This is the core question to which our new project “T4T – Tools4Teaching in Digital Education Settings” (2021-1-ES01-KA220-ADU-000033654) will answer in the following two years. The partnership includes organisations from 6 European countries – DOMSPAIN (Spain), Creativity and Educational Studio ARTIED (Bulgaria), VSI EDUKACINIAI PROJEKTAI – EDUPRO (Lithuania), SPOLECZNA AKADEMIA NAUK (Poland), VI One Consultancy (the Netherlands) and MyArtist Koin.S.Ep (Greece).
The main objective is to strengthen capacity of adult educators and training professionals to build and sustain effective group dynamics in digital and blended educational settings. With this, we want to help them better engage their online learners and provide the same level of interaction and ‘human-like’ experience, like in the physical environment.
During the project we will:
- Develop Guidelines how to better set up effective group dynamics in online learning environment. They will include the following modules:
- Specifics of online learning environment comparing to physical settings and blended learning
- Boosting online teaching creativity and learners’ engagement through artistic activities
- Suitable digital tools and software for maintaining effective online interaction
- Specifics of engaging learners and working in small groups in online learning environment
- Creating engaging energisers and warm-up exercisers suitable for online environment and remote learning
- Educator’s role and behaviour in online teaching environment – some tips for success
- Create a Resource Library with helpful materials how to maintain effective group interaction in online learning environment.
- Organise a train the trainers’ event in Greece for presenting the Guidelines and Resource Library to partners’ educators and to show them to how to apply the proposed new teaching approaches into their practices.
- Develop an interactive data base with hands-on exercises for boosting group dynamics in online teaching environment. The created energisers, warm-up and wrap-up activities will be in the following teaching domains:
- practical exercises suitable for a language training
- practical exercises suitable for an entrepreneurship training
- practical exercises suitable for teaching environmental topics
- practical exercises based on artistic and creative activities
- practical exercises suitable for ICT trainings
- practical exercises suitable for people with disabilities
- Organise a series of international webinars for piloting the developed exercises into the partner countries and multiplier events for presenting the developed resources and materials.
In this way, we will improve educators’ competences and skills about the specifics of building and sustaining effective online group dynamics and ensuring high level of learners’ experience in digital and blended classrooms. We will also equip e-trainers and tutors with practical energisers, warm-up and wrap-up activities, and with video resources how to easily apply them into online settings. As a result, we want to create a network of educational professionals and training providers who are knowledgeable how to ensure the same level of interaction and learners’ involvement in online teaching environment as in the physical one.
For more information, please check our Facebook profile and the project website at www.digitaltools4teaching.eu
The project “T4T – Tools4Teaching in Digital Education Settings” (2021-1-ES01-KA220-ADU-000033654) is funded by the Erasmus + Programme of the EU, through the Spanish National Agency.
2021-1-ES01-KA220-ADU-000033654 
This project has been co-funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.