BackgroundTeacher educators normally don’t teach children and practicing teachers frequently forget the academic fundamentals of education. This has caused a gap between academic teacher education and the competences needed in education school practice. School adoption is a way to bridge this gap between schools and teacher education institutions by training student teachers for several weeks to adopt a school for one week. This while they are still learning themselves - using theory in practice and using practice experiences in theoretical reflection. School adoption offers win-win initiatives for both student teachers, schools and teacher education institutions. Also, school teachers and teacher educators need to revise their educational paradigms. They have to consider flexible and innovative learning approaches and methods to improve quality and relevance of the teaching profession. 'School' and 'teacher education' as systems get much more linked up through the use of school adoption. They form a strong consistency between higher education, research and professional practice in schools which will strengthen the quality of teacher education. Both teacher students and teacher educators (and teachers!) will very probably profit from this new model for cooperation with schools. The project provides strengthened performance skills to students and teacher educators and higher efficiency in teacher education and training. The presence of student teachers in schools for one week gives school teachers the opportunity to participate in professional development classes/team work outside school meanwhile. This model initiates innovation and new ways of thinking and acting in teacher education. School teachers get the possibility to develop their academic qualification and core competences through better communication between systems and through closer links between theory and practice. Teacher educators thus close the gap between their academic activities and the real needs of school development. School adoption is an efficient way to strengthen and focus on a practice oriented approach to teacher education. The school adoption project SATE is meant to be the beginning of an ongoing and integrated part of the future teacher education, and a strong partnership across countries will help to ensure the exchange of good practices. ObjectivesThe aim of the SATE project was to bridge the existing gap between schools and teacher education by the development of an effective and innovative model for internships that strengthens collaboration between practice and the academic world. School adoption has shown to be a win-win situation. Student teachers take over a school for one week and learn by doing. They get the opportunity to test in practice their academic knowledge supported by a mentor and they take care of all tasks of a teacher (teaching, administration, relationships with parents etc) during the week, which is different from traditional internships. School teachers participate in professional development classes during this week in order to strengthen their skills and competences. They learn how to act as co-educators for student teachers in close collaboration with teacher educators. Participating organisationFive higher education institutions from DK, N, D, and Ru with a strong tradition for teacher education have been full partners in the project as well as one Danish Elementary School, the latter with the aim to ensure the crucial link to practice in all project activities. Before project start, all partner institutions designated a local stakeholder school to act as a test partner during the project, which means that these elementary schools were fully or partly taken over by teacher students at least once during the project period. Main activities All partner or stakeholder schools have been taken over by student teachers from the partner institutions at least once during the project period. In relation to these school takeovers the project group has evaluated the experiences through focus group interviews and video interviews with pupils, student teachers, school teachers and teacher edcators (mentors) (IO2 + IO3). As a result of transational discussions with exchange of good knowledge within the partner institutions, the project group has elaborated a set of generic guidelines for school adoption with the aim to inspire more teacher education institutions and schools to try school adoption (IO1). Also, a report/book has been produced with articles from all partner institutions and their different ways of dealing with school adoption (IO4). Furthermore, a web site is available with all relevant information (except from the videos as pupils cannot be shown publicly) - http://www.school-adoption.com/ Results and impactFollowing products have been elaborated:1. Guidelines for school adoption2. Video clips as testimonials3. Evaluation report4. Book/report with articles from all partners

