Informative Exchange and Constructive Workshops at the Fashion DIET Multiplier Event at Reutlingen University
On 23 June 2023, one of the three multiplier events of the Erasmus+ research project “Fashion DIET – Sustainable Fashion Curriculum at Textile Universities in Europe – Development, Implementation and Evaluation of a Teaching Module for Educators” took place. The project aims to develop, implement and evaluate sustainable teaching and learning materials in the field of fashion and textiles. This special event took place at the TEXOVERSUM Faculty of Reutlingen University in Germany.
Figure 1: Guide to the Multiplier Event in front of building 20 at Reutlingen University
The main objective of the event was to present and jointly evaluate the teaching and learning materials on sustainability in the fashion and textile industry developed by the partner universities University of Education Freiburg, Reutlingen University, Gheorghe Asachi Technical University in Iaşi, Romania, and Trakia University in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. The target group of the event included not only university teachers, but also teachers in the field of vocational training and secondary education as well as representatives of training companies in the textile and fashion industry.
For the event, 23 participants with different educational background in fashion and textiles gathered at the TEXOVERSUM Faculty of Reutlingen University. The participants consisted of professors, university lecturers, PhD students, researchers, teachers, lecturers for teacher education, entrepreneurs, and employees of the textile industry. The event started with a warm welcome and short introduction by the Dean of the Faculty, Prof. Dr. Jochen Strähle, and the project coordinator Prof. Dr. Anne-Marie Grundmeier. Afterwards, Prof. Dr. Jochen Strähle and Marlen Wagner guided the group through the impressive large textile laboratories under the theme „From fibre to T-shirt“.
Figure 2: Project introduction by Prof. Dr. Dirk Höfer, Prof. Dr. Anne-Marie Grundmeier, and Prof. Dr. Jochen Strähle
The event took place in one of the lecture rooms at Reutlingen University. It started with the presentation of the project as well as an overview of the project results by Prof. Dr. Anne-Marie Grundmeier, Prof. Dr. Jochen Strähle and Prof. Dr. Dirk Höfer. The presentation of the 42 lectures in English and the teaching and learning materials for vocational training and secondary education as Open Educational Resources was received with great interest and appreciation of the participants.
After a short networking break, the participants were divided into three groups to take part in workshops on teaching and learning materials. These groups were led by Prof. Dr. Anne-Marie Grundmeier, Prof. Dr. Dirk Höfer and Prof. Jochen Strähle together with Marlen Wagner. All participants received a guest account to access the database Glocal Campus with their end-user devices. During the workshops, they had the opportunity to get to know the organisation, structure, and content of the Fashion DIET materials on this e-learning platform with the 42 lectures of the ESD module and the teaching and learning materials provided. The workshop leaders presented selected materials each with a slightly different thematic focus. In small groups both the platform itself and the materials offered were discussed and feedback was collected in the working groups and afterwards in the plenary.
Prof. Dr. Anne-Marie Grundmeier offered an overview of the various teaching units for secondary and vocational education developed at the Freiburg University of Education and presented selected materials including the textile quartet, which she used to illustrate the adaptability of the teaching and learning materials in different school contexts.
Figure 3: Textile Quartet with Set of 32 Cards Introduced by Prof. Dr. Anne-Marie Grundmeier
Prof. Dr. Dirk Höfer focused on the topic of microplastics and used this example to illustrate the development of the lectures for the ESD module with a one-pager as an introduction and the learning objectives for each teaching unit as well as the possibilities of using them as self-learning material or with learning groups.
Figure 4: Screenshot of the Lecture “Microplastic Fibres and Particles in the Textile Chain” by Prof. Dr. Dirk Höfer
Prof. Dr. Jochen Strähle and his colleague Marlen Wagner showed above all the organisation and structure as well as different options for using the various materials on Glocal Campus.
Figure 5: Screenshot of the Course Structure of the Fashion DIET Project on Glocal Campus
At the end, all the participants gathered again for an interesting and constructive feedback session. This successful multiplier event in Reutlingen ended with the consensus of the participants that the materials provided offer an excellent opportunity to use them in their teaching activities.
Figure 6: Networking Break of the Multiplier Event at Reutlingen University
After the conference, all participants were given the opportunity to access the Fashion DIET project in the future by applying for access to the Glocal Campus database via the main project website or an e-mail to Marlen Wagner. The participants were asked to spread the word about the Fashion DIET project and the possibilities of the e-learning platform in their communities. The user registration and access to Glocal Campus are possible via the Fashion DIET project website.
Fashion DIET consortium, July 2023
