The following are institutions taking part in the ERASMUS project: the Akademie für Lehrerfortbildung und Personalführung (Germany, Dillingen), the Pädagogische Abteilung der Deutschen Bildungsdirektion (Italy, South Tyrol, autonomous province of Bolzano) and the Pädagogische Hochschule Salzburg (Austria). The participating institutions’ main task is to offer courses for in-service and pre-service teacher training. We all have to deal with the same hot topic, namely: How can we prepare teacher trainers to meet the demands and face the challenges that arise in the context of digitalization?When hiring new teacher trainers, there is neither a competence profile where important qualifications are described, nor is there some sort of assessment center that can be used as the basis of the selection process. Teacher trainers often come from school backgrounds, i.e. they used to be teachers for children and youths; new teacher trainers have often acquired competences in certain specific fields of expertise in the course of their professional careers. That usually took place in the context of in-service teacher training at local level or even at school level where they learned presentation techniques in an autodidactic way.Additionally, teacher trainers are very heterogeneous with regard to their digital abilities and – related to that – their course designs. In a nutshell: A professionalization for teacher trainers is missing. This has two major downsides: Firstly, the trainers themselves might feel insecure without a role-specific qualification profile and/or lack of know-how. Secondly, the participants of their courses who are former colleagues might not want to accept them as trainers.Consequently, the only prerequisites for being employed as teacher trainers are perennial professional experience, participation in projects and – in some cases – additional qualifications not necessarily related to the tasks ahead.By implementing a more professional approach, trainers can gain knowledge with regard to planning courses as well as self-confidence in teaching teachers in courses that have a lasting effect.We assume that the participants’ willingness to learn, try out and transfer new knowledge is higher, if the teacher trainers act more professionally.In this context, developing a job specification for teacher trainers is a desideratum that plays an important role in personnel development work. The participating institutions agree that the development of such a specified profile can only be research-driven and the result must then be firmly established in the respective institutions. By co-operating, the institutions from Austria, South Tyrol/Italy and Germany realize synergies, e.g. the joint activities. Mutual transnational meetings will be arranged with the intention of facilitating job shadowing, compiling good-practice-examples, obtaining input from external speakers and the mutual exchange of ideas and reflection. The main media for the mutual exchange is a digital platform, which enables the institutions and the participants from the different regions to get in touch on a regular and sustained basis.The main objective of the project “Professional Competencies of Advanced Teacher Trainers in the Context of Digital Potentials“ is the exchange of good-practice-examples and the drafting of a framework curriculum. The basis are four areas of competence that are key for speakers working in in-service teacher training. The job profile (i.e. a job specification with regard to relevant qualifications) of teacher trainers will emerge and a framework curriculum will be designed. The latter can be used by any institution dealing with teacher training because it can be modified individually according to different wants and needs.The examination of the four competence areas serves as basis for developing standards in teacher training in the context of digital potentials. These areas are:The role of trainersPerson centricityDesigning of teaching and learning processes (with a special focus on digitalization) Expert monitoring of the whole process.Each mobility focuses on one of those areas and their step-by-step differentiation. The element that is integrated in all mobilities is the digital potential - which is to be found in the competence areas described above.

