The Smart Learning Environments for the Future project offers an excellent opportunity for companies to develop their products in collaboration with users, namely pupils, students and teachers. The project provides companies with an opportunity to gain valuable user experience in a facilitated manner and test their products and services in the educational institutions of Finland’s largest cities, thus giving participating companies a valuable reference for the future. The Agile Piloting programme, in particular, focuses on developing products to address the everyday challenges faced in schools, and participating companies can often be compensated for their pilots as well. In addition, companies may be given access to the Living Lab facilities to be built in different cities, which also serve as platforms for co-creation.
Through this project, we contribute to the building of an education export ecosystem, in which schools and educational institutions serve as innovation and experimentation platforms for new business and growth. We also organise needs-based business coaching and support companies’ opportunities in the international market.
Higher quality digital and physical learning environments for teaching and learning
Co-creation allows products and services to be refined to better respond to the needs of the education sector and the everyday operation of educational institutions, enabling cities to procure higher quality and pedagogically more effective learning environment solutions in the future. Teachers play a key role in this type of co-creation: having a front-row seat, they are best-equipped to see what is possible with new technology and influence how products in the education sector are developed. Co-creation also offers pupils and students a unique opportunity to participate in companies’ product development processes and thus familiarise themselves with the everyday operations of companies.
The learning environments of the future will include more and better solutions for utilising virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR), data produced by sensors, artificial intelligence (AI), 3D modelling, space analytics, immersive spaces, learning analytics, physical learning environments and digital tools in teaching and learning.
The entire city as a learning environment
In addition to places traditionally thought of as educational institutions – from daycare centres to universities – learning is also increasingly taking place elsewhere, outside the classroom. This is why the scope of the project covers not only schools, but other learning environments suitable for development and testing as well, such as museums, libraries, green spaces and multipurpose buildings in different cities.
You can find the current open calls, events and more detailed information about our project on our website at www.oppimisenuusiaika.fi.
6Aika, the Six City Strategy: The Smart Learning Environments for the Future is a 6Aika pilot project funded by the European Regional Development Fund. The project will continue until 30 November 2020.