In 2021, on the 4th of May,  the OECD presented a report entitled „21st Century Readers : Developing Literacy in the Digital World”.

The report presents the results of PISA and other studies:

• how the reading skills needed by the 21st century are being developed in the 21st century in the technological world;
• what are the potentially best ways to enhance students’ ability to navigate the new world of information;
• how countries need to step up their efforts to combat the growing digital divide;
• How teachers can help students select information, avoid getting lost in false knowledge, and manage the complexity of information.

More: https://www.oecd.org/publications/21st-century-readers-a83d84cb-en.ht

According to the order No. SR-1546 of the Minister of Education, Science and Sports  was approved new board of the National Education Agency. Lina Kaminskienė (a member of the LETA Board and VMU Professor) became a member of it. We sincerely congratulate and wish a successful representation of our association!

The 5th Educational Forum  „Physical Education as a Basis for Personal and Social Well-Being: What does Research Show?”  took place on the 30rd of April in 2021. Attended over 100 participants.

Forum record you can view on Youtube platform:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUJlsX9k01M

The welcome speech was given by dr. Linas Obcarskas ( Vice-minister  of Education, Science and Sports of the Republic of Lithuania), prof. dr. Diana Rėklaitienė (Rector of Lithuanian Sports University). The report „Physical Education as a Foundation for the Welfare of the Individual and Society: What Does Research Show?” was read by prof. dr. Arūnas Emeljanovas (Lithuanian Sports University Professor of the Department of Physical and Social Education, Member of the Board of the Lithuanian Educational Research Association). Participated in the discussion: Daina Gudzinevičiūtė (President of the Lithuanian National Olympic Committee), prof. dr. Natalja Fatkulina (Director of the Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University), dr. Laima Trinkūnienė (President of the Lithuanian Association of Physical Education Teachers),Vytuolis Valūnas (Head of the Education and Sports Department of Alytus City Municipality Administration), Audronė Vizbarienė (President of the Republican Association of Preschool Physical Education Teachers), The closing speech was given by  dr. Liudmila Rupšienė (President of the Lithuanian Educational Research Association),prof. dr. Loreta Žadeikaitė (Chief Adviser of the Science, Studies and Technology Department of the Ministry of Education and Science).

The „New Generation Lithuania” plan has been announced https://bit.ly/2Q7ItKoIn accordance with the prepared „New Generation Lithuania” plan, a public consultation „Higher Education, a Consistent System for Promoting Innovation and High Value-Added Business” took place (2rd April , 2021). The aim of this component of the plan is to increase the efficiency, quality and international competitiveness of higher education, to create traditions of business and science cooperation. The link to the public consultation record https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lngPLEceTlY 

TALIS is an international study conducted by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the working environment and working conditions of teachers in schools.  https://www.smm.lt/web/lt/teisesaktai/tyrimai-ir-analizes/tarptautiniai-tyrimai. May 5,  10 a.m., 2021 representatives of educational support institutions, educational centers and higher education institutions are invited to the OECD TALIS 2018 presentation of the national report. The event will be recorded Registration till May 4, 17.00 p.m.

This year, on the 28 th of April 14.00 (Paris time), we invite you to the online seminar “Rethinking the classroom after COVID-19” insights and innovations from teachers.

Teachers and schools have responded in extraordinarily creative and dedicated ways to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, consistently finding new, often unprecedented solutions that challenge our traditional conceptualisation of teaching and learning.

Some of the changes and innovations that we have seen may last well into the future. The OECD, UNESCO and the Teacher Task Force have been gathering and discussing the new insights that emerged from these difficult times with teachers from all around the world.

Join us for a webinar where we will take stock of the lessons learnt during the pandemic and how we can build back better and even stronger together. OECD Director for Education and Skills Andreas Schleicher will be joined by Haldis Holst, Deputy General Secretary of Education International, and Borhene Chakroun, UNESCO’s Director for Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems, as they discuss with teachers and experts about their insights on teaching during COVID-19.

Registration:https://meetoecd1.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_1QU5tgaxQd28msUX3mXHyQ

Find out more about what we heard from teachers on the OECD Global Teaching Insights website

We are pleased to invite you to International Summer School on Qualitative Research 2021 at Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania.

