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The Deliverable D9.4 “Final Report” describes the REINFORCE summative evaluation results, i.e. final evaluation data from the Zooniverse experience survey and the final self-reflection exercise with all four demonstrator research teams as well as results from the pre- and post-questionnaires from citizen scientists. The feedback provided by the citizen scientists in the Zooniverse experience survey shows that the demonstrators are well accepted, with only minor indications for things to improve. Citizen scientists enjoy their participation, and feel confident about their contribution. The perceived level of difficulty is ideal in terms of need for achievement for most demonstrators and should not be changed in their second phase. The final results, from self-reflection exercises with all four demonstrators, indicate progress from the previous exercise, which was organised a month after the demonstrator launches. The processes were already quite feasible, but perceived outcomes and impacts on science, citizens and society dimensions were higher in the second exercise. Results from the pre- and post–questionnaires give indications of the general composition of citizen science participants and in general speak for the accessibility of the REINFORCE demonstrators, given the diversity of participants. Comparing results from the pre- and post-tests shows what citizens gain in terms of changes in attitude, science-related skill development and knowledge.

This Deliverable tells about the journey of the Social Labs from their very beginning, in which we struggled to first get an understanding of the particular Funding Line of H2020 and tried to “diagnose” its uptake of RRI, continuing with the identification of our stakeholders and our attempt to incentivize them to participate in the Social Labs. In this Deliverable, we explain which methods we used in our Social Lab Workshops to raise and discuss the question of responsibility in research and innovation and to generate ideas for Pilot Actions, which experiences we made with these group methods and, most importantly, which Pilot Actions the Social Lab participants created, developed, changed and implemented in order to realize their ambitions of RRI and a responsible research and innovation system.

The Maker Movement has raised great expectations towards its potential for tackling social inequalities by mediating technology-related skills to everybody. Are maker spaces new players for social inclusion in digital societies? How can this potential impact be framed? While scientific discourse has so far identified broad value and impact dimensions of the Maker Movement, this article adds empirical insight into the potential for tackling social inequalities. The study is based on 39 interviews with makers and managers of maker initiatives and ten self-reporting surveys filled in by maker initiative managers throughout Europe, which have been analyzed qualitatively. We found four main domains in which makers address social inclusion: First, by mediating skills and competences not only in the field of digital technologies but in the broader sense of empowering people to “make” solutions for encountered problems. Second, we found that makers actively strive to provide democratized access to digital fabrication and the knowledge on how to use them. Third and fourth, we found different ambitions articulated by makers to change society and social practices towards a society providing better opportunities for individuals. As an entry point for further research and actions, we derived a maker typology that reflects the diverse and various types of relationships to be found in the maker community. This typology could be used for exploring further collaborations between social actors and the Maker Movement. We conclude with an outlook on potential trajectories of the Maker Movement and specify which could influence the inclusion of marginalized persons., Social Inclusion;Vol.8. 2020, Issue 2, p. 190–200

The aim of this paper is to explore the environmental value of the Maker movement, which is driving digital fabrication into the mainstream. Makers are inspiring each other to create smart solutions for all types of individual needs, and address societal and environmental challenges at the same time. They share their creative ideas and solutions in collaborative workspaces and Maker fairs or on social media platforms. Is this grassroots innovation the beginning of the next industrial revolution? In the framework of a case study analysis based on ten different Maker initiatives across Europe, 39 interviews were conducted with Makers and Maker initiatives managers evaluating core questions such as possible environmental impact, value chains and energy efficient behaviours. The paper investigates if the Maker movement is to be considered a valuable resource in tackling most of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, e.g. clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, responsible consumption and production.

