The IDeA center
The IDeA center
The IDeA is an interdisciplinary research center which was established in the framework of LOEWE—the Landes-Offensive in development of scientific and economic excellence in Hesse. Scientists from the DIPF (German Institute for International Educational Research), Goethe Universität and the Sigmund-Freud-Institut research jointly in Frankfurt am Main.
The vision of the IDeA center
The scientists of the IDeA center seek to better understand the individual learning processes of children. Their research focuses especially on children whose successful development is in jeopardy because of various learning risks. These risks encompass, for example, particular difficulties in the learning of basic skills, such as reading, writing and arithmetic – all essential for the future success of children in school. Furthermore, the IDeA center investigates those difficulties faced by children who do not start to learn German until they enter kindergarten or primary school.
The aim of the scientists working in the IDeA center is the meticulous study of the development of children. In a second step, they try to find solutions which will allow children to learn better and more easily. In the future, the findings of the IDeA center will contribute to the individual support of children and to the design of the learning environment in kindergartens and schools so that the strengths and weaknesses of each individual child can more fully be taken into consideration.
Apart from fundamental research that will initially occupy the major portion of the work conducted by the IDeA center, another task in the coming years will be to provide those involved in teaching and education with tailored assistance for the support of individual children as well as assistance in the creation of adaptive learning environments.
Concrete measures
To achieve these ends, the following measures are planned and will be implemented within the IDeA center:
- The conducting of longitudinal studies to investigate the developmental processes of children and their risks.
- The linking of different disciplines and subprojects in order to address questions relevant for both fundamental research and practice.
- The application of research results from the IDeA fundamental research projects in order to develop supportive measures and to create adaptive learning environments.
Organizational structure of the IDeA center
IDeA is led by a Scientific Board (head: Marcus Hasselhorn). For the purpose of organizing and supporting the research projects and the different research facilities, the IDeA center includes a coordination team.
Thematically, the center is divided into four research domains:
- Resources and Limitations of Successful Learning
- Diagnostics and Prevention
- Adaptive Learning Environments
- Professionalization of Educators
The following figure shows the organizational structure of the center. Please click on the figure to enlarge it.
