Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology

ERTA

European Robotics Teachers‘ Academy – Educational Robotics for STEM Skills, Arts and Humanities, Computational Thinking, Creativity, Emotional Intelligence, and Inclusion in Preschool and Early Primary Education

Our Goal

The European Robotics Teachers’ Academy (ERTA) is a European education partnership that promotes a holistic approach to the use of Educational Robotics (ER) in preschool and early primary education. By bringing together Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and Continuous Professional Development (CPD) providers, schools, public bodies and expert organizations from six countries, the project aims to support teachers in using ER not only for STEM learning but also for developing students’ creativity, emotional intelligence, computational thinking, and supporting their inclusion. 

Our goal is to provide teachers with practical and accessible tools for using ER in ways that connect different disciplines and skills in preschool and early primary education. Through classroom pilots and training activities, ERTA will test, evaluate and refine its approach, leading to the development of policy recommendations, along with a micro-credentialing framework to support wider uptake.

The Challenge

As digital transformation continues to reshape education, teachers are increasingly called to prepare students not only with knowledge, but with creativity, critical thinking, and adaptability. Educational Robotics has emerged as a powerful tool to support this shift—yet many educators still lack the training and resources to use it effectively.

 

 

 

Our Approach

We will first investigate the current state of Educational Robotics in teacher education, map existing practices and identify gaps, challenges, and opportunities for structured integration. Next, we will establish a European Community of Practice to connect teacher trainers, teachers, and researchers. We will develop and deliver a training programme for teacher trainers and teachers and set up Classroom Innovation Labs to support the co-creation, testing, and evaluation of innovative ER teaching resources. To ensure long-term sustainability, the Community of Practice will be built in a way that keeps the community active after the project’s end. Last, we will foster policy uptake and wider integration of our results in European teacher education systems including Micro-Credentials aligned with European standards.

Background

ERTA is an Erasmus+ Teacher Academies project that aims to address the gap of teachers’ ER knowledge by strengthening teacher education across Europe. The project team at HIB is the coordinator for the project consortium with nine partners in six countries and ten additional associated partners.

Timeline

01.01.2026
Start of the project
29. - 30.04.2026
Kick-off Meeting in Tübingen
Year 1
Work Packages 1, 2, 3 and 7

Work Packages 1 (Project management and coordination), 2 (Laying the foundations – analysis of the current landscape of ER within ITE and CPD programmes), 3 (Establishing the ERTA Community of Practice and designing the training programme for teacher trainers), and 7 (Dissemination, exploitation, and communication)

Year 2
Work Packages 1, 3, 4 and 7

Work Packages 1, 3, 4 (Design of the ERTA teacher training programme and mobility scheme), and 7

Year 3
Work Packages 1, 4, 5, 6 and 7

Work Packages 1, 4, 5 (Piloting the ERTA teacher training programme and mobility scheme), 6 (Policy recommendations and certification), and 7

31.12.2028
End of the project

Project participants

From HIB: 

In collaboration with:

ERTA is co-funded by the European Union (Grant Agreement No. 101249425). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

More Information

ERTA Projekt Website