Best practice report

Junge Menschen sind in der heutigen Gesellschaft eine in hohem Maße gefährdete Gruppe, da sie mit großen Herausforderungen wie großer Konkurrenz auf dem Arbeitsmarkt und schwierigen Übergängen zwischen verschiedenen Lebensphasen konfrontiert werden. Jene jungen Menschen, die vom Ausschluss bedroht sind, werden als "marginalisierte Jugendliche" bezeichnet, zumal sie am Rand der Gesellschaft stehen. Erfahrungen von Marginalisierung resultieren aus verschiedenen Faktoren, etwa ökonomischen Barrieren sowie Barrieren in der (Aus)Bildung. Diese jungen Menschen stehen im Fokus der vorliegenden Arbeit. Eine auf "mobile learning" basierende Intervention wurde speziell für die Zielgruppe im Alter zwischen 14 und 21 Jahren entwickelt und eine Pilotuntersuchung wurde in Österreich und in Großbritannien mit 95 Jugendlichen durchgeführt. Eine auf "mobile learning" basierende Intervention scheint besonders für die Zielgruppe geeignet, zumal alle selbst über ein Mobiltelefon verfügen, obwohl sie ansonsten nur erschwert Zugang zu Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologien haben. Mobile learning ist mit einigen Vorteilen wie Flexibilität des örtlichen wie auch des zeitlichen Zugangs verbunden. Eine auf die Bedürfnisse der Zielgruppe angepasste "mobile learning" Plattform sowie ein pädagogisches Konzept wurden speziell für die Pilotstudie entwickelt. Durch die verschiedenen Kommunikationsmöglichkeiten und Wege des Informationsaustauschs, basierend vor allem auf dem Austausch von Videos, ermöglicht die Plattform den Aufbau von "Communities". JugendarbeiterInnen und SozialarbeiterInnen übernehmen während der Pilotstudie die Funktion von ModeratorInnen der Plattform. Sie sind auf der einen Seite für das "Monitoring" aller Aktivitäten auf der Plattform verantwortlich und greifen ein, falls es notwendig erscheint. Andererseits unterstützen sie die jungen TeilnehmerInnen während der Laufzeit der Studi regelmäßig so genannte "Challenge Videos" auf die Plattform hoch, welche auf spielerische Art und Weise Aufgaben an die TeilnehmerInnen beinhalten und grundlegende Fähigkeiten für den Arbeitsmarkt fördern sollen. Jugendliche werden gebeten, auf diese "Challenge Videos" in Form von Antwortvideos zu reagieren. Diese können ganz einfach mit der Handykamera aufgenommen und anschließend auf die Plattform übertragen werden. Das Hauptziel dieser Dissertation ist es, Nutzungsmuster auf der Plattform zu untersuchen und die Interaktion zwischen den verschiedenen StudienteilnehmerInnen auf der Plattform zu beobachten, sowie Effekte ihrer Teilnahme zu erforschen. Um diese Forschungsfragen zu beantworten wurden quantitative sowie qualitative Methoden angewandt: eine statistische Analyse der Log-Daten, eine Soziale Netzwerkanalyse basierend auf Log-Daten und auf Fragebögen zu zwei verschiedenen Zeitpunkten (vor und nach der Pilotstudie) sowie der qualitativen Analyse von Daten aus Interviews und Fokusgruppen mit Jugendlichen und ModeratorInnen. Die Analyse der Nutzungsmuster auf der Plattform zeigt beträchtliche Unterschiede sowohl in der Nutzungsdauer als auch im Gebrauch der einzelnen Funktionen. Während einige die Plattform exzessiv nutzen, greifen andere nur selten auf sie zu. Im Allgemeinen verringert sich die Teilnahme in den drei Monaten der Pilotstudie. Nach einer anfänglichen Phase der Begeisterung und des Ausprobierens nimmt die Aktivität zwar über den Verlauf der Studie ab, scheint dafür aber gegen Ende der Studie fokussierter und durchdachter. Die Nutzung der Plattform unterscheidet sich nicht zwischen den zwei Geschlechtern, was bedeutet dass Fairness des Zugangs und der Verwendung der Plattform gegeben ist. Geringfügige Unterschiede finden sich hingegen zwischen TeilnehmerInnen der beiden Länder sowie zwischen jüngeren und älteren TeilnehmerInnen. Die Soziale Netzwerkanalyse zeigt die Beziehungen verschiedenen StudienteilnehmerInnen untereinander auf. Nach der Pilotstudie hat sich die Anzahl der Bekanntschaften und der Freundschaften sowie die Häufigkeit des physischen und virtuellen Kontaktes zwischen den TeilnehmerInnen erhöht, während sich die Anzahl der Personen, die sich nicht mögen, erheblich verringert hat. Die Plattform hat also möglicherweise dazu beigetragen, Beziehungen auch im "offline-Leben" zu stärken. "Online-Beziehungen" sind dabei relativ unabhängig von den "Offline-Beziehungen", d.h. beispielsweise dass die Kontaktaufnahme auf der Plattform unabhängig davon passiert, ob sich die Personen kennen. Wenn die verschiedenen Daten miteinbezogen und verglichen werden, werden einerseits positive Auswirkungen aus der Nutzung der Plattform sichtbar, andererseits ergeben sich auch Beschränkungen. Die Plattform hat Interaktionen (zwischen den TeilnehmerInnen untereinander sowie zwischen Jugendlichen und ModeratorInnen) und kreativen Ausdruck ermöglicht und hat die Möglichkeit für positive Lernerfahrungen für die TeilnehmerInnen