Presentation from the 2nd Scientix Conference, 24-26 Ocotober 2014, Brussels, Belgium

1. Fostering innovation in STEM education
Maite Debry, European Schoolnet, Belgium
Parallel sessions III - 11. Role models and good examples
Scientix conference 2,
Brussels, October 2014
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2. www.europeanschoolnet.org - www.eun.org

3. Disseminating Educational Science, Innovation and Research
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in Europe
How does new knowledge on STEM education find its way to teachers? And
How can we make this process more effective?
Knowledge

4. What do we understand by
dissemination?
• Dissemination of results understood as the diffusion of
innovations are envisaged as “the process in which an
innovation is communicated through certain channels over
time among the members of a social system”, undergoing
different phases, such as awareness, understanding, persuading,
adopting (or rejecting), and re-inventing (Rogers, 1983 – On
social sciences)
• We will refer to dissemination as the process by which, using
certain strategies and channels, outcomes of a project are made
available, comprehensible and usable to be adopted by
potential users (Harmsworth et al., 2001 – On educational
development projects)
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5. Educational research fail to have an impact on policy-making and practice.
(Hammersley, 2000)
Finding a solution:
• How do new knowledge from STEM education
projects travel to teachers?
• Identify stakeholders suggestions to how to bridge
teachers to STEM education projects?
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Problem
Knowledge
I want to
travel

6. What models of dissemination have been
described to bridge the academic-practitioner
gap?
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7. Methodology
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INSTRUMENTS OF DATA COLLECTION
Survey for project managers
Survey for teachers
Survey for policy-makers
Closed-ended (Multiple choice, matrix of
choices, 5-points Likert scale)
Open-ended questions
Pilot test of the surveys
CONTACTED SAMPLE: 46 FUNDED R+D
STEM EDUCATION PROJECTS
20 projects funded within 7th FP
18 projects funded within LLP
6 projects funded by national institutions
2 projects funded by other organisms
COLLECTED DATA
26 responses from project managers about 26
projects
105 responses from teachers about 21 projects
15 responses from policy-makers about 10
projects

8. Methodology
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INSTRUMENTS OF DATA
COLLECTION
Online & face-to-face
discussion events
DATA ANALYSIS
Qualitative analysis intended:
- To interpret connections among
dissemination strategies and outcomes to be
disseminated or target audiences
- To identify possible differences among
projects funded by different funding sources
- To identify target audiences’ needs regarding
dissemination

9. Dissemination channels to reach different target
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audience
Teachers
Policy-makers
Project managers
Researchers

10. www.europeanschoolnet.org - www.eun.org
Results
Stakeholders’ perception of the amount of information reached
from STEM education projects

11. THE MAIN GOALS ARE TO:
- Provide information about
targets of STEM education
project
- Identify obstacles
- Give tools to create a multiplier
effect and eventually
mainstreaming results into
policies
- Highlight approaches which
can federate existing initiatives
and point to key European or
national services
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12. www.europeanschoolnet.org - www.eun.org

13. Challenges and Recommendations
1. Teachers’ Time Constraints
Priorities new knowledge to gain
time and safe efforts.
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14. Challenges and Recommendations
2. Lack of involvement of the
target audience
Teachers as intermediaries, ambassadors,
multipliers or members of an steering
committee
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15. Challenges and Recommendations
3. Underuse of already
existing resources or networks
Teacher training institutions
Reference centres
Databases (e.g. Scientix)
New teachers’ networks
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?

16. Challenges and Recommendations
4. Reaching teachers
Where do you hide?
Social media and social networks are hot.
Conferences, seminars and workshops are one of the
best ways to gain new knowledge and understanding.
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17. Challenges and Recommendations
5. Lack of support in one’s
own context
Support from groups involving teachers, researchers,
students’ families, school principals and administrators, and
other relevant actors
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18. Conclusions
Wider involvement of teachers in an active role in testing
and reaching out to other teachers with new knowledge
and use of already existing institutions and networks to
create a more sustained interactivity model.
Teachers making a difference for the
improvement of STEM Education
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19. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR ATTENTION
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For further information:
DESIRE
http://desire.eun.org
European Schoolnet, Project Manager - Maïté Debry:
maite.debry@eun.org