Evidence-based approach in Erasmus+
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Changes in the work of Croatian teachers after their participation in mobility projects By Đurđica Degač
Abstract The participation of educators, teachers, professional associates and principals in the Erasmus+ mobility projects is expected to have an impact on their future work, on the work of their colleagues and on the education institutions in which they are employed. With this assumption, qualitative research including mobility participants within the school education field was conducted in 2019 with the aim of examining how they transferred information, knowledge and skills after their mobility to their colleagues, how they implemented changes in their work with children and students, and what the obstacles are that they encountered in the process. In addition, it was examined how participation in mobility projects affected their professional and personal development, and what the particularly relevant results of their participation are from their perspective. Thematic content analysis was applied in the analysis of the answers. Participants transferred acquired knowledge and experience to various bodies within the education institution, but also outside it. The transfer of knowledge in work with children and students was achieved indirectly by amending official documents of education institutions, improving working conditions, raising the quality of work and creating a positive working environment, but also by implementing new content, approaches, pedagogical methods and techniques in direct work. Obstacles reported by participants in applying and transferring knowledge are diverse and relate to material constraints, working conditions, financial and time constraints, high teacher workload, organisational difficulties, a lack of motivation among colleagues and management, an unwillingness to change from a negative perception of mobility, language barriers, difficulties faced by principals with transferring knowledge, difficult integration of changes within the education system and insufficient autonomy of schools and teachers. The results of the qualitative analysis provide deeper insights into possible areas of impact, but also provide a basis for further quantitative research.
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Đurđica Degač is a PhD candidate in sociology. She worked in the Department for Coordination and Quality Assurance of the Erasmus+ Programme at the Agency for Mobility and EU Programmes in Croatia. In 2018–2019 she was the National Co-ordinator of the Eurydice Network. Since 2020 she works as an Assistant in the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at University of Zagreb (Croatia). Her specific areas of interest include sociology of education, sociology of science and social science methodology.
KEYWORDS
mobility, teacher, personal and professional development, transfer of knowledge
