The ingenious code: school industry collaboration. Jean-Noël Colin, John Stringer & Charmaine Kerr

Transcription

1 The ingenious code: school industry collaboration Jean-Noël Colin, John Stringer & Charmaine Kerr

2 Publisher European Schoolnet (EUN Partnership AISBL) Rue de Trèves 61, 1040 Brussels, Belgium Authors Editors Acknowledgements Jean-Noël Colin John Stringer Charmaine Kerr Mike Stone Charmaine Kerr Alexa Joyce Diane Kelecom This code is the result of research by European Schoolnet, as part of ingenious, the European Coordination Body (ECB) for science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education (see into the best way to conduct collaboration between education and business in STEM education. The team s extensive research included visits to a number of organisations actively involved in school-industry collaboration. We would like to take this opportunity to thank both them and the many individuals who made this guide possible, some of whom include: Rinske van den Berg Agueda Gras-Velazquez Alexa Joyce Michela Pagano Maria Laura Rizza Annick Van de Velde Emma Bluck ingenious partners Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd National Foundation for Educational Research Lego Junior Achievement Young Enterprise Europe and the ingenious Teacher Panel. Design / DTP Print Run Picture credits Francesca Falco, Michela Saputi, Diane Kelecom (coordination) and Hofi (original design inside pages). 2,000 copies Shutterstock and White Stone Media ISBN Published in June The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of EUN Partnership AISBL This Code is published under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial 3.0. Unported Licence ( For more information on the Code, please contact ingenious@eun.org. The work presented in this document is supported by the European Union s Framework Programme for Research and Development (FP7) project ECB: European Coordinating Body in Maths, Science and Technology (Grant agreement Nº ). The content of this document is the sole responsibility of the Consortium Members and it does not represent the opinion of the European Union and the European Union is not responsible or liable for any use that might be made of information contained herein.

3 The ingenious code: school industry collaboration

4 Contents Whether you are a teacher, education administrator, involved in industry or a policy maker anyone engaged in collaboration between industry and schools can benefi t from the information in this code. The content addresses a wide range of issues and, as a result, different sections will be relevant to different people with varying roles and responsibilities. Why a code? How the code can help General principles Specifi c standards Guidelines for visits to schools Guidelines for visits to industry Specialist guidance Dealing with consent General guidance Taking photos or videos Protecting data Site visits checklist I Protecting data checklist III

5 Foreword Collaboration between school and industry is becoming more and more common in Europe. Specifically in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, it is particularly crucial to help students get a real life perspective of how STEM is applied in research, industry and business. The ingenious code of conduct is the first European level attempt to guide both schools and businesses in setting up such collaboration. Thanks to the input of both schools and industry partners through ingenious the European coordination body for STEM education, cofunded by industry and the European Commission the ingenious code addresses key issues and offers clear checklists for all parties involved. Practical and straight-forward, it provides a series of tips, pointers and reminders for anyone planning to visit a school or place of work - whether focused on STEM topics or other areas of education - with the ultimate goal of inspiring our children in their studies and future careers. Marc Durando Executive Director European Schoolnet The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 5

6 Why a code? Contact between schools and industry is becoming an increasingly common practice. Education professionals are interested in having pupils see what business, research and manufacturing are like in the real world, and learn why STEM subjects are important for their future. Business professionals would also like a closer relationship with schools, as part of their own corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitments, and also to help foster the acquisition of job-oriented skills and knowledge at school level. All sides stand to gain from a closer relationship; but collaboration between schools and industry is not always straightforward. Both teachers and business people may have concerns about ethical, legal and practical issues around health and safety, mutual respect, branding, data protection and privacy, conduct and background checks. These issues can act as barriers to developing contacts. 6

7 How the code can help Until now, there have been few documents available that provide specific guidelines for collaboration between schools and industry. This code attempts to address the issues that anyone involved in such collaboration may face, in order to overcome many of the barriers to a mutually benefi cial relationship. It provides a set of principles, guidelines and checklists that should allow anyone involved in setting up school-industry collaboration to do so as safely, smoothly and securely as possible. The code is a starting point to help prepare such visits; but it should not be your sole reference. There are many local cultural and legal differences that should be considered and sought through professional help and guidance. The code is not a binding, legal or formal document, but it offers a solid basis for cooperation between schools and industry, giving both sides a shared set of principles and guidelines to put in practice. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 7

