Brahea Centre at the University of Turku coordinates the international Inclusive Digital Learning (Dig-2-Inc) and Professional Noticing to Improve Entrepreneurship Education (PROMISE) projects.
Erasmus+ for Higher Education is the European Union’s mobility and cooperation programme for higher education institutions for the period 2021–2027. The programme supports international collaboration between higher education institutions and the mobility of the students, teachers, and other staff. Additionally, the programme promotes the quality and internationalisation of higher education. The priorities of the programme are inclusion and diversity, digitalisation, environmental awareness and mitigation of climate change, and participation in society.
The University of Turku received funding granted by the Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI) for two projects coordinated by the Brahea Centre in the Erasmus+ call for project proposals that ended in March 2022.
“The funding we received for the Erasmus+ projects shows that here in the Brahea Centre, we cooperate closely with many European universities and higher education institutions in our fields of expertise. The coordination responsibility in these projects is a token of our long-term work with different international higher education institutions, and these projects will allow us to create yet new collaboration opportunities. Our high-level expertise is valued internationally both in the areas of lifelong learning and entrepreneurship,” says Director of Brahea Centre Leena Erälinna.
Developing academic skill prevents inequality caused by student backgrounds
The objective of the Inclusive Digital Learning (Dig-2-Inc) project is to improve the academic skills of students who study in upper secondary education, are applying to university or are starting their university studies. In the project, academic skills are approached from the perspective of micro-credentials and digital badges. The project leader is Education Specialist Ilkka Vuolaslempi from the Brahea Centre.
“In many European countries – such as Finland – higher education accumulates on families that already have an academic background. The project aims to prevent inequality by developing students’ academic skills. Our objective is to make higher education studies progress more smoothly and decrease the number of drop-outs,” says Vuolaslempi.
The international project is participated by universities and social partners from Romania, Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, and Finland. The project launches in September 2022.
Support for career-orientation in studies and professional growth of students
The Professional Noticing to Improve Entrepreneurship Education (PROMISE) project develops pedagogy to help university teachers support students in preparing for different professional situations of working life. The project leader is Project Manager Kaisu Paasio from the Brahea Centre.
“Professional noticing means using professional gaze in teaching. The term refers to practising how to act in professional situations and notice meaningful and important things. The project’s application area is entrepreneurship education,” says Paasio.
The project launches in December 2022. It is participated by universities from Spain and Austria and partners in collaboration from Denmark and Ireland.
