It’s always good to be back home. And it’s even better to be home with familiar faces, opening the doors for, what is now considered, your team. After almost a year after all, the bonds are strong, considering that most of us are old acquaintances.
It was Wednesday, a few hours after noontime, and the weather was what you’d expect from a late-February afternoon in Patras. Hot as hell. Well, not the i-am-spending-the-whole-day-at-the-beach-with-a-ton-of-ice-cream-and-a-12-pack-of-beers hot, but still, pretty damn hot for February. We had just received the first messages as the first few partners from Slovenia and Spain, were beginning to arrive.
Times Are Changing…Fast
Without counting how long ago we were part of the educational chain, the formal that is, as education is definitely an ongoing process, we are certain that it was not that long ago. Well, some of us would not count the years because of all the number-jumbling they’ve been doing, but still. Times are changing fast, meaning that a few years back we’d probably not imagine that Virtual Reality would be a part of the educational routine so fast, and that we’d be examining the numerous ways it can make itself useful to adult education. But here we are. Educational methods and practices have come a long way, absorbing technological means in the process, effectively creating innovative and inclusive practices, drifting away from the traditional ways, or in other cases unite the two.
CT : VR is a child of that transformation, and at the end of February, the time had come for the 2nd Transnational Project Meeting, this time in our home, Patras, Greece. Partners from Slovenia, France, Spain, and us of course, gathered in order to assess the project’s progress so far, and carve the roadmap for the steps we shall take from now on. The few people that were not familiar with the rest from other projects, did not need much time before they felt comfortable, becoming one with the team. The group’s dinner did a lot towards serving that cause, after all, we had two days of hard work in front of us.
Day 1
So, the 1st day, a nice breezy, early Thursday-morning, found us walking towards p-consulting.gr’s premises, with our laptops and notes finding shelter under our arms, longing for the 2nd coffee of the day. The 1st day was devoted to the evaluation of the project’s current state, and what’s to follow in the direct future. We thoroughly examined the ‘Research of VR tools and methodologies for teachers in adult education’, through which partners studied and collected good practices regarding Virtual Reality implementation in adult education in the EU. The final 80-page document will serve as a guide for educators and adult educational organizations that wish to implement Virtual Reality practices in their courses and general Curriculum.
With that completed, we got down to business with the ‘CT : VR Curriculum’. The approximately 100-page document will list the procedures and methodologies needed for the implementation of Virtual Reality practices in 3 levels: organizational, teacher/mentor, and participant, which in turn will act as a guideline on possibilities for exploitation. The meeting closed with the organization of the ‘CT : VR Guidelines with video tutorials’ which will include cases of implementation of VR/AR in educational organizations. These cases are accompanied by video tutorials so that adult educators have a full-on guide on ways to use them.
Day 2
On the 2nd day the partnership went through the Dissemination activities of the project; the ways and channels that CT : VR will contact the interested parts and stakeholders. The Website and social media of the project, the distribution of the digital leaflets, the development of the Newsletters, and the dissemination reports. After everything was examined and agreed upon, we arranged the next online, as well as physical, meetings, assessed the 2 days of the project, and proceeded with concluding the meeting. A smile was drawn on everybody’s face, as everything indicating the satisfaction.
Until The Next One Up
Spring is always the time of creation, and there couldn’t be a better season to have our meeting. Beautiful things are being created, and the future seems bright regarding the direction of, not only adult education but, education in general. Until the next one!
