This center, led by Université Grenoble Alpes in partnership with the Regional Education Authority of Grenoble, was recently awarded the national tender from the Future Investment Program (PIA3), alongside only two other French centers. Pegase will receive PIA3 funding over 10 years of 11.7 million euros.

Its aim is to transform teaching practices from kindergarten to high school, to focus these more on the results of research in education and methods that have been proven to work, in order to strengthen the teaching of fundamental knowledge and help reduce inequality in the education system. This evidence-based approach will be used in a resolutely two-way design taking into account the contributions researchers can offer teachers and vice versa.

An essential dimension of the center involves the implementation of collaborative research that brings together the various stakeholders involved, from teaching professionals on the ground to researchers in laboratories, and teacher trainers.

The Pegase structure: 5 major actions in 18 EducLabs

Pegase will be organized into five major actions, which will be carried out in 18 EducLabs - fully-equipped laboratories that enable collaborative work funded and spread across Regional Educaiton Authorities from different areas as follows: 5, then 11, then 17 in the Regional Education Authority of Grenoble, and 1 in the Regional Education Authority of Guyane. As centers of innovation, each EducLab will be housed in a primary or secondary education academic structure in order to establish collaborative work between teaching professionals, trainers and researchers.

The center will benefit from the expertise of many different stakeholders, with the teaching staff and university lecturers of the Institut national supérieur du professorat et de l’éducation (INSPE) of Grenoble and French Guiana on the front line, whose educational duties, together with research, are essentially dedicated to the initial and continuing education of teaching professionals. Researchers and university lecturers from the nine laboratories of Université Grenoble Alpes (including two steered jointly with University of Savoie Mont Blanc), as well as university lecturers from Université de Guyane, will also make a major contribution to this center, thus making it an ecosystem spread across the two Regional Education Authorities of Grenoble and French Guiana. Teaching staff and teacher trainers from the two Regional Education Authorities will form the third foundation of Pegase, providing their on-the-ground knowledge and evidence-based practices, and making the center a collaborative ecosystem that systematically unites researchers, teacher trainers and teaching professionals. It will also be open to the socioeconomic field as well as associations, to ensure the expertise of specialized partners such as EdTech Cabrilog and Réseau Canopé. Lastly, it will be an active learner, thanks to a multi-level assessment model involving UGA researchers and international experts in education.

The center's 10-year goal: to demonstrate the relevance of an evidence-based education approach

After creating and approving evidence-based knowledge and expertise, the center will ensure the relay and sharing of research results on the ground, facilitating the professional development of teaching professionals while incorporating their on-the-ground expertise. It will also make it possible to create synergies between numerous internal structures and stakeholders at Université Grenoble Alpes (Maison de Création et de l'Innovation, the IDEFI Promising program, PIA3 Flexi-TLV, IREM), as well as between external institutions that have already expressed their support for the center (CNRS-INSHS, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regional Council, the departmental councils of Isère and the Ardèche, the City of Grenoble, and the Centre de transfert pour la réussite éducative du Québec).

Over 10 years, Pegase's aim will therefore be to develop and validate innovative and evidence-based methods for teaching French and mathematics, in particular for students with difficulties, which could - in the long term - eventually lead to spin-offs in other Regional Education Authorities in France and even abroad.