The Systemic Impacts of an Educational Project Conducted by One University in Partnership with Fifteen Organizations

The systemic aspects of educational projects that involved universities, organizations and communities are issues that concern a number of researchers. In this paper, the authors present the processes and findings related to a one-year educational project. The educational project is accomplished through two sequential courses, which are taught by representatives of one university and fifteen organizations--schools, art galleries, foundations, NGOs, hospitals, humanitarian organizations, and corporations--that provide educational opportunities to people from poor communities of São Paulo, Brazil. The seventy-six course members are individuals involved in the social projects accomplished by these organizations. The courses follows a project-based learning educational approach. The research objective is revealing the systemic impacts of this educational project. In this study, the authors follow a systemic action research approach. They develop a qualitative study based on document review, questionnaires, interviews, videos and observations. The main findings are as follows: (1)Coordinated actions between the university and the diverse organizations may create synergies that promote intense knowledge sharing, contributing to the development of the skills in the course participants; (2) The use of project-based learning techniques improves the learning and strengthens the ties between the course participants; and (3) The educational project leads to the empowerment of the course participants, allowing them to promote meaningful actions in their communities.