geschaffen. Beschränkungen resultieren aus technischen Gründen sowie aus mangelnder Einbettung in den institutionellen Rahmen. Initiativen dieser Art setzen finanzielle Förderung voraus, was letztlich im Sinne der Nachhaltigkeit entscheidend ist., Young people in today's society are a highly vulnerable group as they are confronted with challenges such as high competition on the labour market and difficult transitions between different life phases. Those young people at risk of exclusion are called "marginalised young people" as they stand at the margins of society. Experiences of marginalisation result from different factors including educational or economic barriers. These young people are in focus of this dissertation. A mobile learning based intervention has been tailored to the needs of marginalised young people between the age of 14 and 21 and a pilot study was conducted during three months with 95 young people in two countries, namely Austria and the United Kingdom. A mobile learning based intervention seems particularly suited for the target group as all of them, despite lacking access to other information and communication technologies, personally own a mobile phone and can be reached by these means. Mobile learning is associated with several advantages such as flexibility of access in terms of location and time. An online mobile learning platform specifically constructed for the target group has been developed and is supported by pedagogical conceptual frameworks. The platform provides for community building among its members, as it offers different channels of communication and of sharing information, which is mainly based on exchange of videos. Youth workers and social workers act as moderators of the platform during the pilot study. They are responsible for monitoring the activities of the study participants, intervene in case it is necessary and support participation. Furthermore, challenge videos dealing with basic skills for the employment market are uploaded on a regular basis by the moderators, which serve as learning opportunity for the participants, as they are asked to react to these videos by uploading answer videos. These can easily be recorded on the built-in camera of the mobile phone and then be uploaded to the platform. The main aim of this dissertation is to explore use patterns of the platform by the pilot participants, the interaction between the participants (and the moderators) and the effect of their participation in terms of interaction with others and in terms of gained understanding and insights. To answer these research questions quantitative and qualitative methods have been applied: a statistical analysis of the log-data, a social network analysis based on log data and two surveys, one before and one after the pilot, as well as a qualitative analysis of data obtained through interviews and focus groups with young participants and moderators. The analysis of the platform use patterns reveals a considerable variety of use in terms of time spent online and in terms of used platform functions among the participants. While some use it excessively, others only rarely access the platform. In general, participation decreases over the three months of the pilot. From an initial phase of excitement and trial, activities later on seem to be more directed and targeted. In the first few weeks more exploration of the platform takes place as well as trial and error. Later in the pilot, however, the uploaded videos look more sophisticated and more thought through. The use of the platform does not vary between the two genders, which means that equality of access and use of the platform is given. Slight differences of use can be found between the two country groups and between the age groups. The social network analysis shows the relations of the different study participants. After the pilot, the number of acquaintances and friends as well as the frequency of physical and virtual contact between the participants has increased and the number of people who do not like each other has decreased significantly. Thus, the use of the platform might have supported relations also in the offline life. Online relations only partly correlate with offline relations, i.e. getting in touch on the platform does not depend on whether people know each other in the offline life. Benefits as well as limitations of use can be observed when all different data are contrasted against each other. The platform has supported interaction and creative expression, and has offered positive learning experience. Limitations result from technical constraints as well as from a lack of embedding into institutional frameworks and of providing for the necessary funding of such initiatives, which is crucial in terms of sustainability., Elisabeth Unterfrauner, Abweichender Titel laut Übersetzung der Verfasserin/des Verfassers, Klagenfurt, Alpen-Adria-Univ., Diss., 2011