CONTEXT/BACKGROUNDPROTEUS started with a key question in education from the EC: “How to inspire teachers to be proactive, reflective professionals who take ownership of their own professional development?” There is an international drive to enhance collaboration between teacher education, largely based in universities, and schools. The aim of PROTEUS was to enable key stakeholders to better integrate the academic and practical elements of learning to teach, by investigating the effectiveness of initiatives that promote university/school collaboration, such as university schools. At the same time PROTEUS has, with the involvement of teacher educators, teacher mentors and student teachers developed understandings of ‘new professionalism’, across boundaries of research and teaching practice. With the involvement of different stakeholders to teacher education, PROTEUS has also involved larger sets of actors with ideas and exchanges of experiences that can contribute to the development of teacher education. OBJECTIVESThe main objectives of PROTEUS have been:1. To identify the opportunities and constraints of existing university/school collaborations2. To evaluate the potential of ‘university schools’ as a specific model of university/school collaboration3. To evaluate the capacity of university/school collaborations to develop 21st century professionalismPARTNERSPROTEUS consists of seven universities/university colleges and two university schools, covering all levels of initial teacher education, from primary to higher secondary schools. The partners represent a broad range of European education systems and hence are able to produce detailed evidence about the opportunities and constraints of university/school collaboration and its integration into national systems. ACTIVITIESPROTEUS has worked with a range of university/school collaboration models. Participants saw these approaches at first-hand and, through transnational meetings and the production of the PROTEUS intellectual outputs, considered their strengths and weaknesses, whilst learning from each other.RESULTSThe project has produced knowledge about university/school collaboration, both locally at the partner teacher education institutions and internationally, through exchange visits and workshops with student teachers, school (mentor) teachers and university staff. The following basic principles have emerged from the work of PROTEUS:1)The ultimate goal of teacher education, as implemented through USPs, is to provide pupils with the best possible educational and personal outcomes from their time in school. 2)A subsidiary goal of USPs is to make the teaching profession sustainable, by increasing the effectiveness of teachers whilst reducing stress, burnout and attrition.3)University schools, as a subset of USPs, should be research-informed, meaning that they actively refer to research results as evidence for pursuing specific practices, but with a critical and inquiring attitude to research, and with the possibility of pursuing research in specific local contexts.4)University schools should be a form of clinical practice, involving varying degrees of responsibility and with active dialogue between student teachers, mentors and other in-service teachers, as well as teacher educators and researchers.5)USPs should maintain mutual respect and understanding between all partners/stakeholders6)Mutual expectations should be clarified at an early stage in partnership development.7)Systematic Teacher Professional Development should be an integral part of USPs8)USPs should have a clear plan for mentoring new teachers, as part of an induction scheme, even if this is not mandatory at national level.9)The roles of PhD and masters studies within USPs should be agreed at an early stage and steps should be taken to maximise the value of such studies to participating schools, for example by aligning research topics to local issues in teaching and learning.10)Spatial factorsshould be taken into account in USPs. Staff should feel at home in both school and university environments, with the possibility of a 'thirdspace' for dialogue or 'trialogue' involving all stakeholders.11) Spreading the word about the benefits of USPs is important, and communication channels and messages should be discussed by all partners/stakeholders.As a summary recommendation, we suggest that schools and universities involved in teacher education should create long-term structures to support ongoing dialogue regarding their relationship. This should cover not only practice arrangements for student teachers, but also the role of research and researchers in both school- and university based teacher education.IMPACTPartner institutions enabled to reflect on, and refine, their collaboration practices.LONGER-TERM BENEFITS Better pupil outcomesReduced teacher attritionMore cost-efficient teacher education

ENTEP Joint Project proposal has been initiated with the aim of improving the quality of education and teaching, enhancing teaching practices and further developing educational science in Russia and China. Partners experienced in HE teacher training formed a consortium in order to benefit from their different experiences, profiles and specific expertise and to produce relevant and high quality outcomes. The Project is focused on building cooperation and exchange of good teaching practices among European, Russian and Chinese Universities, which will eventually result in the modernization of PCIs.Effective teacher education is key to teachers’ ability to face educational change and handle various socioeconomic conditions, however, more professional training is required throughout a teacher’s career as different professional needs emerge and contextual circumstances shift. RU and CN educational authorities require that HE teachers, who lack pedagogical education, must receive training through professional development in-service programs on theory and practice of teaching, including advanced teaching methods and pedagogy. Thus, the proposed establishment of Centres for Teaching and Learning at PCIs with trained personnel and methodological support will provide a model for such high quality training on a regular basis and engage educators with the most up-to-date technologies to support teaching design and delivery. In order to be able to fit the changing learning environment, University teachers will be informed of modern pedagogy, curricula and syllabi design, contemporary teaching methodologies and psychology in the classroom, thus, being able to teach graduates who will meet needs of the labour market. Consequently, continuous professional development of university teaching staff will be focused on shared international and national ‘centres of excellence’, best practices, advanced teaching methodology and educational psychology in convergence with EU initiatives.

Harmony project aims to contribute to development of a comprehensive internationalization strategies and their harmonization at EU and Partner Countries (Armenia, Belarus, Russia) within the framework of HEA in accordance with the main provisions of the Bologna Process through modernization of international relation management of the partner countries universities, promoting the academic mobility and correspondently, increasing the attractiveness of the higher education systems in these countries and EU. Project represents a comprehensive approach to much-needed strategies for the PCs HEIs that will start from comprehansive research of internationalisation level of HE, following EU best practice study to boost horizontally their internationalisation. The action foresees strengthening strategic, infrastructural & human capacities in HEIs of 3 PCs, implementation of Internationalization Action Plans in 7 HEIs and further approval by national Ministries which involvement ensures project impact on policy level and provides modernisation at national development strategies.At the project core there lays development of approaches to harmonization of internationalization strategies in HE, research and innovation through setting-up tool kits and their national approval. The specific objectives will be reached by actions at institutional, national & multi-regional levels across PCs like implementing a set training set, establishing Framework of a Comprehensive internationalization strategy, recommendations for harmonisation. The action is complemented by extensive dissemination & networking activities. The partnership comprises 6 EU HEIs, 2 HEIs from AM and BY and 4 RU institutions; and the MoES of PCs join them. Expected impact is seen as contribution to coherence between internationalisation strategies and EU development cooperation policies by considering principles of equity and PC ownership; use academic and research mobility as given direction of cooperation.