Results of the Project Leibniz works 4.0

The cross-work package goal of the project is the realisation of digitally supported university teaching through the learning management system ILIAS. For this purpose, the central platform plabs (platform for teacher education for vocational schools) was set up on the LUH-ILIAS, which went online in the summer semester of 2021.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the accompanying rapid progress in the digitisation of study content also had an influence on the content design of the project in the first funding year. As with most universities in Germany, the study programme at Leibniz University Hannover was offered digitally. This development was taken up in the project with two corresponding online surveys: With regard to the project goal of creating flexible study structures through digital study offers, the latter were examined for their success through a "special evaluation for the analysis of digitally-supported teaching". For this purpose, the vocational teacher education students of both the Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes as well as the teachers were asked about their (first) experiences with the digital semester and courses.

From the experiences of the digital summer semester as well as from the first special evaluation, the urgent need for accompanying support for students in "digital semesters" emerged. For this reason, the TEvS Confidentiality Office was established at the Institute for Vocational Education and Adult Education in August 2020, which functions as an explicit counselling office for students of vocational teacher education and vocational sciences. This consists of four staff members and is made up of representatives from different areas. Due to the cooperative content structure, both students and lecturers are represented in the TEvS Confidentiality Office.

A concrete frame of reference to the dynamics of change in the working world of schools caused by the Covid-19 pandemic was created by a digital multi-perspective talk series #leibniztalks. In a total of five events between September and December 2020, representatives from the university, teaching traineeship and schools discussed the topic of "Opportunities and challenges in the implementation of digital teaching in vocational education and training".

The digital thematic consultation hour format #leibnizbrunch was introduced and further developed as an extension of the #leibniztalks series of talks by the TEvS Confidentiality Office at the Institute of Vocational Education and Adult Education. Once a month, during the lecture period, the team, which consists of students and lecturers with a high degree of trust, offers a consultation hour on a wide range of current topics related to studying. Experts from subject areas relevant to the topic are also invited, who provide students with additional advice and support and are available for discussions and questions.

The "Leibniztalent" award is an award introduced in the winter semester 2020/2021 for students who have completed their final thesis within the professionalisation area of vocational and business education with outstanding performance. Furthermore, the "Leibniztalent Special Award" recognises students who, for example, have drawn attention to themselves through their commitment.