Within the EU4ALL project (www.eu4all-project.eu) extensive research has been undertaken to detect the impact of legal and political frameworks on the accessibility of lifelong learning (ALL), with a clear focus on higher education in this initial phase. The introduction of appropriate technologies in educational institutions is accompanied and shaped by legal and political concepts, measures and programmes capable of reducing or strengthening existing barriers to the participation in lifelong learning (LLL) for all. International declarations have been analysed as well as European legal and political frameworks relevant for accessible lifelong learning accompanied by research on national level in a sample of EU member states and Australia, Canada and the USA. Main areas of investigation are equality, nondiscrimination and equal opportunities as well as academic laws and corresponding policies and strategies in favour of disabled students at institutional level.

The conference contribution introduces digital “making” as a bottom-up movement, placing digital fabrication technologies on people’s desks to produce “almost anything”. It explores further the pedagogical value of making in education in general and in early entrepreneurial education in particular. Making as a pedagogical approach is analysed referencing established pedagogical concepts as well as a qualitative study based on interviews with makers and managers of maker spaces. Although maker education has so far only rarely been introduced in formal education, there are many initiatives that bring making and formal education together. According to maker experts formal education would benefit from making because it is well suited to promote creativity, practical skills as well as critical reflection. The Horizon2020 project DOIT designed a maker education programme aimed to develop pupils’ social innovation and entrepreneurial mind-sets, knowhow and skills. The programme will be evaluated based on the results of pilots in 10 European countries., Authors' manuscript of the paper published in the proceedings of the MIS4TEL Conference 2018: Di Mascio T., Vittorini P., Gennari R., et al. (eds.) (2019). Methodologies and Intelligent Systems for Technology Enhanced Learning, 8th International Conference, MIS4TEL 2018, Toledo, Spain, 20-22 June 2018 (pp. 239-146). Springer, AISC 804.

The European project DOIT follows the maker pedagogy approach to develop an early entrepreneurial education program for children between the age of six and sixteen. In this program, children work collaboratively on solutions for challenges that they know from their personal environments with the aim to aspire to the entrepreneurial spirit and social innovation at the same time. The DOIT program will involve 1,000 children in two pilot phases at 11 pilot sites in ten different European countries. An evaluation design has been set up that comprises not only conventional evaluation tools such as questionnaires and tests but also participative instruments. Being aware that conventional evaluation tools are somewhat in contrast with the innovative setting of a maker project where children are the agents for change, we tried to incorporate participative evaluation instruments where possible. The latter ones have an empowering function as children are not only the 'object' of research but they themselves take over the role of co-researchers. The instruments are children interviewing children – focused on “how” they developed ideas and prototypes; an assessment of self-defined learning goals – focused on “what” they wanted and actually achieved to learn; and Shooting a video commercial – focused on “why” they developed a prototype and for whom. The paper describes these instruments and shares first-hand experiences and preliminary results.

The EU project DOIT has developed and tested an early entrepreneurial education programme in makerspace settings for children between the age of six and sixteen, involving 989 children in a series of two pilot phases in 10 European countries. The article describes the theoretical background of the educational programme, the evaluation approach and empirical results regarding creativity and self-efficacy., Paper accepted for the 2020 European Conference on Educational Research (ECER): Educational Research (Re)connecting Communities, Glasgow, UK.