It is a scientific event of great importance for doctoral students and young researchers / scholars, who prepare their research for conducting, or already are implementing their research studies, or are on the way to finalize their research.

So, on 28-June to 1-July 2021, the Academy of Education with the Institute of Educational Research at Vytautas Magnus University in collaboration with the School of Social Researcher will organize the International Summer School On Qualitative Research 2021 (ISS QR VMU 2021).

This year we will meet online.

In this Summer School 2021 the emphasis will be given to Grounded theory (GT) methodology.

Announcers: 

Professor conducting the lectures, workshops and break-up sessions are experts in qualitative research methodologies: Prof. Antony Bryant (Leeds Beckett University, United Kingdom).

Educational assistance in break-up sessions of International Summer School on Qualitative Research 2021 will be provided by Prof. Vilma Zydziunaite (Institute of Educational Research, Academy of Education, Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania).

Informational assistance at International Summer School on Qualitative Research 2021 will be provided by Dr. Vaida Jurgile (Institute of Educational Research, Academy of Education, Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania).

Registration and more information:https://gtsummerschool.vdu.lt/

The European Commission is organizing an event entitled „A successful proposal for Horizon Europe: Scientific-technical excellence is key, but don’t forget the other aspects” contests. 

The event will continue the session on how to prepare a successful „European Horizon” application  ( video of 24March ) and will detail open science, the gender dimension in research, dissemination, communication and other issues relevant to the preparation of the application.

The remote event will take place on  21st of April 10 a.m. (Central European (Brussels) time).

Registration and  agenda of the event

More: https://www.lmt.lt/lt/kvieciame-pasigilinti-i-papildomus-taciau-paraiskos-sekmei-europos-horizonto-konkursuose-svarbius-aspektus/3772

The publisher Springer has published the open access science monograph “Dialogue for Intercultural Understanding”, which is one of the future results of a wide-ranging and ambitious project for the development of cultural literacy of children and youth in schools. The book brings to the fore intercultural dialogue, reasoning, becoming a European citizen and mutual understanding.

The published monography analyses  the themes of this unique interdisciplinary project, bringing together psychologists, sociocultural literacy researchers, cultural and linguistic researchers, digital teaching and citizenship education experts. The book is available on the Springer Publishers page.

The research group of VU Institute of Educational Science (Dr. Sandra Kairė, Dr. Lilija Duoblienė, Dr. Irena Zaleskienė), working in the first stage of the research, sought answers to the questions of the role of social responsibility in cultural literacy education in European countries / project partner schools and how this concept reflected in key education policy documents. This is described in the section “Social Responsibility Through the Lens of an Agenda for Cultural Literacy Learning: Analyzes of National Education Policy Documentation” prepared and published in a scientific monography.

You can read the full VU research section here: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-71778-0_3

V Educational Forum „Physical Education as a Basis for Personal and Social Well-Being: What Does Research Show?”

We invite to participate representatives of educational sciences, researchers, representatives of general education and higher education institutions, municipalities, physical and health education teachers, sports specialists, organizers of physical activity and sports, education, sports and health policy makers, all those who are interested in physical activity, sports, health education, the well-being of the individual and society.

About announcer

Professor dr. Arūnas Emeljanovas has been working in the field of physical education for more than 20 years, carries out expert activities, and is a member of the main international organizations related to physical education. It is shown by extensive and scientific activities of the professor: in total he has published more than 80 scientific publications, half of them in the publications of the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science database with citation index, read more than 100 papers at international conferences, published 3 books and several teaching materials with colleagues. The professor shared his knowledge at universities in Greece, Norway, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, India, Pakistan and other countries, and did internships at Harvard and Columbia universities (USA). The researcher is especially active in project activities – he has won more than 20 Lithuanian and international research projects.

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During OECD webinars prof. Andreas Scheicher presented a study  on how education systems responded and what changes in education took place a year after the pandemic. 

