First Results

Teaching entrepreneurship education is about guiding students and not giving answers. It works, teachers say

Entrepreneurship education comprises various activities aiming to foster entrepreneurial mindsets, attitudes and skills. New research in five countries shows that teachers find entrepreneurship education very relevant to secondary school.

In a survey with more than 1000 teachers, the majority underline the necessity to focus on methods based on real experience (e.g. mini-companies, project work with real enterprises). The same majority report that most teachers are not familiar enough with different concepts and working methods related to entrepreneurship education.

The JA Company Programme (CP) teachers were asked about their experiences with the working method and the programme. They found that through CP, the students had been introduced to a new way of learning. Teamwork and cooperation were among the most important assets in project-based learning. Also, learning by doing was a new approach for most of the students, and the teachers observed that many students had a noticeable progression in terms of handling the many project challenges.

Teachers related to the students in a more respectful way as a result of gaining a closer relationship with the students and following their learning processes up close. Teachers and students found themselves on more equal terms, with relationships that were more informal and cooperative in nature. Some teachers also highlighted the pedagogical advantages of this way of learning, saying they felt they had gained a greater understanding of their students. They realised the students were knowledgeable, creative and had many good ideas.

The Innovation Clusters for Entrepreneurship Education (ICEE) is a three-year research project/policy experiment in 25 European schools. ICEE uses the JA Company Programme to measure the impact of entrepreneurship education in several areas.