Over 170 teachers from home and abroad attended the Open Schooling Day event in Ellinogermaniki Agogi Greece on the 12th of October 2019, highlighting the pivotal role of Citizen Science and Responsible Research and Innovation in addressing the issue of school openness in a fast-changing world. A wealth of ideas, hands-on activities, educational scenarios and hackathons pervaded a full-day of seminars, workshops and lectures.
The event was co-organised by the Institute of Education Policy (Greece), Ellininogermaniki Agogi (Greece) and Computer Technology Institute and Press (Greece), in the context of European initiatives such as Open Schools for Open Societies, Open School Doors, Promoting Intercultural Science Education of Adults, Democracy through Drama, Frontiers.
Open Schooling Day set to explore the idea of “Open School” as an attractive knowledge hub that effectively introduces novel methodologies, tools and co-created content by re-designing learning to accommodate and include difference and by bringing together families, community groups, local businesses, experts, universities, into an innovation ecosystem.
From hackathons to teachers and students working in projects that address local challenges such as earthquakes, climate change or even the spread of anti-science beliefs; from research in digital education that addresses parental engagement of migrant students to synergies that focus on the science skills and knowledge of new-comers; from STEAM and arts-and-drama-based methodologies to activities introducing Nobel Prize Physics in Secondary Education and initiatives that send primary teachers to the world’s largest research centres such as CERN the event attracted the attention of schools and stakeholders with a taste for responsible innovation and excellence in classroom.
Finally, the Open Schools for Open Societies initiative offered a stage to numerous schools from across the country to showcase smart practices and projects in biodiversity, climate change studies, nutrition, school gardening, inclusion, democratic participation and build even stronger networks of teachers, offering a pathway towards mainstreaming innovation.
