Why is the TrainDL project attractive for LISUM?

The use of AI will shape our society for the next years and decades. We need to train teachers so that they can integrate the topics into their lessons. However, we are still at the very beginning with this.

Especially when it comes to data literacy and AI, there are a lot of concerns – the topics are complex, and technical background knowledge is needed. In addition, new developments are constantly being added to the topic of AI. Certainly, it was also neglected in some places to address the technical and social perspectives at an early stage in teacher training and in in-service teacher training.

Therefore, it is very important for an institution like LISUM, which among other things deals with the further education of teachers, to exchange information about the developments in other countries and to benefit from the materials and findings of the further education courses conducted by TrainDL in the educational cluster. We also appreciate that the project does not only focus on computer science teachers but involves teachers from different levels and subjects in three iterative field tests from the beginning.

How can the findings and materials be integrated into teacher training later on?

As an institute, we will take a close look at the recommendations and created programs and develop our own offerings based on it. To this end, it is also important that we continue to be in contact with some partners such as the FU Berlin. In the future, we will certainly also revise the framework curriculum to integrate topics such as AI, machine learning and data literacy. Here, too, we will benefit from the findings and the exchange within the project.

From the perspective of a public authority, what is the joint development of recommendations and materials like?

We have an advisory function. As LISUM, we are in particular in exchange with the FU Berlin. We have provided feedback on the training design from the perspective of the education administration and also organized contact with teachers so that the FU team could receive feedback from the field. It was also always important to link to the curriculum and educational policy developments in general. 

What is your personal highlight from this European project?

It is clearly the exchange with the other European partner institutions, especially the contact with Lithuanians, where the developments for integrating AI competencies into the curricula with the national curriculum are more advanced than in our country. Such contacts are otherwise difficult to establish in everyday work.