Field of Action 1:
Skills Acquisition
The current educational system does not adequately integrate the evolving needs of the economy and society, resulting in learners being insufficiently prepared for the future world of work and life. Digital transformation and the transformation of both the economy and society require an education system that enables the acquisition of knowledge and skills for thriving in a constantly changing world from the outset and throughout one’s lifetime.
The Mercedes-Benz Fund, operating within the Stifterverband, is committed to ensuring that students and lifelong learners are better prepared to navigate and shape the transformation.
GamesTalente
Promoting digital skills in young people is effectively achieved through gaming, as the development process of games inherently involves the use of key digital skills. The "GamesTalente" ("Gamer Talents") project innovatively combines the topic with impulses for skills and personality development. It engages young people directly in their daily realities and strengthens their future skills.
The project consists of two interconnected components: a competition and an academy. With the support of the Mercedes-Benz Fund, GamesTalente is poised for substantial expansion. By introducing a more playful approach to the competition, young people can familiarise themselves with the elements of a game in an accessible manner. This lowers access barriers and broadens the target demographic, enabling a greater number of young people to benefit from GamesTalente. Furthermore, elements of the project can also be incorporated into educational programmes.
Vocational School Digi Teams
The "Vocational School Digi Teams" initiative aims to develop and test teaching and learning modules for teacher training programmes. The project is a collaborative endeavour involving engineering educators and technology-didactics experts from select universities, and practitioners from vocational schools and/or training companies. The aim is to equip prospective vocational-school teachers with the skills necessary to fulfil their educational mandate in a digitally transforming world. This includes the proficient and didactic use of digital media in their respective subject areas as well as the ability to reflect on the content.
To ensure that student teachers experience digital media from a learner's perspective, the modules will incorporate digitally supported teaching and learning environments. These modules will be integrated into the mandatory curriculum of the vocational-teaching degree programmes at participating universities. In order to achieve a wider reach and scaling, the modules will be presented at an annual engineering education conference.
Each year until 2027, five Digi Teams will receive funding. This ongoing support will ensure the developed modules are incorporated into all relevant teacher training programmes.
More information about the project on the Stifterverband website
AI For Everyone
The vast potential of artificial intelligence requires an informed and solution-orientated approach to the technology, which can only be achieved through comprehensive AI education. Currently, AI is not adequately integrated into school and university curricula, and significant gaps exist in further education and training. Learning platforms and collaborative approaches are particularly important for scaling learning programmes.
The AI Campus serves as such a learning platform for artificial intelligence, offering free online courses, videos, and podcasts to enhance AI and data skills. As strategic partners, the Mercedes-Benz Fund and the AI Campus are pursuing new funding activities aimed at developing digital learning programmes for teaching "AI as a mass competence" and embedding AI education firmly and sustainably in the education system.