8 General principles Before dealing with specifi c issues, it s a good idea to set up a basic framework for collaboration between schools and industry. These general principles are rooted in simple standards of common sense, common courtesy and mutual respect. Be fair and responsible. Everyone involved in a collaborative project should do their best to act fairly and responsibly towards each other, in order to create a positive atmosphere to increase the success of the project. Both sides need to understand that the other has a distinct role in the project and that they should not deliberately act in any way that may be harmful to one another. Follow existing laws and regulations. Those involved should agree to comply with any applicable laws and regulations, and obtain consents or authorisations where necessary. By doing so, they guarantee a safe, effective, and legal collaboration. It is especially important that any health and safety issues connected with an activity are properly addressed and resolved. Bear in mind that compliance with more than one set of laws and/or local regulations may apply where cross-border activities are involved (e.g. a visit from a school in Belgium to a company in Luxembourg). 8

9 Communicate effectively. Establishing a good communication system is the key to success for any project. Everyone should do their best to communicate with each other in a clear, open and effective way, whichever methods ( , telephone or letter) are used. Wherever possible, a contact person should be appointed from each side ideally a person directly involved in the activity or collaboration. Report issues immediately. It s essential to inform each other of any issue that might affect the success of the activity or collaboration without delay. Preferably such issues should be communicated by the nominated contact. Respect each other s work schedule. Both schools and business organisations have many other priorities outside of collaboration projects. For that reason, approaches to an activity should be mutually benefi cial - not a burden. Ensure adequate briefing. Make sure anyone taking part in or organising activities are properly briefed and prepared. They need to be fully aware of any operating constraints or internal regulations of either party (e.g. health and safety issues or the need to have criminal record background checks for adults). Prepare for any special needs and requirements. Both sides involved should inform each other in advance of any unusual requirements. Members of a group taking part in an activity or collaboration may have special needs, requiring extra help because of a medical, emotional, or learning problem. As far as possible, participants should take into account these special requirements or needs. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 9

10 Specific standards Taking the general principles as a starting point, the following guidelines deal with concrete aspects of collaboration between schools and business. Please also see the Specialist guidance section on page 18 for more detailed information, if you need it. Marketing and branding It s important that any marketing and branding practices are in line with the normally accepted industry standards or codes for the type of collaboration activity your organisation is participating in. Nothing should undermine parents or guardians guidance, or the pedagogical objectives of the activity or collaboration. Be aware, too, of the age of participants and take into account the fact that children often do not understand properly the purpose of commercial advertising. Respect for property and confidential information All necessary measures should be put in place to protect confidential information that visitors to a site or school may get access to either as part of the activity, or by accident or deliberate action; staff and visitors should be properly informed of these measures and trained where necessary. 10

11 Data protection and privacy The combination of increasingly comprehensive legislation, along with the requirement of organisations to have up-to-date information, can lead to conflicts and misunderstandings on the issue of data protection. It is important for anyone involved in gathering or providing personal information to be aware of the basic issues. Accepted information principles should always apply and compliance with all applicable legislation has to be ensured. The following points should be carefully considered and documented in a way which is easily understood by anyone involved: Specifying the purpose of the data collection. Information on who the data controller is, where the file is located, what rights the data subject has, where and how he/she can exercise them. Data should be up to date and exact. Obsolete and/or inaccurate data is useless. Data minimisation in other words, collecting only data that is necessary. Retention period the length of time the data will be kept for. Consent policy who consents to what and how, and the consequences, if any, of not consenting. Data transfer will the data be moved? To where and under what conditions? Security measures how will the data be safeguarded? Data disposal how will data be permanently erased or destroyed? Data protection, confidentiality agreements and contracts. Ensuring a safe environment Activities must take place in a safe and healthy environment. This requires thorough preparation and effective communication between the school and the industrial partner. A safety briefing (along with appropriate documentation) needs to be provided beforehand and enforced throughout the activity. Dealing with breaches of the code It s the responsibility of each side in a collaboration to make sure that all participants respect the code. If things don t go to plan, however, mechanisms to provide feedback about the activity and to report any problem should be defi ned and be known to everyone. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 11