This paper presents results of the scientific evaluation of a new way of coaching young learners (6-16 years old) in social innovation projects in makerspaces. The approach aims to foster an entrepreneurial mind-set, creativity and maker skills needed to design and visualise a prototype in the course of a social innovation project. Moreover, the young learners acquire digital literacy skills needed to share innovative ideas solving societal issues. The approach was trialled in ten European countries with 1.002 children. Firstly, we describe the theoretical background and didactical facets of the DOIT learning programme. Secondly, we illustrate practical examples of the pilots run in makerspaces in and out-side schools, e.g. fablabs, public libraries or mobile makerspaces set up in schools. Thirdly, we present the scientific findings of skill acquisition, especially the parameters of self-efficacy and creativity. The final section discusses the results, adaptations and further outlook of the new programme.

One of the main challenges in designing learning activities at the intersection of digital fabrication and solving complex problems is creating a motivating context to keep up children's engagement with the problem and going through the iterations of design thinking. Based on a four day out-of-school learning workshop with 18 children, we reflected upon ways to boost children's agency. The main question of our research relates to the interdependencies of workshop design and children's ability to steer the co-design of activities and outcomes. We present first evidence gained during the workshop series and suggest a framework for scenario-based, digital fabrication workshops.

The conference contribution introduces digital “making” as a bottom-up movement, placing digital fabrication technologies on people’s desks to produce “almost anything”. It explores further the pedagogical value of making in education in general and in early entrepreneurial education in particular. Making as a pedagogical approach is analysed referencing established pedagogical concepts as well as a qualitative study based on interviews with makers and managers of maker spaces. Although maker education has so far only rarely been introduced in formal education, there are many initiatives that bring making and formal education together. According to maker experts formal education would benefit from making because it is well suited to promote creativity, practical skills as well as critical reflection. The Horizon2020 project DOIT designed a maker education programme aimed to develop pupils’ social innovation and entrepreneurial mind-sets, knowhow and skills. The programme will be evaluated based on the results of pilots in 10 European countries.

The European project DOIT follows the maker pedagogy approach to develop an early entrepreneurial education program for children between the age of six and sixteen. In this program, children work collaboratively on solutions for challenges that they know from their personal environments with the aim to aspire to the entrepreneurial spirit and social innovation at the same time. The DOIT program will involve 1,000 children in two pilot phases at 11 pilot sites in ten different European countries. An evaluation design has been set up that comprises not only conventional evaluation tools such as questionnaires and tests but also participative instruments. Being aware that conventional evaluation tools are somewhat in contrast with the innovative setting of a maker project where children are the agents for change, we tried to incorporate participative evaluation instruments where possible. The latter ones have an empowering function as children are not only the 'object' of research but they themselves take over the role of co-researchers. The instruments are children interviewing children – focused on “how” they developed ideas and prototypes; an assessment of self-defined learning goals – focused on “what” they wanted and actually achieved to learn; and Shooting a video commercial – focused on “why” they developed a prototype and for whom. The paper describes these instruments and shares first-hand experiences and preliminary results., Preprint version of the article published in the proceedings of C+T 2019: Cech F. and Tellioğlu H. (eds.) (2019), Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Communities and Technologies - Transforming Communities, Vienna, June 2019 (pp. 194-197). New York: ACM Press.

One of the main challenges in designing learning activities at the intersection of digital fabrication and solving complex problems is creating a motivating context to keep up children's engagement with the problem and going through the iterations of design thinking. Based on a four day out-of-school learning workshop with 18 children, we reflected upon ways to boost children's agency. The main question of our research relates to the interdependencies of workshop design and children's ability to steer the co-design of activities and outcomes. We present first evidence gained during the workshop series and suggest a framework for scenario-based, digital fabrication workshops., Preprint version of the article published in FL2019: Proceedings of FabLearn 2019, New York, March 2019 (pp. 144–147). New York: ACM Press.