Reframing the use of future in the educational contexts with Challenge Based Learning approach

This session illustrates the experience of university courses integrating Future Studies Methods with Challenge Based Learning (CBL) and discusses pedagogical perspectives in Future Literacy projects. Learning is a social process that involves interactions and communication as well as knowledge contents that can vary according to political and historical context; learning involves an intergenerational exchange, a role/position differentiation and the sharing of competences and practices with diversified others. Future literacy, as a capacity to recognize and anticipate changes and foresee challenges, is synergic with learning processes and could operate inside universities to solicit reforming and reframing teaching design. Adopting this perspective, the School of Innovation of the University of Trento has been organizing CBL modules that implement Future Studies Methods. The Challenges were addressed to international participants from different EU universities and involved in-presence training and online learning courses as well as reflexive moments in tutoring sessions. Two recent projects (ECIU Challenge 2023-2024 - Engaging for the Future and ECIU Challenge 2022-2023 - The future of cultural objects), specifically, addressed SDGs related to envisioning inclusive and equitable futures in collaboration with cultural and NGOs organizations. Moving from such cases, the session will explore a) under which conditions a common reflexivity about the futures could be activated inside educational institutions, b) the expected learning outcomes and the pedagogical tools associated to Future Literacy in the context of higher education, and c) the Futures Methods issues related to innovative teaching programs in collaboration with external stakeholders.