OECD study overview and reference: http://www.oecd.org/education/state-of-school-education-one-year-into-COVID.htm

The  record of the presentation will be published and can be viewed at this address : https://oecdedutoday.com/oecd-education-webinar

Release your research! Find readers who might not normally read your work and tell your own story without having to write a press release. Include reflections beyond your original research and promote discussion with other researchers and with interested parties, such as teaching professionals, policymakers, students and parents. For more information: https://eera-ecer.de/news/release-your-research/


Adult education organizations are invited
get acquainted with the new opportunities of the Erasmus + program and submit project applications.

Learning mobility (KA1)

From 2021, the Erasmus + program will offer many innovations for adult education mobility projects:

MOBILITY OF ADULT LEARNERS, which can be of two types: individual or group mobility. These mobility activities are open to learners with fewer opportunities. 
INVITED EXPERT: Adult education organizations may invite teachers, policy experts or other qualified professionals from abroad who can help to improve teaching and learning in the host organization.
TEACHERS ADMISSION TO PRACTICE
Adult education organizations can receive support for the admission of teachers who are in training or have recently completed a 12-month teacher education program and wish to spend a traineeship abroad. 

The novelty of 2021 is SMALL-SCALE PARTNERSHIP PROJECTS, which will be promoted by small, non-participating and inexperienced organizations. These projects will aim to develop the capacity of inexperienced organizations to work at international level.

More:   https://epale.ec.europa.eu/lt/content/nauja-programa-erasmus-dar-daugiau-galimybiu-suaugusiuju-svietimui

Link to seminars which will  be held  in April: https://erasmus-plius.lt/informaciniai-renginiai/

International High-Level Publishing House ”Springer”  publishes the book ”Influences of the IEA Civic and Citizenship Education Studies. Practice, Policy, and Research Across Countries and Regions”, where  a text on Lithuania’s experience in the field of civic education and the impact of the international research ICCS is published:

CHAPTER 10:  

Contributions of the IEA’s Civic and Citizenship Studies to Educational Discourse in Lithuania: The Past Three Decades  

Authors: Rita Dukynaitė, Ginta Orintienė, Šarūnas Gerulaitis, and  Marius Iziumcevas.  

 The  book will be presented on the 1st and 2nd of June. Those who wish will be able to participate. The book presentation details will be announced later.

At the end of 2020, the OECD, UNESCO and the Teacher Task Force launched a campaign to hear from teachers around the world about their experience of teaching during the pandemic. We asked them to send in videos describing how they adapted to the crisis, and many wonderful and fascinating insights were shared. These are now publicly available in the OECD Global Teaching InSights platform

To build on this extraordinary work by teachers, we are hosting a series of interactive virtual Conversations on Teaching During Covid-19. Each conversation will bring together a panel of teachers around a common theme to talk more about the challenges they faced and how they have responded in innovative ways.

If you are a teacher or school leader, we invite you join us in these conversations and take part in a deeper discussion on the innovations we saw from teachers around the world. 

Each conversation will be hosted on Zoom Meeting and will be fully interactive, with all participants encouraged to join the discussion. 

·       8 April – Conversation 1: Learning continuity and innovative pedagogy (hosted by UNESCO). Register here.

·       15 April – Conversation 2: Social-emotional support in a time of crisis (hosted by UNESCO). Register here.

·       22 April – Conversation 3: Building a stronger profession together (hosted by the OECD). Register here.

Congratulations to dr.  Sandrita Škėrienė upon successful defense of a doctoral dissertation University educational environments enabling students to develop the capabilities of value-based problem solving and acquisition doctoral degree in social sciences education.

The doctoral dissertation is available on the internet and at the library of Kaunas University of Technology (20 K. Donelaičio St. , Kaunas), and a brief annotation of it is  presented below. 

