The EDEN Open Classroom Conference 2021 “Real change takes place in deep crisis” aims to highlight the concept of Open School Culture that imports external ideas that challenge internal views and beliefs and, in turn, exports its students – and their assets – to the community it serves. Such an engaging environment makes a vital contribution to its community: student projects meet real needs in the community outside of school, they are presented publicly, and draw upon local expertise and experience. The school environment fosters learner independence – and interdependence – through collaboration, mentoring, and through providing opportunities for learners to understand and interrogate their place in the world.
Furthermore, the conference will also discuss the concept of Schools as Living Labs. Living labs are user-centred, open innovation ecosystems based on a systematic user co-creation approach integrating research and innovation processes in real life communities and settings. In the educational context, we engage the living lab methodology as a technique of crucial value in the heart of initiatives of open schools, which, in cooperation with other stakeholders, aspire to become agents of community well-being by creating new partnerships in their local communities.
The conference will also offer the occasion to schools to come together and exchange experiences, ideas and practices on innovative projects of open schooling that they have developed through their involvement in the Reflecting for Change project. The conference will also give the stand to the schools that stood out in the “Build your own seismograph” Greek national school contest.
The EDEN Open Classroom Conference 2021 “Real change takes place in deep crisis” will focus on the use of self-reflection tools as a vehicle to support innovation and systemic change in schools. It will focus on the use of self-reflection tools as a valid way to support innovation and systemic change in education. School heads, teachers, researchers, experts and other stakeholders will have the opportunity to explore how schools may move from self-reflection to developing a comprehensive plan of action that utilises the results of a self-evaluation exercise. The conference will present the latest developments from the forward looking cooperation projects working on the issue (Reflecting for Change, SELFIE – Digital Schools Awards Pilot Programme, SELFIE HElpeR & Pedagogical innovation Assistant) as well as from the Joint Research Centre.
Additionally, the EDEN Open Classroom Conference 2021 “Real change takes place in deep crisis” will present examples of stakeholder engagement in school innovation. School heads, staff members and students can benefit through participation in activities that enable them to engage with local businesses, research centers and science centers, policymakers and community members. Such stakeholder engagement can help tackle challenges in school through forging links with parents and social services, as well as businesses and other organisations that may help improve the relevance of learning. Stakeholder engagement may also help raise the school’s profile locally, improving teaching and learning by providing opportunities in real world settings.