On 11–12 April 2024, Florence hosted the second international partner meeting of the LEARNITECT – Meeting of Innovative Learning Design and Inclusive Learning Spaces Erasmus+ project. The two-day event was both highly intensive and filled with a truly positive atmosphere: the partners elevated their professional cooperation to a new level, experienced strong community spirit, and unanimously confirmed that the project is on the right track.

Intensive professional programme and shared learning

On the first day, the partners visited the IAL Toscana school and then held a project meeting to evaluate the results achieved so far. Based on the six-month reports, every partner confirmed that the project is progressing according to the original schedule and at a high professional standard, with minor adjustments to meet emerging needs.

An important decision was made regarding dissemination: the partnership resolved to shift focus from the originally planned Instagram presence to LinkedIn, as this platform better reaches the core target groups of teachers, school leaders, researchers, and architects.

Within the project management block, partners also reviewed risk management. It was reaffirmed that the greatest challenge remains achieving sufficient responses to the teacher questionnaires. To address this, a joint strategy was adopted: boosting response rates through phone calls, personal contacts, and direct invitations.

Special attention was given to the methodology of documenting and photographing the study visits. Partners unanimously agreed that the focus should remain on presenting learning and community spaces, and that a minimum of 6–10 photos should be taken in each institution.

Inspiring school visits

At the ITT Marco Polo school in Florence, participants explored how curricula and spatial use are interconnected.

By contrast, the Don Lorenzo Milani school in Viareggio placed emphasis on social embeddedness and community cooperation. Comparing the two visits provided particularly valuable lessons: while Marco Polo showcased a metropolitan, modern, and functional approach to spatial design, Don Milani stood as a model of inclusion and close cooperation with the local community.

During the reflections, all partners underlined that the contrasting examples of the two schools demonstrated a key point: there is no single correct model, but rather the most effective solutions are those rooted in the local context.

Lessons and decisions

• Lesson: The community role of schools is at least as important as the modernisation of physical spaces.
• Decision: The partnership confirmed that the processing of interviews and diaries will be completed by the end of May 2024, ensuring the preparation of further outputs (interview booklet, podcasts, study).
• Lesson: Inclusion is not only a pedagogical but also an architectural challenge – therefore, the project’s final architectural models must equally reflect both aspects.
• Decision: The national juries will select in October 2024 the schools for which concrete architectural studies will be prepared.

Partners’ reflections

Tibor Dőri (Hungarian Association for Digital Education):

One of the greatest lessons for us is that the power of community relations is often more important than infrastructure alone. We would like to strengthen this mindset in Hungary as well

Gabriella Pusztai (IAL Toscana):

The Hungarian and Portuguese examples confirmed to us that inclusion must be developed not only as a pedagogical programme but also as a dimension of the built environment

Lisa Gomes (Previform, Portugália):

It was especially inspiring to see how the creative use of community spaces supports student well-being. These ideas can be taken home and adapted to Portuguese schools.

Farkas Bertalan Péter (Learnitect Design Kft.):

The Florence meeting reinforced my belief that a strong architectural model is always grounded in the synthesis of pedagogical aims and community needs.

Summary

The Florence meeting demonstrated that the strength of the LEARNITECT project lies not only in its innovative methods and models but also in the shared learning and commitment of the partnership. Participants left with renewed energy, rich experiences, and concrete tasks as they look ahead to the next milestones in Ponte de Lima and Budapest.

Project partners

• Magyar Digitális Oktatásért Egyesület (Hungary – co-ordinator)
• IAL Toscana Innovazione Apprendimento Lavoro srl. Impresa Sociale (Italy)
• Previform – Laboratório, Formação, Higiene e Segurança do Trabalho, Lda (Portugal)
• Learnitect Design Kft. (Hungary)

Project duration: 1 September 2023 – 31 August 2025

Grant amount: EUR 60,000

Grant Agreement No.: 2023-1-HU01-KA210-SCH-000152699

Partners

LEARNITECT – Az innovatív tanulási tervezés és inkluzív tanulási terek találkozása c. projekt (Hungarian)

LEARNITECT – Meeting of innovative learning design and inclusive learning spaces (ENG)

Co-funded by the European Union. 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.

GA Nr.: 2023-1-HU01-KA210-SCH-000152699.

With the main partner of the project, the Hungarian Association for Hungarian Digital Education, and with partners Learnitect Design Ltd (Hungary),  Previform Lda (Portugal) IAL Toscana carries out the project activities, financed by Erasmus Plus programme.