Political, economic, technological, social, and cultural changes taking place in the world highlight the problems that require values. It is especially important at the university to develop the capabilities of value-based problem solving of future professionals. The lives and well-being of specific individuals, organizations, and communities may depend on these decisions. Developing the capabilities to solve problems by emphasizing the values requires environments that encourage a change in students’ thinking and facilitate their personal growth and change. This dissertation deals with a scientific problem: what university educational environments enable students to develop capabilities to solve a problem based on values? The theoretical part of this study is substantiating (i) the model of value-based problem solving (VBPS) and (ii) the model of the sequence of educational environments enabling students to develop the capabilities of VBPS. The substantiated research methodology allows to empirically research the practice of university’s educational environments enabling students to develop capabilities of VBPS. The essential results of this empirical research: (i) shows that a theoretically based sequence model of educational environments enables the development of students’ capabilities of VBPS in a specific module of university studies and allows achieving a positive result of this education; (ii) allowed to supplement the model of VBPS; (iii) identified the elements of educational environments that were the source of the formation of students’ personal learning environments.

Dissertation Defence Board of Education Science Field:
Prof. Dr. Brigita Janiūnaitė (Kaunas University of Technology, Social Sciences, Education, S007) – Chairwoman.
Prof. Dr. Remigijus Bubnys (Vilnius University Šiauliai Academy, Social Sciences, Education, S007).
Prof. Dr. Velta Lubkina (Rezekne Academy of Technologies, Latvia, Social Sciences, Education, S007).
Prof. Dr. Romualdas Malinauskas (Lithuanian Sports University, Social Sciences, Education, S007).
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gintarė Tautkevičienė (Kaunas University of Technology, Social Sciences, Education, S007),

 

The Educational Forum „A UNESCO Vision for Quality of Education for All, Lifelong Learning UNESCO Vision : Approaching or Moving Away from It?”

The record of the Educational forum  on Youtube :

The welcome speech was given by prof.dr. Lina Kaminskienė (Chancellor of the Academy of Education of Vytautas Magnus University). The  announcements were given by the researchers of the Academy of Education  of Vytautas Magnus University doc. dr. Ramutė Bruzgelevičienė, doc. dr. Agnė Brandišauskienė, doc. dr. Jūratė Česnavičienė, dr. Rasa Nedzinskaitė-Mačiūnienė. In the discussion participated Vaidas Bacys (Director of Dubysa Aukstupio School), Virginija Būdienė (Director of Vilnius Institute of Political Analysis, Associate Professor of Partnership, VU Faculty of Philosophy), dr. Agnė Kudarauskienė  ( Vice -Minister of Education, Science and Sports of the Republic of Lithuania), Elena Leontjeva (President of the Lithuanian Free Market Institute, Chairwoman of the Council) prof. dr. Laimutė Žalimienė, (Professor, Institute of Sociology and Social Work, Faculty of Philosophy, Vilnius University). The closing speech was given by prof. dr. Liudmila Rupšienė (President of the Lithuanian Educational Research Association) and prof. dr. Loreta Žadeikaitė (Chief Adviser of the Science, Studies and Technology Department of the Ministry of Education and Science).

The e-conference”Equity in School Education in Europe„, will take place on March 25th 11h30 via Webex.

The event will focus on the presentation of the main findings of the recent Eurydice report „Equity in School Education in Europe – Structures, Policies and Student Performance’. This report explores the concept of equity in education and assesses how equitable is school education in Europe. It investigates a range of education structures and policies that affect equity such as school choice and admissions policies, tracking, grade repetition and financing.

DG EAC’s perspective on equity and inclusion will be presented by Ms. Anna-Maria Giannopoulou, Deputy Head of Unit B2 Schools and Multilingualism.

Presentations will be followed by an open debate on concrete measures favouring equity and inclusion in education.

The event will be moderated by Mr. Lars Bo Jakobsen, Head of Unit A6 Erasmus+: Education and Youth Policy Analysis, EACEA. Please see the attached agenda.

Meeting link:

https://ecconf.webex.com/ecconf/j.php?MTID=m462ba6c11db0d7dfcf9ef3145ab8c9dd

Meeting number (access code): 181 243 1375

(registration is not required to log in).

Programme: Equity lunch time agenda

Link to the research and its summary : 

the full report 

·the Eurydice brief

Should you require any additional information, please contact Luisa Rodrigues ([email protected]).

The general meeting of LERA took place on the  24th of March in 2021. During this meeting LERA financial report for 2020, LERA action report for 2020, LERA action plan for 2021 were presented, and other important issues were discussed.