12 Guidelines for visits to schools Visits to schools by volunteers from industry (referred to as ambassadors in this code) can take many different forms; from explaining a professional role, or how an industrial process works, to promoting safe use of the internet or to being involved in a specifi c educational project. It should go without saying that dealing and interacting with children and young people is an area of supreme sensitivity. Here are some points any ambassador needs to remember, to help avoid many of the problems associated with schoolindustry collaboration: The ambassador is a role model. Any ambassadors to a school should always be aware that they are role models for the children and young people. As a result, they must always behave appropriately. This includes avoiding any attitude that might be perceived as offensive or outrageous, such as provocative dress. They should also remember to be punctual. 12

13 Avoid personal relationships. The ambassador should not develop a personal relationship with a child or young person. If a prior relationship exists before the activity, this should be reported to the school authority. Never be alone with a child. The ambassador should avoid being alone with a child or young person and should always deal with groups, preferably in the presence of other adults. Limit contact with children to the planned activity. Contact between the ambassador and a child or young person should be limited to what has been agreed for the activity. Attempts to get in touch with a child or young person outside of the activity are not permitted (for example, offering to give the child or young person a lift home). No drugs or alcohol. It goes without saying that inappropriate drugs and alcohol should not be brought to schools, and that an ambassador should never enter a school under their influence. Neither should the use of drugs or alcohol be promoted to children and young people. Always comply with local child protection laws. This may include ambassadors being checked by the Criminal Record Bureau, or its equivalent. Never seek financial gain. During the activity, its preparation or its followup, the ambassador should not seek to gain any kind of financial advantage for themselves or their organisation. They should not, for example, actively promote their company s products or services, or give out samples. No personal data beyond the minimum. Data protection for minors requires careful consideration. Because of this, the ambassador must not access personal data beyond what is absolutely required for the activity. In addition, they should never disclose confidential information acquired during the course of the activity to a third party, whether it is about the children or any other subject. If the activity requires collecting personal information, compliance with legislation is mandatory at all times; in particular, consent and data protection issues must be properly addressed (see Protecting data, page 21, and the checklist in the following insert). Report any conflict of interest. If, for any reason, potential confl icts of interest are identified, these have to be reported as soon as possible to both the school authority and the visiting organisation. Participants in any collaboration need to specify who any confl ict of interest should be reported to. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 13

14 Guidelines for visits to industry Visiting a factory, company or any other place of work (or site visit in this code) involves responsibilities for both visitors and hosts. There are possible health and safety risks, particularly in factories with potentially lethal equipment. That equipment may also be highly sensitive and very expensive, so visitors need to be monitored and to behave in an acceptable way. Following these guidelines will help ensure any site visit goes as smoothly as possible. Questions for teachers to ask before you start If you really want a school visit to industry to be a success, it s a good idea to ask yourself and your colleagues a few tough questions before you even think about contacting an organisation. The most important of these is why? Why are you visiting? What do you, your school and its pupils want to achieve from the visit? Is it simply a tour to introduce students to the world of work, or does it form part of a wider study project? Addressing this question will help ensure that both school and business have a good starting point for their preparations for the visit. 14

15 Are you all fully prepared? Once the type of visit has been decided on, the school needs to ensure that the participating pupils are well prepared, briefed and know what they are doing. If the site visit is part of wider project, the school needs to check that the preparatory work has been done by the pupils before the visit, of course. We suggest your planning covers these three stages: Ensure the entire activity is planned. Ask yourself: what are the objectives for the pupils and what do they need to learn, do and prepare before they meet the organisation, either in the school or at their premises? What happens at the company and how does it relate in the best way to the preparations and the learning objectives. In other words, what are the objectives of the actual day with the company? How do you and the students use the visit after it is over? What will they gain from it and how can you set up school activities that transfer the experience into learning? How do you evaluate the success of the experience? What is the role of the organisation you re visiting? You also need to agree the role of the organisation you plan to visit in the learning process. Failing to be clear on this point can sometimes lead to companies being highly reticent about allowing a visit. If you have done your homework, you should be able to explain clearly: What the role of the organisation could be in the visit How the visit would positively infl uence teaching the curriculum It s also a good idea to communicate what pedagogical expertise your school brings to the learning process and what extra expertise the organisation brings. Making the distinction between the two can be a key factor in securing a successful visit. Appoint a contact person. Both the business and the school should choose their own contact person. For the school, this should normally be a teacher who is participating in the visit. Any company contact and, in fact, anyone who participates in or organises the site visit should be in possession of upto-date clearance for working with children, if this is required by the appropriate authorities in the country concerned. Provide appropriate support staff. The company should ensure that appropriate support staff are on hand to provide the right sort of guidance to the school during the site visit. In the case of a school project to design a new soft drink, for example, The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 15

