The Turtle Coding Box was released in June 2020 under the motto “Anyone can code”. Educators and teachers from German speaking countries will have the opportunity to use the already piloted teaching materials to carry out activities with students. The inclusive approach has been tested since 2015 and creates the prerequisites for all children – regardless of any impairment or special ability – to learn programming together. With the teaching material, teachers and other education managers start a basic course in computer science education with learners of eight years and older and discover the basics of programming using the programming language LOGO and the programming environment TurtleCoder.

The Turtle Coding Box consists of:

• the Turtle book as a manual with elaborated teaching units for programming
• the digital Turtle-Book supplemented with additional media, videos and templates for download and digital whiteboard pictures in a whiteboard player for teaching purposes
• an introduction to the didactic-methodological approach and differentiation possibilities for inclusive learning groups
• the programming App TurtleCoder with various assistance systems
• individual task cards for pupils for internally differentiated teaching
• Working materials for analogue programming and a portfolio booklet for the documentation of the learners’ work results
• Participation in a webinar for teachers and educators on the Turtle Coding Box with practical exercises in programming, an introduction to didactics and the presentation of possible applications in hybrid teaching situations.

Already 250 copies have been ordered by teachers nationwide. The STEAMonEdu partner organisation Helliwood media & education im fjs e.V. has already held several webinars in cooperation with Aktion Mensch to introduce the Turtle Coding Box. You are welcome to register here.

By Helliwood

Learn about the European Competence Framework for STE(A)M educators, get a taste of the Massive Open Online Course and find out more details about the project results of the European project STEAMonEdu.

The event is embedded in the nationwide conference Forum Digitisation #KonfBD21, where Jutta Schneider and Katrin Schuberth from Helliwood media & education at fjs e.V. will present the current European framework and approaches for STE(A)M education in a session on Thursday, 11 November 2021 at 6 pm.

Realising and shaping contemporary education is a challenge for many educators – and not only in Germany. One reason for this are the conditions about the structural framework for digital and individual learning. With the aim of promoting innovative educational approaches, the European STE(A)M competence framework offers an ideal starting point for recommendations for action and approaches to establishing STE(A)M education and training for educators.

In the final event, we will present how STEM learning opportunities are designed in such a way that the artistic component (the A) is also considered and which formats are needed to realise the competence development of the educators.

The registration for the final event (session) takes place directly via #KonfBD21: https://konfbd.scoocs.co/konfbd-21/preregistration

You cannot attend the event or have questions? Please feel free to contact: Katrin Schuberth, schuberth@helliwood.com

The leading conference Forum Digitisation #KonfBD21 for good schools in the digital world in the German-speaking world makes best practices visible and tangible. It offers stakeholders a platform for exchange and networking and sets decisive impulses for the transformation of education in the culture of digitality. The #KonfBD21 will take place entirely digitally from 10-12 November 2021.

#MINKT #MINT @Helliwood #KonfBD21

MIN(K)T education in Europe at #KonfBD21

More than 1.400 educators and networkers from the German education landscape met online over three days from 10 to 12 November 2021 to take a close look at the current developments of digitisation within the German education system, to network and to discuss innovation. Especially the aspect of digital transformation occupied the stakeholders during the three-day event and so innovative topics such as attitude, activation of experiential spaces, change management and deeper learning in schools as well as the aspects for change in school education could be discussed in numerous sessions and in the livestream.

Equally the STEAMonEdu project also aims to qualify and empower educators for the digital transformation. This is what the results of the STEAMonEdu project stand for, which has produced numerous results in its two-year term (2020-2021) that promote the STE(A)M approach in (non)school education. The numerous results of the European project support policy makers and educators. In a workshop, the representatives of the German project partner Helliwood media & education worked out together with the participants the wealth of competences that STE(A)M educators should develop and train in order to successfully create contemporary educational offers.

4th Future Conference – STE(A)M Qualification of Educators

A further event, called the 4th Future Conference on the topic of STE(A)M qualification of pedagogues was held at a regional level as part of the German MINT Action Week on 25 November. The Helliwood media & education team welcomed networkers and teachers from the Berlin area who organise educational programmes in the STEM field and are actively involved in STEM networks. Dr. Anke Renger from the initiative junior1stein emphasised the STE(A)M approach, which needs to be expanded to reach more target groups and make science more interesting. The STEAMonEdu competence framework presented at the event supports the strategic approach to grant STE(A)M education attention also in the political context.

Learn more about the STE(A)M community and the next round of qualifications and MOOCs in spring 2022.