The IlluminatED project, coordinated by the research group in Interactive and Distributed Technologies for Education (TIDE) of the Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC) of the UPF, has just ended. It was a project of the Erasmus + program (2017-2020) that brought together experts in educational technology, teacher development and cognitive neuroscience to help teachers make use of neuroscience knowledge. The IlluminatED team has developed a series of open educational resources, resources that anyone can reuse at no cost and which include:

The Neuroscience of Learning for Teachers (Free Online Course) A self-paced, online course featuring neuroscientists from the University of Helsinki who share insights into understanding and enhancing learning. The course, available in English, Spanish, Greek and Portuguese, consists of three modules: (1) Introduction to the Science of Learning; (2) Empirical Evidence on Learning; (3) Good Habits to Enhance Learning. In the course, participants can learn the basics about the neuroscience of learning (the science of learning); learn how to interpret scientific papers and empirical evidence about learning; and learn how sleep, music, and exercise affect learning – and can guide us toward good habits for enhancing learning. Videos from the course are also available as OER on Youtube: physical activity and learning, music and learning, sleep and learning.

Science of Learning Concepts for Teachers (eBook) The eBook introduces teachers to key concepts from the Science of Learning and provides an extensive list of references for those looking to deepen their knowledge about the Science of Learning. The eBook is available in English, Spanish, Finnish, Greek, and Portuguese.

Illuminated Trainers’ Toolkit for Teacher Workshops The toolkit provides resources for those wanting to deliver workshops on the neuroscience of learning to teachers. The toolkit includes speaker notes, activities, and a facilitator’s guide for two continuing professional development workshops for teachers and is available in English, Finnish, Spanish, Greek, and Portuguese.

Science of Learning Strategies for Students (Workshop) The free digital materials are for teachers wanting to teach their students about evidence-based learning strategies that align with the Science of Learning. The workshop materials (slides with speaker notes, online surveys) are appropriate for high school and undergraduate students. The materials are available in English, Spanish, Greek, and Portuguese.

The project was coordinated by the Interactive and Distributed Technologies for Education (TIDE) research group of Universitat Pompeu Fabra’s Department of Information Technology and Communications in collaboration with European partners including neuroscientists from Cicero Learning at the University of Helsinki, researchers from the University of Western Macedonia (Greece) and Metropolia University of Applied Sciences of Helsinki (Finland), as well as Portuguese companies Advancis and Boon.

From 2017 to 2020, the IlluminatED team organized learning activities with educators and students throughout Europe. The consortium held ​29 face-to-face workshops enrolling more than 400 participants (from all partner countries and Egypt). Further, a 3-day teach-the-teacher workshop involving educators from Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Finland was held in June 2019. A number of publications were made from

While Project IlluminatED came to an end on 30 September 2020, the project consortium continues to work together on a related project that focuses on Social and Emotional Learning (Project Spotlighters). Additionally, TIDE will coordinate a Erasmus+ project called Illumine that will build off of the results generated by IlluminatED. Illumine is to start in December 2020.

Scientific papers:

Beardsley M, Gutierrez N, Hernàndez-Leo D. Examining university students’ motivation, abilities and preferences related to learning to learn. In: ICALT 2020 International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies and Technology-enhanced Learning; 2020 Jul 6-9; Tartu, Estonia. New York: IEEE; 2020. p. 346-8. DOI: 10.1109/ICALT49669.2020.00111

Albó L, Beardsley M, Amarasinghe I, Hernández-Leo D. Individual versus computer-supported collaborative self-explanations: how do their writing analytics differ?. In: ICALT 2020 International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies and Technology-enhanced Learning; 2020 Jul 6-9; Tartu, Estonia. New York: IEEE; 2020. p. 132-4. DOI: 10.1109/ICALT49669.2020.00046

Casanova, L., Theophilou, E., Beardsley, M., Santos, P. & Hernández-Leo, D. (in press). Distributed retrieval practice enhances primary school students’ retention of computational thinking concepts. In 17th International Conference CELDA 2020: Cognition and exploratory learning in digital age. IADIS Press.

Beardsley M, Martínez-Moreno J, Hernández-Leo D. Comparing pre-service and in-service teacher perceptions of the science of learning. Paper accepted at: XI Congrés CIDUI 2021; 30 Jun-2 Jul; Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain. 

Beardsley M, Martínez-Moreno J, Hernández-Leo D. Learning to learn: university student perceptions of a science of learning intervention. Paper accepted at: XI Congrés CIDUI 2021; 30 Jun-2 Jul; Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain.