEM education and supports creativity. The eight features of the framework are: Dialogue; Interdisciplinary; Individual, Collaborative and Communal activities for change; Balance and Navigation; Empowerment and Agency; Risk, Immersion and Play; Possibilities; and Ethics and Trusteeship. Moreover, a Deeper Learning Competence Framework was created to provide the means for assessment to create learners’ deeper learning profiles based on performance indicators. As part of the support to the schools, the project team developed a collection of guidelines and support materials in a form of a toolkit. The DiSTARS toolkit provides support that covers the following aspects that are crucial to enable successful implementation in schools:
• Background information on the planets and moons of our solar system and on the challenges in Space Exploration
• Ideas and help how to support classroom activities
• Guidelines to teachers for introducing storytelling techniques to their students
• A (technical) manual how to use the storytelling platform
Teachers were able to familiarize themselves with a new approach to teaching which can support and enable the development of students’ deeper learning (e.g., communication, collaboration and problem-solving competences). The project also offered the opportunity to students and teachers to effectively interact with arts and hands‐on STEM activities, to gain an insight on how new ICT technologies (e.g. AR, VR) operate and how they can support science learning related to human Space Exploration.