New educational technologies given 6m euro boost 

The projects come under the Minerva action, launched in 1999, which is part of the EU's education and training programme, Socrates. They will run between two and three years and will help ensure that new teaching technologies are exploited more effectively in a wide range of subjects, including languages, business studies and mathematics. In Minerva, the Commission is paying particular attention to the development of Open and Distance Learning, a key area for spreading Lifelong Learning in Europe.

"In the past decade, information and communication technologies have transformed the teaching environment in Europe’s education systems at all levels — from pre-school to adult learning. [...] In doing so, it [Minerva] is helping Europe to prepare for the challenges of the knowledge-intensive globalised economy of the future," said the commissioner in charge of Education & Training, Ján Figel.

The thematic areas covered by the new projects are also very varied, given the horizontal nature of the Minerva action. Using ICT to teach foreign languages and scientific and technological subjects (including environmental issues) has been especially popular, respectively accounting for six and five of the selected projects, but there are also projects aiming at using ICT to teach arts, business studies and law.

Among the new technologies that will be deployed in the new projects are online video and mobile technologies. Also featuring prominently are projects that use blended learning, where there is a mixture of online and on the spot learning, and game-based learning.