16 it might be important for both engineering and marketing staff to be present. Agree the size and composition of groups. Both school and company should agree on how big the group is that will take part in a visit and the minimum age of those taking part. For most site visits, especially where there may be health and safety issues, the minimum age of the participants p should normally be 12 years old. Ensure that the approved number is present. Once the size of a group has been agreed, then the school should make sure that number turns up. It can be very demotivating for a company participant if a smaller number actually takes part in the visit. Communicate any special needs. The school should make clear to the company if any of the group has special needs or requirements and the company should indicate if this could create any problems (e.g. if some locations cannot be accessed by wheelchair). Decide on the number of responsible adults. Both sides should agree on the number of responsible adults from the school that will be part of the visiting group. Normally, this would depend on the number and age of the participants. For example, in groups of between 10 and 12 participants, we recommend that there should be at least two adults. It s also important to decide if an adult s role will be simply to ensure everything remains under control, or if they will also have a facilitating role. Follow official guidelines. In some countries, relevant guidelines have been issued by government bodies (e.g. OFSTED in the United Kingdom). If they are available, we recommend you refer to these specific guidelines. Stay vigilant. Where possible, one teacher should always stay at the back of the group, in order to have an overview of the conduct of the young people. Not doing this could have serious consequences, as one company found out when, during a visit to a factory, two of the pupils at the back of a group turned off the power supply for the plant which then took a service engineer several hours to switch back on. Organise a risk assessment. A risk assessment for health and safety issues needs to be carried out by the company normally by the health and safety offi cer, in conjunction with the site visit contact person. It should describe the main hazards that could affect the visit, their risk rating and the measures that 16

17 have been put in place to stop them from happening. The risk assessment form should be signed by the appropriate company officers and sent to the contact person at the school. The company also needs to make sure that anyone visiting the site is covered by its insurance policies. Obtain proper consent. It s the school s responsibility to ensure that it has the consent of the parents or legal guardians of the children who are going to participate in the visit. This consent should be obtained according to local laws, regulations and working practices. Parents or legal guardians of the students must also receive a copy of the risk assessment form, so that they can properly consider any likely risks before agreeing that the child they are responsible for can participate in the visit. Provide the right information for the visit. The company needs to provide the school with additional key information for the visit. This may include: The procedure for arrivals on site. Key health and safety issues. Instructions on acceptable behaviour. Any rules about dress code, suitable clothing and footwear. Restrictions on watches, piercings, earrings and other jewellery. Any restrictions related to bringing or consuming food and drink on the site. Make sure this key information is understood and signed off by the school before the visit. Ensure a good attitude from visitors. Be aware of problems that can sometimes occur with the behaviour and attitude of young people on site. Teachers should be especially vigilant. Try and avoid situations such as the case of students asking workers on a production line they were visiting why the employees were doing such a stupid job. Brief visitors on health and safety. The company needs to make sure that participants are given a full health and safety briefi ng by an appropriate company offi cer before the start of any site visit and before entering any location which might have specifi c risks or hazards. Avoid exposure to branding and logos. As far as possible, please ensure that any place the company has set up for the students to spend time in during the visit is marketing neutral and doesn t display company logos or advertising. Don t retain personal data longer than necessary. If it is necessary to collect personal data, this should only be used for the visit and should be destroyed after the visit has ended. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 17

18 Specialist guidance There are some areas of collaboration that require particularly close attention. Dealing with consent of children and their parents or guardians, the recording of images through photographs or videos, and protecting data all merit their own in-depth guidelines, which you can fi nd on the following pages. Dealing with consent Whether you work for a school or an industry partner, sooner or later you may be faced with the issue of obtaining consent from the right people before the activities of a project can go ahead as planned. To give an example, parents or legal guardians need to be asked to provide their consent for a child to participate in a visit to a company. Another example, is where an industry host may wish to take a photo of the participants visiting their factory or site (see also the Taking photos and videos section); or children and teachers may need to register on a company website, in order to take part in a competition organised by an industry partner. These are just a few occasions where obtaining consent is important, but there may be others, depending on the nature of the project being organised. 18

