Digital education: New initiative strengthens school authorities in Germany!

Digital education: New initiative strengthens school authorities in Germany!

With the aim of promoting digital change in schools, a new project was launched: “TOBIS – Accompanying transprofessional organizational development”. How mynewsdesk.com reports, the project aims to strengthen cooperation between school authorities and education stakeholders. This happens against the background that schools in the digital context must always remain up to date both technically and in the implementation of lessons.

The project, developed by the University of Vechta, the Berlin University of Social Work and Pedagogy (HSAP) and the Ostfalia University of Applied Science, is being funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research with around 1.5 million euros over four years.

School authorities in the role of mediator

The “TOBIS” project is aimed at various school authorities such as districts, independent cities, municipalities and private institutions and aims to strengthen them as mediators and coordinators between different educational areas. Previous research focused primarily on schools, school management and teachers, often neglecting school authorities. This makes the focus on transprofessional skills, organizational development and governance within school authorities all the more important.

In total, around 30 school authorities work on development challenges and benefit from scientific analyses, consultations and network workshops to develop best practices. The University of Vechta also plays an important role in supporting local and rural school authorities, especially with questions about digital educational media and IT structures.

Open educational resources as a building block

A central element of the project is the promotion of open educational resources (OER) and open educational practices (OEP). These open materials are freely available, legally secured and can be shared and modified. Loud education-research.digital OER enable teachers to use materials individually for their lessons.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research launched the OER strategy to sustainably anchor open educational materials in the German educational landscape. In support of this, the OERinfo web portal promotes information, best practice examples and pedagogical recommendations to support teachers in using OER.

The strategy for using OER is intended to help facilitate access to knowledge, exercises and feedback. Within digital education, the focus is on the shift to mobile and flexible learning formats as well as greater operational viability of teaching and learning resources. These developments are crucial to promote equal opportunities in learning and to make teaching more individual.

Digital infrastructure and support

As part of the School Digital Pact, the federal government is supporting the digital infrastructure of the states with billions. The aim is to reach 29,300 schools by June 30, 2024. The BMBF has also set itself the goal of promoting digital education through extensive infrastructure measures and the creation of a culture of digitality.

A central aspect is the good training of teachers, which is crucial for the implementation of digital teaching methods. Innovative teaching approaches are intended to offer creative solutions and modernize the learning culture. OER supports these efforts by offering teachers opportunities for creative collaboration and promoting key future skills.

In summary, the “TOBIS” project sees the school authority as a central actor in the digital transformation process and pursues the goal of creating a sustainable and future-proof educational landscape in Germany. By strengthening school authorities and the targeted use of OER and OEP, a new era of digital education will be heralded.