Open schooling for science education and a learning continuum for all

Science education should be an essential component of compulsory education for all students. Policies should support students, teachers, parents and the wider community to improve access to and provide everyone with the opportunities to pursue excellence in learning and learning outcomes and to ensure young people and adult learners alike are motivated to learn and to be fully equipped to engage in scientific discourse and facilitate further study in science education.

The proposed action targets the creation of new partnerships in local communities to foster improved science education for all citizens and to contribute to a learning continuum for all. It seeks to promote partnerships between for example teachers, students, scientists, researchers, innovators, professionals in enterprise and other stakeholders in science related fields to work together on real-life challenges and innovations within local communities with a view to engaging them in teaching and learning processes and to promote science education as part of local community development.

This action aims to support a range of activities based on collaboration at local level between formal, non-formal and informal science education providers, enterprises and civil society in order to integrate the concept of open schooling, including all educational levels, in science education.

The action should consider current policy initiatives. Reference and consideration should be given to previously funded projects. Applicants should develop links with Scientix[[https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/730009]] and consider links with other policy domains such as projects funded under SwafS-26-2020 (Innovators of the future: bridging the gender gap).

Currently, Europe faces a shortfall in science-knowledgeable people at all levels of society at a time when it needs ever more scientists and a science literate society. The coronavirus pandemic demonstrates the importance and necessity of having highly qualified scientists, researchers, innovators and medics to keep our society safe and healthy. To increase the uptake of science careers to feed the talent pipeline, and to improve science literacy in our adult population and support a learning continuum for all, a collaborative action on Open Schooling is proposed.