This project aims to modernize mathematics and statistics curricula at universities in Russia through collaboration with European partners. It will introduce new educational technologies, conduct curriculum reforms informed by best practices, and evaluate the impact of the changes. The 3 year project involves 10 partners and has an overall budget of 1.14 million euros.

1. MetaMath Project Overview
Sergey Sosnovsky
Saarland University

2. Project Profile
• Funded under Tempus IV program (6th call)
• Overall budget: 1,144,862.55 €
• 10 partners:
- 2 from Germany
- 1 from France
- 1 from Finland
- 6 from Russia
• Start: 01/12/2013
• Finish: 30/11/2016
- 8 Universities
- 1 Research Institute
- 1 NGO

3. Project Motivation and Approach
• High-quality Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)
education is crucial for economic development of Russia
• Deterioration of STEM education in the 90s
• Increasing demand for a new generation of engineers now
• Mathematics an Statistics are the fundamental cornerstones of
STEM education
• EU and US are heavily investing in ICT-enhanced Math educational
solutions and have promising results
• The project approach is two-fold
1. Structural improvements of Math curricula in line with the Bologna
principles and best EU practices
2. Introduction of new educational technologies for new pedagogical
scenarios

4. Project Objectives
• Implement a comparative analysis of the national math
curricula for STEM disciplines
• Modernize math and statistics curricula for a selected set
of engineering and sciences studies
• Localize the European TEL tools for partner universities
• Build a capacity in local universities to effectively
implement, maintain and develop TEL for math education.
• Conduct pilot a evaluation of the impact of the new
curricula on the quality of studies in math and statistics, as
well as on quality of engineering and sciences education in
general.
• Disseminate the results of the project.

5. Project Structure
Phase1: Best
practice exchange
and pedagogical
preparations
Phase2: Curricula
reforms and
capacity building
Phase3: Pilot
implementation
and evaluation

6. Phase 1: Best practice exchange and
pedagogical preparations
• Define a methodology for Math curricula
comparison
• Conduct a series of case studies between EU and
Russian Universities on the compatibility of their
STEP curricula
• Define recommendations for structural curricula
improvements in line with the Bologna principles
• Identify the areas most suitable for the
introduction of TEL tools.

7. Phase 2: Curricula reforms and
capacity building
• Each Russian University will select 2 STEM
curricula and develop updated versions
• Special attention will be paid to the
introduction of TEL methods and tools
• eLearning math content and appropriate
assessment material will be selected
• Math-Bridge platform will be localized and
teachers will be trained to use it

8. Phase 3: Pilot implementation and
evaluation
• Updated courses will be implemented within
Math-Bridge
• Large-scale evaluation studies will be designed
and conducted in order to verify the impact of
the updated, Math-Bridge-enhanced curricula
• The results will be analyzed and disseminated

9. WP1: Math Curricula Comparative
Case Study
• Activity 1.1 Case Studies methodology development
• Activity 1.2 Learning European experience
• Activity 1.3 National math curricula workshops
• Activity 1.4 Case Studies writing and evaluation
• Lead partner: USAAR
• Duration: M1-M12
• Deliverables:
– D1.1 Comparative Case Studies Methodology
– D1.2 Series of study visits
– D1.3 Comparative case studies

10. WP2: Math Curricula Modernization
• Activity 2.1 Curricula modernization
• Activity 2.2 Math teaching materials selection
• Activity 2.3 European expert evaluation
• Activity 2.4 National expert evaluation
• Lead partner: TUT
• Duration: M6 – M18
• Deliverables:
– D2.1 Revised Math teaching plans within STEM curricula
– D2.2 Math teaching materials selected
– D2.3 National curricula workshops

11. WP3: Tools and capacity building
• Activity 3.1 Technical capacity building
• Activity 3.2 Content localization
• Activity 3.3 Math-Bridge localization, installation and
testing
• Activity 3.4 University teachers training
• Lead partner: DFKI
• Duration: M15 – M24
• Deliverables:
– D3.1 Localized Math Content
– D3.2 Localized e-Learning tools for mathematics
– D3.3 Training programme for University teachers

12. WP4: Math Curricula Pilot
Implementation and Evaluation
• Activity 4.1 Evaluation methodology
• Activity 4.2 Two semester pilot implementation
• Activity 4.3 Processing and presentation of the evaluation
results
• Activity 4.4 Post-evaluation update for the curricula and
accreditation preparation
• Lead partner: NNSU
• Duration: M25 – M33
• Deliverable:
– D4.1 Evaluation methodology
– D4.2 Evaluation Report
– D4.3 Documents for curricula accreditation

13. WP5: Dissemination and Sustainability
• Activity 5.1 Regional website "Mathematics and Statistics for
Technical and Engineering Education in Russia”
• Activity 5.2 Annual project workshops
• Activity 5.3 Traditional dissemination
• Activity 5.4 Final Project Conference
• Activity 5.5 Revision of national standards and accreditation
• Lead partner: USAAR
• Duration M1 – M36
• Deliverables:
– D5.1 Website "Mathematics and Statistics for STEM"
– D5.2 Dissemination events report
– D5.3 Promotional materials
– D5.4 Inter-University Memorandum
– D5.5 National accreditation applications

14. WP6: Quality control, Management
and Coordination
• Activity 6.1 Quality Control Framework
• Activity 6.2 Project Management Framework
• Lead Partner: USAAR
• Duration M1 – M36
• Deliverables:
– D6.1 Quality Control Framework and Report
– D6.2 Project Management Framework and
Reports

