Innovation in education for inclusion, equity and sustainability

Partnership
Initiative

Background

The Instituto para el Futuro de la Educación del Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey - Institute for the Future of Education at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education - IFE-Tec (Mexico) and the Fundación Comillas del Español y la Cultura Hispánica - Comillas Foundation for Spanish and Hispanic Culture - Fundación Comillas (Spain) are working together in the implementation of the 'Comillas Hub for Social Entrepreneurship and Educational Innovation' (Hub Comillas). This multidisciplinary project promotes educational innovation, social entrepreneurship, and the creation and transfer of knowledge, which was the subject of study within the LIDERES Initiative, carried out within the framework of the ADELANTE Window 2021. Fundación Comillas participated in this endeavour within the framework of the Consejería de Economía y Hacienda del Gobierno de Cantabria - Regional Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Government of Cantabria (Spain).

The Dirección de Educación del Ministerio de Educación y Cultura de Uruguay - Department of Education of the Ministry of Education and Culture of Uruguay - MEC) - is in charge of the coordination and implementation of educational programmes centred on inclusion and equal access to knowledge. Within the framework of the consolidated political ties between the Government of Cantabria and Uruguay, agreements have been reached for the transfer of knowledge and to attract talent in the field of educational innovation.

The Centro Ceibal (Uruguay), a renowned centre in the field of educational innovation with digital technologies in Uruguay and a collaborating entity within the Initiative, has ample experience supporting educational public policies, with an emphasis on promoting the integration of technology in education in order to promote processes of innovation, inclusion and personal growth.

Thanks to the spaces for dissemination and joint work promoted by both Hub Comillas and the LIDERES Initiative, IFE-Tec and the Fundación Comillas identified the MEC as a strategic partner for the processes of creating tools for educational innovation, bringing together these three entities in the Triangular Cooperation Partnership carrying out this Initiative.

Entities and roles

Beneficiary entities

Dirección de Educación del Ministerio de Educación y Cultura de Uruguay

Uruguay

First provider entities

Instituto para el Futuro de la Educación del Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey

Mexico

Second provider entities

Fundación Comillas del Español y la Cultura Hispánica

Spain

Development challenges

This initiative was created to address the challenges posed by the digital transition of learning methodologies. Faced with this challenge, education strategies must be adapted to respond to the needs of the education ecosystems of the Partnership member entities.

Thanks to this Triangular Cooperation Initiative, the knowledge and experience of the Partnership's member entities in resource management, public policy and teaching methodologies in academia and the public sector will be used to develop tools to support educational practice, incorporating innovative pedagogical approaches and emerging technologies.

This Triangular Cooperation Initiative aims to share knowledge, within the framework of the transformation process undergone by the ecosystems of the Partnership member entities in terms of inclusion, equity and sustainability, in order to jointly develop solutions for adapting innovative methods of educational management and learning.

Triangular approach

The social, digital and green transition provides challenges and opportunities that need to be addressed from a multidimensional and multi-stakeholder perspective. The Partnership member entities are certain of the added value of Triangular Cooperation in fostering innovative solutions to tackle current challenges, and have once again turned to this instrument to address innovation in education.

Within the framework of this triangular approach, the IFE-Tec will contribute to broadening the Partnership's knowledge on the digital transformation of the traditional education model, through a practical vision that will generate new knowledge relevant to the local context.

Fundación Comillas will lend its experience in international and inter-agency collaboration through Hub Comillas, which houses the International Laboratory of Excellence in Educational Innovation. The Foundation will share knowledge on training programmes that are focused on the digital empowerment of vulnerable groups, including the creation of a training pathway that promotes entrepreneurship and rural development, as well as reducing the gender gap.

The MEC will lend its experience in the management of educational resources and public policies, especially in the coordination between educational policies and human, social and economic development policies, which is essential to guarantee inclusion, equity and sustainability.

The Partnership member entities, as well as the collaborating entity, will harness their pioneering experiences in educational public policies, educational management, research and the development of methodologies for education, among others, in order to generate new knowledge for the collective construction of innovative tools that respond to the needs of the education ecosystems.

Sectoral approach - Contribution to the 2030 Agenda

Primary SDG

Goal 4.3 By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university

Goal 4.4 By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship

Secondary SDG

Goal 8.2 Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading and innovation, including through a focus on high-value added and labour-intensive sectors

Goal 8.6 By 2020, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training

ADELANTE SDG

Goal 10.3 Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting appropriate legislation, policies and action in this regard

Goal 17.6 Enhance North-South, South-South and triangular regional and international cooperation on and access to science, technology and innovation and enhance knowledge sharing on mutually agreed terms, including through improved coordination among existing mechanisms, in particular at the United Nations level, and through a global technology facilitation mechanism

Goal 17.17 Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies of partnerships

Territorial approach

Intervention methodology

The work plan in this Initiative is based on the practical exchange of innovative learning methods, coordination with relevant actors and advocacy, and taking advantage of the face-to-face work spaces to create connections with the education ecosystems of each Partnership member country, in order to understand and incorporate the territorial challenges in the resulting products. Three study visits will be carried out for this purpose.

The first study visit will take place in Cantabria, producing knowledge on educational transformation processes within the political and social context, incorporating the perspective of different actors in the territory and their advocacy strategies, in order to adapt digital learning methodologies to the needs of the educational community.

A second study visit to Montevideo, Uruguay, will facilitate technical meetings between the Partnership and the academic community, as well as with other actors in the country's education system. The main focus will be on the implementation of the National Education Policy Plan 2020-2025, providing opportunities for reflection on the management of resources in the education ecosystem, as well as the inclusion of the education community in proposing solutions.

The third study visit will take place in the framework of the Education Innovation Congress in Monterrey, where the Partnership will learn about the education ecosystem linked to the Institute for the Future of Education. The Partnership will foster working spaces with IFE-Tec faculty regarding the process of transferring digital learning knowledge and skills.

Following the study visits, recommendations for the implementation of innovative educational models will be drawn up and presented during the final workshop of the Initiative, aimed at all of the entities that have collaborated in the implementation phase.

This intervention methodology will lead to a continuous cycle of validation of knowledge and the generation of new knowledge, thus allowing both the Beneficiary entity and the Provider entities to offer feedback and apply what they have learnt, making tangible contributions to the educational innovation sector, with the aim of making it more inclusive, equitable and sustainable.

Direct beneficiaries (individuals)

According to Rule 9 of the Guidelines for Applicants: all persons participating in the activities of the Initiative.

This Initiative has more than 200 direct beneficiaries, the majority of whom are professionals from the Partnership entities involved in the activities planned throughout the Initiative.

Within this group, approximately 90 teachers and students who belong to the education system will be identified, primarily from Mexico and Uruguay, identifying opportunities for joint work during the study visits.

In addition, there will be opportunities for reflection with approximately 50 experts in the field of education in Spain, Mexico and Uruguay, which will enrich the theoretical knowledge on educational innovation.

Budget

EU contribution: 73,122.36 €

Co-financing - Triangular Cooperation Partnership: 25,898.33 €

Total budget: 99,020.69 €

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