19 The different forms of consent In most cases, getting consent from the relevant people (head teacher, child, parent or legal guardian) is fairly straightforward and should not pose any difficulties. However, it is worth bearing in mind that consent may take a number of forms: 1. Part of a privacy notice on a website where the participant is asked to click on the acceptance button when entering his/her personal details for a competition or game organised by the industry partner. The privacy notice should make clear what the information will be used for, how long it will be kept and who it will be shared with. 2. Formal written consent, for example, when an individual (parent, guardian or young person) is asked for their permission when a photograph or video is planned to be taken of the child by the industry partner. 3. Giving consent on behalf of a parent/guardian. In some cases, a head teacher may give consent on behalf of the parent or legal guardian, where the school has such an arrangement with them. Practical issues In most cases where a formal consent is needed, it s better that it is given in writing, as this makes it clear for everybody involved exactly how the consent has been given. Nowadays, it is also common practice for the child to be asked for his or her approval when he or she is able to understand the issues involved. In some countries, only the consent of the young person is necessary as long as they are 16 or over. Given the number of circumstances where consent could be an issue, it makes sense for both schools and businesses involved in a project to agree on what approvals and consents are required, the format they should take, and who should obtain them. Taking photos or videos Whenever a person can be directly or indirectly identifi ed in a picture or a fi lm, the image or images are considered to be personal data. As a result, they are subject to laws and regulations protecting privacy. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 19

20 Please note that this can even apply when a person does not appear clearly, but could be identifi ed by other elements in the picture, such as friends and family, or the surroundings for example, a workplace or school. Even a detail like a tattoo could be considered as identifying, if it could be related easily to the person who wears it. As long as pictures are taken but remain in the private sphere (in other words, they are not disclosed publicly), people appearing in the picture cannot object to the taking of the photo or video. But if the pictures are taken for the purpose of sharing them, in whatever way, then several rules apply. Some follow legal regulations, others are moral obligations. The exact situation depends on the country but, in general, the main rules to keep in mind are the following: Consent must be obtained from people who will appear in the films or photos before taking pictures or filming. Consent must be explicit, preferably in writing. The person must be told who is taking the picture and for what purpose. They also need to know what media will be used to share it and with whom it will be shared. Lastly, the person to be photographed or videoed needs to know who to turn to if there is a query or problem. Consent must be had from the parents or legal guardian for minors, but also from the minors themselves, as a moral right and as part of their education. Remind subjects about consent during filming or photography. Even after consent has been obtained, it is recommended to remind and inform the subjects when the pictures are taken. Close-up shots should be avoided wherever possible. Preference should be given to group pictures, which make identification more difficult. When it isn t necessary to have someone s face in the picture, consider photographing them from the back. Also, avoid captions to photos which identify the subjects. Remind others of the rules. When organising an activity where others are fi lming or photographing, consider reminding them of the applicable rules, as part of awareness raising and education. 20

21 Protecting data In any situation where personal data are collected, such as a list of attendees to a site visit or a register of students participating in a project, appropriate measures must be taken to guarantee the security of those data in particular, their confi dentiality, integrity and availability. Measures are dictated by various national and international laws, so the exact situation should be checked in each particular case. However, the following guidelines generally apply across the board: Access to personal data must be limited to authorised persons only. Data should be accessed on a need-to-know basis, meaning that only those who need to access the data are able to. Physical storage must be secure. Physical media used to store personal data (such as paper, CD-ROM) must be stored in locked, closed places. Access must be restricted when data is stored on a computer by ensuring a safe login procedure and appropriate level of protection at the fi le level. User passwords should not be shared. Data should not be stored on a memory stick or other easily lost or accessed media. Computers must be regularly updated with the latest versions of patches and must be equipped with anti-malware and fi rewall software. Regular back-ups of the information must be taken and stored in a separate place, so that if an incident affects the primary storage computer, there is still a copy of the data available. Decide how long data is kept for and what happens after the term expires. Destroy data carefully. When recycling old computers and easily lost or accessed media, if you store data on them (memory sticks, mobile devices and the Cloud, for instance), data should be securely removed. Paper documents and other types of physical media used to store personal data should be disposed of carefully. The ingenious code: school industry collaboration 21