Those participating in the Erasmus+ project titled “HandWritingTutorials: Practical modules for promoting writing skills in schools and in transition from kindergarten to school” included professionals from the teaching profession, researchers in applied education and regional school administrators from Germany, Austria and Italy. Participants brought a high degree of enthusiasm and interest into the project aiming to discover sustainable methods of advancing handwriting skills, as they all share similar challenges in their respective countries. During the project, interviews were held with 56 qualified educators. In addition, 292 teachers were surveyed online, confirming the urgent need for action.The fundamental significance of successful motor skill development required for writing are not to be underestimated, particularly in the first years of schooling. With increasing motoric ability, school children are better able to focus on cognitive processes, leading to better spelling, retention and reading skills. Motor skills related to writing are ideally already acquired during preschool.For quite some time, teachers have no longer been sufficiently trained during their studies or continuing education courses to help students acquire adequate writing skills. Many educators feel inadequately prepared to teach handwriting skills. In addition, many children find writing increasingly challenging, and often aren’t able to write longer than 30 minutes without difficulty. They become disadvantaged learners, as sufficient writing skills play a central role in acquiring the competencies needed for life-long learning and participation in society. The initial goal of the Handwriting Tutorials Project was to bring to attention at the European level the importance of acquiring handwriting skills. Educators and educational policy makers were to be made more aware of the relevance of good handwriting ability as a key life skill generally related to obtaining a good education, but also particularly for obtaining verbal skills based on the written language. The success of various regional and national measures was tracked by participants in various contexts: e.g. administrative task forces, university seminars, at-home learning during the Corona lockdown, special projects like “Handwriting Day”, additionally recruited project supporters and the like.In addition, the project developed 12 innovative, field-tested handouts for educators in schools and preschools. The didactic methods for advancing handwriting skills described in the handouts were based on current results of motoric, verbal and neuroscientific research. The surveys taken in preschools and schools (with 20 educators each) revealed that the handouts were practical and user-friendly and that relevant topics were addressed.Another feature of the project was the production of 34 video tutorials that target various groups: the introductory video “Writing to Success!” aims to aware parents, educational policy makers and the public in general of the issue. The animation tutorial “what is happening in the brain while writing by hand” is appropriate for children. 32 additional video tutorials demonstrate the implementation of the exercises introduced in the handouts, enabling elementary and preschool educators to better develop children’s handwriting abilities (or laying the basics for these abilities) and giving them strategies for assisting children who are having difficulties in writing. While these videos primarily target educators, they were also designed to be used as a tool for home-schooling throughout the Corona lockdowns.During the project, 67 were trained to hold further continuing education courses in participating regions on the topic. Practical materials and research results related to handwriting are presented in the seminar, leading to better teaching skills. The evaluations of the courses given by participating teachers were very positive, especially relating to practical implementation and intense discourse during the seminars.The project contributes to achieving the goals as stated in Europe 2020 Strategy by focusing on giving all children adequate writing skills. In the long-term, this prevents students from leaving school before they graduate. It enables educators to excel and it promotes the cooperation of regional educational authorities between European countries. The European Commission proposed in 2018 that specially trained educators could play a role in preventing children’s deficiencies in reading and writing at the earliest stages. This is exactly what this project aims to accomplish.In addition, the results of the project are being included in a follow-up Erasmus+ Project. The project “Writing Motor Skills: Certification of Schools” further builds on the Handwriting Tutorials, is however a more comprehensive undertaking (e.g. involving school development, diversity). The materials resulting from the Handwriting Tutorials serve as the basis of further project development.

"While in other educational settings the intercollegial exchange is often institutionalized, in schools a strong lone warrior mentality is prevailing. The exchange within or across schools is not build on institutionalized forms of mutual support, but a selective exchange dependent on mutual sympathy. The potential of guided and structured cooperation is not exploited in this way, which also leaves many teachers feeling left alone. Much of the work is done in multiple ways, which would be eliminated by better networking and mutual support, leaving more time for pedagogical work with the pupils.Our project vision is to create vibrant local, regional and European learning communities, fuelled by Regional Learning Facilitators. We need new organisational concepts and ownership of issues and concerns from the crowd. Our approach lies in analogue and digital networking and support structures that take into account the value of informal networks. The key message of the project is: ""When we share, we win"". By learning communities, we mean forms of exchange and cooperation organised by ourselves or supported by the community, which ideally are supported by the involvement of education authorities. The Learning Communities deal with solutions to upcoming problems in everyday education, with challenges of the education system at different system levels, with the creation, exchange and further development of teaching materials, etc. The Learning Communities are also involved in the development of new teaching materials and in the development of new teaching methods.As concrete project goals we see- the training of 24 Regional Learning Community Facilitators- at least 12 Regional Learning Communities in 4 European countries- the creation of a European cross-border learning community with at least 48 active members- The development of a Learning Community Facilitator Curriculum, which will later become a standard KA1 workshop offer.