Title: Creativity and innovation in European education. Ten years eTwinning. Past, present and the future

Authors: Stamatios Papadakis

Addresses: Regional Directorate of Primary and Secondary Education of Crete, Mnisikli 38, 71305 Heraklion, Crete, Greece

Abstract: In recent decades, the importance of information and communication technologies (ICT) has become largely accepted at all levels of education. The European Union could not remain uninvolved since one of the most significant steps in the ICT diffusion in education is the eTwinning action. Launched in 2005 as the main action of the European Commission e-Learning Programme, eTwinning has been firmly integrated into Erasmus+, the European Programme for Education, Training, Youth and Sport, since 2014. Objectives of the action include facilitating communication, developing relationships between European schools, as well as enhancing students and teachers abilities in the use of new technologies, foreign languages and developing intercultural awareness. Currently, more than 358,000 teachers from 36 European countries and 155,000 schools are participating in eTwinning having implemented more than 40,000 projects. The aim of this paper is to inform the educational community about the action and the benefits of using eTwinning in schools.

Keywords: eTwinning; information and communication technology; ICT; European Union; EU online collaboration; primary education; secondary education; creativity; innovation; information technology; e-learning; electronic learning; online learning; primary schools; secondary schools.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTEL.2016.082315

International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning, 2016 Vol.8 No.3/4, pp.279 - 296

Received: 14 Apr 2016
Accepted: 14 Jun 2016
Published online: 18 Feb 2017 *

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