Doodle STEAM - Developing Training Platform and Pilot Hubs
Year Awarded
2024
Amount
€42,541
- Organisation:The Childhood Development Initiative
- Co-funded with Dept of Education:Yes
- Audience:Parents
- Format:Non-formal Education
- Location:cork;dublin;galway;kerry;kildare;limerick;online
- Topic:STEAM
Project Summary
Doodle STEAM is the Childhood Development Initiative’s (CDI) innovative evidence-informed STEAM programme for parents of children aged 6 to 8 years, which empowers parents to engage with the topics of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics in a fun and practical manner.
The programme was developed in partnership with Dublin City University (DCU), and builds on previous literacy interventions (Doodle Den and Doodle Families), best practice and the Irish primary school curriculum. Doodle STEAM was developed in response to an established need to provide parents in DEIS schools with a platform for STEAM learning and is informed by 50+ years of research highlighting the importance of parental involvement in children’s learning.
Doodle STEAM is an eight-week programme, delivered by the Home School Community Liaison Coordinator (HSCL) on the school premises. CDI provides training to deliver the manualised programme.
Successfully piloted in three DEIS schools in 2022 and delivered in seven schools in 2023, the programme is currently undergoing an external formative longitudinal evaluation. Feedback from programme participants and facilitators to date has been overwhelmingly positive.
SFI funding will allow us to develop an online self-directed training platform for teachers to support the expansion of Doodle STEAM to other communities as well as to pilot three Doodle STEAM Hubs. These Hubs will be cluster schools in a specific region to deliver the programme, supported by a CDI Quality Specialist. This pilot will inform future scaling and expansion across the state.