SIMO EDUCATION announces the 14 winning teaching experiences of 2024

SIMO EDUCACIÓN, Salón Internacional de Tecnología e Innovación Educativa (International Exhibition of Educational Technology and Innovation) organised by IFEMA MADRID in collaboration with EDUCACIÓN 3.0, has announced the 14 winning teaching experiences carried out at various educational institutions across Spain. This is the final phase of a process in which a jury has evaluated over 200 high-quality proposals, from which 35 made it through a preliminary selection, and ultimately, 14 have won in their respective categories.

These projects will be recognised at the 12th Awards for Educational Innovation and Innovative Teaching Experiences 2024, with the ceremony taking place on 20 November during SIMO EDUCACIÓN, which will be held for the tenth time from 19 to 21 November. The winning experiences will also compete for two special recognitions: the 6th Award for the Best Innovative and Technological Teaching Experience and the 6th Award for the Best Innovative Experience.

This is the final phase of a process during which an expert jury composed of Julio Albalad, Director of INTEF; Núria Sabaté, President of the Espiral Association for Education and Technology; Francisco Javier Palazón, Director of EDUCACIÓN 3.0; David Álvarez and Fernando Trujillo from Conecta 13; Carlos Magro from the Open Education Association; and a team of educators from the DIME+ Collective has analysed over 200 high-quality proposals, 35 of which passed a preliminary selection. Finally, 14 winners have been chosen in their respective categories.

The 14 winning teaching experiences in the categories are:

Best Experience with Active Methodologies:

High School Changemakers. Student Empowerment with the 2030 Agenda, by Piedad I. Garrido Ruiz at IED Ifach in Calpe (Alicante), encourages students to become agents of change using active methodologies to work on curricular content and foster entrepreneurship, sustainability, and critical thinking.

Best Collaborative and Cooperative Project:

Collaborative Technological Map of Andalusia, by IES Los Cerros in Úbeda (Jaén) as coordinator of eight schools, disseminates heritage in technological companies in Andalusia and raises students' awareness of job opportunities in the community.

Best Innovative Experience for Early Childhood and Primary Education:

Mochileros y mochileras por España (Backpackers in Spain) by Elena Gozálvez at the second level of the second cycle of Early Childhood Education at CEIP José Llorer Talens in Almansa (Albacete). The project harnesses gamification to promote a culture and coeducational practices that foster progress toward equality.

Best Innovative Experience for Secondary Education and Baccalaureate:

Ecijano Oil Museum by Rebeca Madero at the Santa María Nuestra Señora Diocesan School in Écija (Seville). This initiative arises from the need to attract tourists to the city and promote entrepreneurship and STEAM vocations, particularly among female students.

Best Innovative Experience in Higher Education:

Planeta Junk. Collective Identity and Future Design, by Helena Galán at Carlos III University (Madrid), aims to question the idea of a fixed and exclusive identity and to promote the collective identity of students in the Audiovisual Communication degree programme.

Best STEAM Experience:

Steam with Gaya at the Cierva in the CEIP Cierva Peñafiel in Murcia is a collaborative STEAM project designed to raise awareness of the Murcian painter Ramón Gaya, who was a student at the school.

Best Gamification Experience:

Timeline Revolution, by Mª José Amador at the CEIP Agustín Rodríguez in Puente Genil (Córdoba), has allowed students, with the involvement of their families, to travel through time to discover how humans have evolved alongside being responsible for the problems our planet faces today.

Best Emotional Education Experience:

The Journey to EuroInnova, by Ana García and Miguel Ángel Azorín, in the Master’s in Educational Innovation at the European University of Madrid, has challenged students with missions, research, and the use of digital tools and AI according to the areas of the Classroom of the Future.

Best ICT Project for Inclusive Education, Equality, and Diversity:

In ‘LEDUCAS: Creation of Interactive Pictograms’, by Marc Gudel, Marina Tudela, and Montserrat Rodríguez at the Palma de Mallorca School (Barcelona), students design interactive pictograms using micro:bit programming to communicate with their classmate Lucas, who has Down syndrome and does not communicate verbally.

Best Digital Resource of Own Creation:

Super Eco Girl 3D. Save the World!, by Raúl Lara at the CEIP Sanchís Guarner in Ondara (Alicante), is based on a video game application designed by 5th-grade students for proper recycling and information about caring for the Planet.

Best Sustainability Experience

The Travelling Bicycle, by Víctor Arufe at the University of A Coruña, is a service-learning experience aimed at promoting an active lifestyle from childhood, where 25 wooden balance bikes for children aged 2 to 6 are sent each year to an Early Childhood Education centre in A Coruña.

Best Gender Equality Experience in the Classroom:

I Deserve a Street 2.0. Equality Objective, by Ernesto Bautista at the Cra. Villas del Tajo School in Puente del Arzobispo (Toledo), aims to educate students in the achievements of the most important women in history to bring students closer to the legacies and teachings of crucial female figures in the development of science, promoting interest in STEM careers.

Best Educational Experience in Artificial Intelligence:

Through Imperialism 4.0, teacher Miguel Ángel Pereira from IEL Giner de los Ríos (Lisbon, Portugal) engages students in bringing to life protagonists of Imperialism using AI tools, allowing them to dialogue and interact with these historical figures.

Best Experience in Rural School:

In Mission Galaxy at the CRIE Naturávila in Ávila, students develop skills to complete their mission using virtual reality, 3D printing, educational robotics, Minecraft, and micro-experiences, enhancing their literacy and competencies in STEM subjects.