15. Universität des Saarlandes (USAAR)
• Overall Project Coordinator (planning, coordination
and monitoring, quality control, financial management,
reporting, etc.)
• E-Learning capacity building programme in partner
Universities
• Leading the case studies
• Developing the methodology for impact evaluation
• Assisting 4 Russian students to get enrolled for 1
semester at USAAR
• Steering the overall project dissemination

16. German Research center for Artificial
Intelligence (DFKI)
• Represents technological expertise covering broad
range of ICT-enabled learning methods for Math
education
• Maintains the largest repository of online learning
resources for mathematics covering the University
curricula in the majority of the EU countries (Math-
Bridge)
• Leading localization of Math-Bridge and its content
• Technical support of the activities in WP4 and WP5,
troubleshooting

17. Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1
(UCBL)
• Represents a classical example of European Math
education with specific focus on school education
• WP1: Contributes to the Case Studies methodology
development and evaluation; Provides its case
description
• WP2: advising and consulting; quality control
• WP3: contribution to the teachers training
• WP4: consulting; assisting 4 students to get enrolled in
Lyon for 1 semester
• WP5: participation in dissemination
• WP6: contribution to management and quality control

18. Tampere University of Technology
(TUT)
• Represents a case of a European math curricula and
application of TEL in math education in STEM
disciplines
• WP1: Contributes to the Case Studies methodology
development and evaluation; Provides its case
description
• WP2: Leading WP2
• WP3: contribution to the teachers training
• WP4: consulting; assisting 4 students to get enrolled in
TUT for 1 semester
• WP5: participation in dissemination
• WP6: contribution to management and quality control

19. Association for Engineering Education
of Russia (AEER)
• All-Russian public network with 63 regional departments
• The main goal of AEER is to facilitate the improvement and
development of engineering education in Russia.
• WP1: contributes to the Case Studies overseeing quality
aspects
• WP2: oversee quality assurance issues in all curricula
modernization efforts
• WP3: ensuring "accreditability" of the modernized curricula
• WP4: contribution to the evaluation methodology, mainly
in assessment methods aspects
• WP5: leads nation-wide dissemination
• WP6: contribution to the management

20. Saint Petersburg Electrotechnical University
(LETI)
• Is an agenda-setting University in the Russian STEM education, house of
the UMO - Academic-Methodical Unit - for STEM education (electronics,
radiotechnics, biomedical technics, automation). It will define its
additional role as a country-wide multiplier.
• WP1: oversee academic soundness and acceptance of the curricula
reforms; participates in Case studies, leads one national case
development, integration and translation of the resulting book into
Russian;
• WP2: selects 2 STEM curricula and revise them using best European and
national experiences, participate in the content selection for TEL
introduction;
• WP3: builds eLearning capacity (purchase and installation of equipment,
training of personnel); contributes to Math-Bridge localization in Russia;
• WP4: contributes to preparation and implementation of the evaluation;
selecting 3 students for studying in Europe
• WP5: contributes to dissemination in Russia
• WP6: contribution to the management and quality control activities

21. Nizhny Novgorod State University
named after Lobachevsky
• NNSU is an example of a large National Research University with a federal
mission and visibility offering the spectrum of STEM studies (the central
priority - Information and Communication Technologies), it will play a role of
a local coordinator in Russia
• WP1: participates in Case studies, leads one national case development,
integration and translation of the resulting book into Russian;
• WP2: selects 2 STEM curricula and revise them using best European and
national experiences, participate in the content selection for TEL
introduction;
• WP3: builds eLearning capacity (purchase and installation of equipment,
training of personnel); leads Math-Bridge localization in Russia;
• WP4: contributes to preparation and implementation of the evaluation;
selecting 3 students for studying in Europe
• WP5: contributes to dissemination in Russia
• WP6: contribution to the management and quality control activities

22. Tver State University (TSU)
• Represents particular case of a middle-size regional University
focused on the regional needs.
• WP1: participates in Case studies, leads one national case
development, integration and translation of the resulting book into
Russian;
• WP2: selects 2 STEM curricula and revise them using best European
and national experiences, participate in the content selection for
TEL introduction;
• WP3: builds eLearning capacity (purchase and installation of
equipment, training of personnel); contributes to Math-Bridge
localization in Russia;
• WP4: contributes to preparation and implementation of the
evaluation; selecting 3 students for studying in Europe
• WP5: contributes to dissemination in Russia
• WP6: contribution to the management and quality control activities

23. Kazan National Research Technical
University named after A.N.Tupolev (KAI)
• One of the oldest and largest technical Universities of Russia with a
particular area of specialization: Aeronautics and Space. It represents
a particular case of a large technical University.
• WP1: participates in Case studies, leads one national case
development, integration and translation of the resulting book into
Russian;
• WP2: selects 2 STEM curricula and revise them using best European
and national experiences, participate in the content selection for TEL
introduction;
• WP3: builds eLearning capacity (purchase and installation of
equipment, training of personnel); contributes to Math-Bridge
localization in Russia;
• WP4: contributes to preparation and implementation of the
evaluation; selecting 3 students for studying in Europe
• WP5: contributes to dissemination in Russia
• WP6: contribution to the management and quality control activities

24. N.P. Ogarev Mordovia State University (MSU)
• Represents a particular case of a large classical University (National
Research University) serving a particular region.
• WP1: participates in Case studies, leads one national case
development, integration and translation of the resulting book into
Russian;
• WP2: selects 2 STEM curricula and revise them using best European
and national experiences, participate in the content selection for
TEL introduction;
• WP3: builds eLearning capacity (purchase and installation of
equipment, training of personnel); contributes to Math-Bridge
localization in Russia;
• WP4: contributes to preparation and implementation of the
evaluation; selecting 3 students for studying in Europe
• WP5: contributes to dissemination in Russia
• WP6: contribution to the management and quality control activities