- the development of an AI-supported passive networking platform for teachers and school stakeholders to test a further development option for eTwinning that currently relies only on active search functionsOur target group are teachers and their reference system. Our aim is to indirectly support the work of the teachers and to facilitate their planning, implementation and follow-up of their lessons by focusing on the principles of cooperation and exchange. Through active networking, but also by pointing out connection possibilities, teachers should no longer have the feeling of being alone in the corridor, but embedded in a professional system that also brings them more self-confidence and self-efficacy.In IO 1 we are developing the basis for the development of the curriculum of the Learning Community Facilitators with the study and policy paper ""FUTURE VISION ON EUROPEAN COOPERATION IN EDUCATION"". In the first part of the study we shed light on the status quo of the principle of cooperation in school settings in the European context. In this respect, we will collect best practice case studies from the networks of the participating partners and derive corresponding success factors. The second part will outline a vision of how the European educational area can benefit from the principle of cooperation and networking. Different cooperative organizational theories for informal structures from the organizational sciences will be used as a basis. After the study a CURRICULUM FOR LEARNING COMMUNITY FACILITATORS will be developed as IO 2. Learning Community Facilitators can be teachers, regional educational actors from the school environment, but also parents. The curriculum enables the facilitators in their role as initiators and initiators for the networking and development of the Learning Communities.On the one hand for the curriculum, but also for the Learning Community Facilitators (LCFs) themselves and for their networking and multiplier work, blended learning suitable learning materials are developed as IO 3. These learning materials are methodically and didactically prepared in such a way that multipliers can take up the learning package (theory part, self-examination and self-reflection questions, PowerPoint slides) at any time and carry it out independently.The digital world has changed the way people interact with each other. As IO 4, a platform is being developed that uses the principle of passive networking in a school context. The idea is based on a cooperation profile in which different aspects of being a teacher are collected and teachers propose concrete suggestions for cooperation."

"There is no doubt that literacy is regarded as a fundamental competence, without this participation in society hardly seems possible. It is precisely for this reason that studies such as those of the OECD point to the key role that reading literacy plays in later educational and career opportunities. Križan (2014) complains that there is a lack of reliable knowledge, especially in German-speaking countries, which funding measures are successful. The ELiS project - Evidence-based reading promotion in schools - attempts to counteract this criticism by implementing two reading promotion measures in primary schools and by examining their effectiveness in comparison with conventional reading instruction. In terms of content, the project follows on from the Erasmus+ mobility project ""In the footsteps of Archduke Johann - Innovative practices of general and subject-specific reading in a European comparison"". The first project objective, an improvement of basic reading skills through innovative methods, was achieved through the development and effectiveness testing of subject-integrated reading training. The project thus ties in with the ""Education and Training 2020"" of the European Commission, which calls for the investigation of existing reading promotion measures. The second project objective was to strengthen the teaching profession, which, according to the European document ""Rethinking Education"", is the key to improving pupils' learning outcomes. In order to enable teachers to deepen their knowledge, the project created high quality offers for knowledge enhancement. The third project objective was to minimise poor reading performance through sustainable and efficient education and training. Through European cooperation between colleges of education, universities and school authorities, it was possible to guarantee further training courses which focus on equal opportunities for all. A total of six educational institutions from four European countries participated in the project. It was headed by KPH Graz, which offers innovative and value-oriented training and further education for teachers and whose profile is characterised by a discourse between pedagogy, theology and other sciences. The second project partner was PH Steiermark, a renowned institution in teacher education. The Styrian Department of Education was also a project partner, which is responsible for the administration of the state schools and attaches great importance to autonomous freedom of action. The fourth project partner was the department of the German Directorate of Education of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, which is responsible for the administration, advice and coordination of schools. The Lucian Blaga University in Sibiu is the fifth project partner to offer a course of study for primary school teachers with a focus on inclusion, and is endeavouring to establish international cooperation. The sixth project partner was the University of Regensburg, whose Chair for Didactics of the German Language and Literature deals with the optimisation of competence-oriented teaching and learning processes. Its profile is characterised by the review of existing teaching methods with regard to specific German didactic competences. There were four main activities in the project, the first being an analysis of current reading promotion measures in primary schools and an analysis of needs of teachers. The second activity was the development of a subject-integrated reading training and an evalutation of its effectiveness. The existing reading course ""Lesen. Das Training"" was also implemented and evaluated. After carrying out the reading competence measurements, the third activity was the analysis of the implemented innovations. Statistical calculations were used to find out which training improves the reading competence of the children to a greater extent. The last activity was the compilation of a compendium on current reading promotion in the participating European countries. The project results show that children with reading difficulties in reading fluency benefit most from the „Filius/Filia“ intervention. Children with good reading abilities also benefit most from the „Filius/Filia“ intervention, both in terms of reading fluency development and meaning-enhancing reading. Students of third grade with a strong reading ability, on the other hand, are not as well supported by the intervention ""Lesen. Das Training"" in their development. Instead, this training contributes to reading comprehension in children with reading difficulties. The innovative nature of the material has already made the project sustainable. In South Tyrol, for example, „Filius/Filia“ will be available to each child free of charge. Throughout Bavaria, „Filius/Filia“ has already been developed into „Filby“ and tested by over 50,000 children."

