On 10 March 2026, an experience-sharing forum entitled “Inspiration. Innovation. Growth” was held at the Daugavpils Secondary School of Technology-Lyceum, bringing together teachers, heads of educational institutions, industry experts, and cooperation partners. The forum aimed to advance teachers’ professional development, facilitate the exchange of innovative teaching practices, and strengthen collaboration among stakeholders. The event, which brought together more than 260 education professionals representing general and vocational education institutions from state city Daugavpils and the Latgale region, featured a presentation by Dr. paed. Mārīte Kravale-Pauliņa, a leading researcher at the Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences (IHSS) of Daugavpils University. She introduced the audience to the Horizon Europe international research project PULSE-ART (Promoting Understanding and Lifelong learning Successful Education through the ARTs and culture), grant agreement No. 101178988.

The participants were acquainted with the project’s conceptual framework and overarching objective – to highlight the importance of arts-based education and to promote the development of the eighth key competence in lifelong learning as defined by the European Reference Framework, namely cultural awareness and expression, by designing and providing teachers with a practically applicable set of tools to foster creative expression and strengthen students’ cultural understanding. The project brings together ten institutions from six countries – Spain, France, Greece, Latvia, Malta, and the Netherlands – and is coordinated by the Spanish organisation “Science for Change”. The presentation underscored that PULSE-ART promotes civic engagement and co-creation, offers support to teachers (digital resources, a professional development programme, and self-reflection instruments) and aims to expand stakeholder dialogue, thereby raising public awareness of the value of culture and art. It was emphasized in the discussions that such international projects offer valuable opportunities for educational institutions to implement interdisciplinary approaches within the curriculum and to foster meaningful learning experiences for students, thereby advancing cultural awareness and expression – the capacity to engage creatively through multiple art forms and cultural modalities.

With the ongoing implementation of the project in Latvia, it was announced during the forum that the third meeting of the project hub “MOSAIC HUB – Latvia” is scheduled to take place on 9 April 2026. As part of its programme, it is planned to examine the methodology of the case study “Dance” and to implement co-creation activities engaging stakeholders from both the education and cultural fields. This meeting will constitute a significant step in translating theoretical approaches into practical solutions. In May 2026, teacher capacity-building sessions will be conducted, during which the theoretical guidelines of the professional development programme will be integrated into interactive, practice-based learning experiences.

In parallel, between February and June, daily practices of secondary school dance ensembles are being systematically observed, complemented by teacher interviews and student focus group discussions. During autumn 2026, in October and November, co-creation seminar sessions will be held for secondary school students, enabling their active participation in creative processes.

The forum for teachers’ experience exchange demonstrated that modern education cannot be implemented without fostering creativity, cultural understanding, and collaborative engagement. In this context, the PULSE-ART project serves as a key instrument for advancing educational quality and promoting the formation of a sustainable and inclusive society, both locally in Daugavpils and nationally throughout Latvia.

Implementation timeline of the PULSE-ART project: 1 November 2024 – 31 October 2027

Project website: https://pulseartproject.eu/

PULSE-ART across social media platforms:
LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pulse-art-project
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pulseartproject/   
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/pulseartproject.bsky.social  
YouTube: @PULSE-ARTproject

Additional information on the event:
PULSE-ART project researcher
IHSS leading researcher Mārīte Kravale-Pauliņa
e-mail: marite.kravale@du.lv 

Additional information on the project:
PULSE-ART project manager in Latvia
IHSS leading researcher Ilze Kačāne
e-mail: ilze.kacane@du.lv 

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe Research and Innovation programme under the Grant Agreement no 101178988.