Faculty of Education - University of Malta

03/09/2026

🇪🇺 We are pleased to announce the participation of the University of Malta in the European University Association (EUA) Learning and Teaching Thematic Peer Group (TPG) on “Engaging students as co-creators in learning and teaching.”

👩‍💻 The first meeting of this TPG was held online on Wednesday 2 September 2026, bringing together representatives from 10 European universities. The meeting provided an opportunity to introduce the participating institutions and TPG chairs, discuss the purpose and scope of the group, and explore the planned structure, activities and programme of work. Participants were also introduced to previous EUA work and initiatives focusing on student co-creation in learning and teaching.

👫 The University of Malta is represented in the TPG by Dr James Calleja and Dr Charmaine Bonello from the Faculty of Education. Drawing on their research and practical work on student co-creation, their participation provides an opportunity for the University of Malta to engage in European-level peer learning and dialogue on how students can be involved meaningfully as partners in shaping learning and teaching.

💫 The TPG will provide a valuable forum for sharing experiences, exploring innovative approaches, and reflecting critically on the opportunities and challenges involved in developing sustainable cultures of student partnership and co-creation in higher education. The Faculty of Education looks forward to contributing to, and learning from, this important European initiative over the coming year.

03/09/2026

📣 Professor Peter Mayo delivered the keynote talk on 27th August 2026 at the Education Congress of Türkiye's oldest national Education union Eğitim Sen. The congress centred,around the theme of Democratic Education. Professor Mayo addressed the assigned theme of Prospects for Democratic Education in times of Noliberalism and current global crisis. He addressed this issue in the context of the present day rise of Fascism. Throughout the conference he constantly autographed copies, held by participants, of his five books translated and published in Turkish to date. Participants at the Ankara congress came from all over Türkiye and other parts of Europe, including Ireland, Portugal and Spain.

Professor Mayo has been a frequently invited speaker to Türkiye, often as guest of Eğitim Sen, has been translated into Turkish including articles of his which appeared in Turkish academic journals and newspapers such as Sol and Bir Gün. In 2009 he was Visiting Professor at Boğazici University, Istanbul.

03/09/2026

📣 Professor Peter Mayo, as UNESCO Co-Chair in Global Adult Education, delivered a Semi-Plenary talk followed by a discussion on elements for a 'Southern' European Sociology of Adult Education at the European Sociological Association conference in Warsaw. The semi-plenary took place at the University of theLife Sciences sprawling campus in Warsaw on 26th August. The title for this semi plenary, coordinated by Professor Ines Viera from the Universidade Lusofona, Portugal and which involved two speakers, Professor Mayo and Professor Vasiliki Kantzara from Pantheon University Greece, bore the title: SP ( semi plenary) 3: Education, Democracy and Social Justice: Challenges and Pathways for Solidarity and Sustainability in Southern Europe.

27/08/2026

27/08/2026

📣 ALPER-EU Piloting to Schools’ Summer Clubs and After Class Activities

📘 Press Release

Piloting agile sprints of the ALPER-EU Curriculum to schools’ summer clubs and after class activities

The 1st Piloting of the ALPER-EU Curriculum for the European project 2025-1-EL01-KA220-SCH-000351019 titled “K12 Agile Learning of Programming with Educational Robotics” (https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/projects/search/details/2025-1-EL01-KA220-SCH-000351019), funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ KA220SCH programme, is being held in the Digital Literacy Centre (DDLTS) of the Ministry for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation of Malta, with the participation of leading educational institutions, universities and schools, including also the Institute of Educational Policy (IEP) of the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports of Greece, the University of Malta, the Hellenic Mediterranean University from Greece, Osnovna Skola Pecine from Croatia, as well as teachers and students from schools’ summer clubs from Malta.

The ALPER-EU pilot to schools’ summer clubs takes place from 26th–27th of August, 2026, at the Directorate of Digital Literacy and Transversal Skills, Hamrun, Malta. It brings together educators and experts from three European countries to provide professional development in the modern teaching of programming through agile teaching methodologies and educational robotics. Within the pilot program, educational robotics is utilised to teach earthquake concepts by constructing and programming models that simulate primary and secondary seismic waves. Students also explore structural engineering principles, examining how specific building design features withstand earthquakes of varying intensities and durations. In another experiment the focus falls on mechanical and software engineering where educational robots are used to manufacture and programme a safebox. In that project focus shifts on the demanding mechanical building of the safebox using a more complex programming algorithm for its secure operation. The two agile sprints use comparatively two different educational robots, WeDo2 and SpikePrime, respectively, aimed at primary and middle school students in a comparative study searching for the lower age limit of use for either of them. Teachers are actively engaged in the teaching project led by ALPER-EU expert members.

About the “K12 Agile Learning of Programming with Educational Robotics” (ALPER-EU) Project

The ALPER-EU project is implemented by a consortium of eight organizations from five EU countries. The partnership is characterised by strong complementarity, combining educational policy development, academic research, and classroom implementation.

The consortium includes:
The Directorate for Digital Literacy and Transversal Skills (DDLTS), contributing expertise in digital education innovation;
The Institute of Educational Policy (IEP), ensuring alignment with national educational policy;
The University of Malta, providing scientific and pedagogical support;
Osnovna Škola Pećine, bringing experience from the practical implementation of educational robotics;
Agrupamento de Escolas Terras do Ave, contributing extensive experience in STEM projects;
Šiaulių Dermės Mokykla, a special education school offering expertise in inclusive education and serving as a model of good practice;
The STEM-LABELED 47th Primary School of Heraklion, strengthening links with educational practice and European innovation networks;
The Hellenic Mediterranean University, serving as project coordinator and providing the scientific and technological foundation of the project.

ALPER-EU aims to contribute substantially to the development of a modern European model for teaching programming by fostering students’ creativity, collaboration, and digital skills from an early age. At the same time, it places particular emphasis on supporting teachers and ensuring that educational policy makers actively listen to and address the real needs and challenges educators face in their daily teaching practice.

More details about the ALPER-EU programme are available at the following links:

https://www.facebook.com/erasmus.alper.eu
https://www.youtube.com/-EU
https://linkedin.com/company/alper-eu
https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/projects/search/details/2025-1-EL01-KA220-SCH-000351019
https://alper-eu.hmu.gr/