Talk to each other! - In-Service Training for Teachers in the European Context (TaTo)The successful integration of refugees and immigrants in German speaking countries and the awareness for multi-/plurilingualism and cultural diversity in today's society are regarded as challenges, which require transnational expertise, especially in the context of education. In the framework of the project TaTo, a range of support measures using the expertise of professionals from various fields were thereforedeveloped and implemented. Transregional teams worked on four distinct Intellectual Outputs (IO).IO 1 “Plurilingual Curriculum” (PLC) developed a key document for the inclusion of plurilingual competencies in schools. In the course of the project, IO 1 “PLC” emerged as the foundation for IO 4, which evolved from the “Competency Grid” into the “Plurilingual Competency Model” (PCM). Both IOs were tested at the school district of Bozen-City Centre and in the Pforzheim school district. Selected parts were also implemented at schools in the school districts of Böblingen, Pforzheim, Salzburg and Bozen-City Centre. Both the school management and the teaching staff were prepared for the testing and evaluation of the material in various further training events. Furthermore, the implementation at the Pforzheim school district was scientifically evaluated by the University of Education Ludwigsburg (UEL) and the results were made available for the development of further training seminars.IO 2 “Massive Open Online Course” (MOOC) used contents from other IOs to develop four different MOOC modules, consisting of learning videos and teaching and working materials. The four modules cover the subject areas “self-reflection and acquisition of intercultural skills”, “interaction and communication with parents or legal guardians”, “PLC” and “PCM”. The respective IO working groups were responsiblefor the scripts. The production was undertaken by Bad Wildbad.IO 3 developed a curriculum for a transnational teacher training concept (TTTC), consisting of 8 modules – 4 compulsory modules and 4 optional modules – totalling 12 ECTS. 2 modules were implemented at the University of Education Salzburg (UES), the Deutsche Bildungsdirektion Bozen and the ZSL Bad Wildbad and evaluated by the UEL with regard to their effectiveness. Furthermore, the PLC wasedited for teacher training and the modules “DaZ (German as a Second Language)- transfer DaF (German as a Foreign Language)” and “Self-Reflection and Intercultural Skills” were implemented at the University of Pristina (Kosovo).The PCM of IO 4 is a product which goes far beyond the originally planned “Competency Grid” in terms of content and structure. It is based on the competence areas of the PLC. The structure is supplemented by references and examples of open forms of teaching. Using the PCM helps teachers to quantify their students' learning progress and makes it easier to talk about plurilingual competencies. Theexpected goals of IO 4 were exceeded by this further development. It is not only made available in a print version, but – like all other IO products, including the evaluation – it is also posted and available for free on the new homepage and thehomepages of the project partners.Due to Covid19 not all events could take place as planned. Most importantly, the dissemination event, scheduled for 13 March 2020, had to be cancelled at short notice. The AUL in Nuremberg, scheduled for May 2020, had to be cancelled as well. Other regional events, e.g. a multilingual theatre production, were also called off.Still, the production of the MOOC videos could be completed despite the difficult circumstances, which included a prohibition of direct contact thus making the shooting of the videos impossible for a prolonged period of time. The project's main goal – supporting teachers, school administrators and disseminators in their work with intercultural students – was fully achieved. Many short-term and long-termeffects can be observed among all those involved in school life.Short term effects: Legal guardians, students, teaching staff and school administrators work together more closely; strengthening of learners' self-reflection and assessment skills; change of attitudes; strengthening of language acquisition, interculturality, inclusion/integration; change of perspective (on multilingualism and languages of origin as a resource); interdisciplinary multilingual projects with languages of origin and school languages.Long term effects: teacher-student conversations at eye level, increased motivation in students' learning behavior. Both effects could be ascertained in the project's test phase. 2 modules of the TTTC were adapted for the teacher training curriculum and have been implemented at the UES since the academic year 2019/2020. Both the PLC and the PCM will be used in schools further on. Cooperations with experts were initiated and will continue after the project's official end.