International Higher Education Teacher Award ^2024/25

The Innosocial aspects of entrepreneurship focuses on an uncovered niche in the entrepreneurial education by exploring the opportunities of creating positive social impact from the birth of innovative ventures, while also striving for profitability. The course can improve students’ responsiveness and critical thinking in such important fields like green and digital transformation, social responsibility and analytical skills in an international context, besides developing cross-disciplinary competencies. In this experimental field, the course designer and educator cannot state general truths, just lead the way, on how students can detect facts, cases, and examples from the practices of tech companies and their ecosystem. This bold experiment of combining the experience and mission-oriented approaches of the social entrepreneurship with the obvious aim of tech ventures to be market-leading and profitable, led to an unexpected success among diverse groups of students within the university and at an inter-university level. After a pilot implementation, the Innosocial became an elective course in the curriculum of the EIT Digital Master School. From the 2nd implementation, the scope of was extended and year by year more students from other faculties of Eötvös Loránd University chose this elective course, strengthening the application of cross-disciplinary approaches. Each spring semester, around 25 ELTE students (so far ca. 100 altogether) completed the course. The experience and mission of the Innosocial elective course initiated a new Activity within the EIT Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship work group, inspiring partner universities to develop their advanced level entrepreneurship elective courses. In 2021, a part of this workgroup got funded through the Erasmus+ Higher education program for the PORTFOLIO project, to enable the interconnection of their elective courses. Innosocial course with 5 other electives from 5 partners was offered for students at an inter-university level. (in 2023: ca. 45, in 2024 ca. 40 students). Based on the experiences of the PORTFOLIO project, partners improved their methodologies and contents, and won funding for the REDINEST Erasmus+ project that aims to spread the message of Innosocial course through internationally distributed impact labs. Beyond that, Innosocial course was selected to the international course portfolio of the CHARM-EU university association, strengthening its impact on European Higher Education.

Methodology

ELTE Faculty of Informatics, as an education unit that has the main focus on Computer Science, implemented the mandatory basic entrepreneurship courses with interactive seminars for all undergraduate students, believing that this mindset forming will affect the innovative thinking and entrepreneurial intentions during their whole career. At master-level, a minor for Innovation and Entrepreneurship complements the students’ major in Computer Science in the framework of the EIT Digital Master School. Beyond the institutionalized courses in entrepreneurship, ELTE IK co-developed, implemented and sustained inter-university level interactive and blended entrepreneurship courses in EIT Higher Education Initiative and PORTFOLIO Erasmus projects. Our approach in every international collaboration, partners are coopeting – competing and cooperating - with each other as they strive to attract similar groups of students, but have strong interest to jointly develop their education methodologies and contents. So the wide portfolio of the innovation and entrepreneurship courses at the different levels of education at ELTE IK, with strong embeddedness into international education programs demanding the continuous improvement of the methodologies, called for the determination of a distinctive feature that enables unique positioning. The answer for this challenge became the integration of the questions of social responsibility into all entrepreneurship courses, besides launching an interdisciplinary advanced elective course, titled Innosocial aspects of entrepreneurship to enable the in-depth analysis of the social impact of the new tech innovations. The course aims to provide examples and theoretical interdependencies that can contribute to the embedding of the social responsibility from the early stages of the product development processes. The goal is that the future entrepreneurs and leaders who complete this elective course will have an approach that can lead to higher-level solutions which- while being really innovative, provide market-leading digital solutions – consider aspects like inclusion and safety, either. Embedding social responsibility can bring more competitive and reliable solutions in the digital transformation, disruptive digital processes with embedded social responsibility will have their distinctive characteristics in the market competition. General misconceptions had to be dissolved in relation to social impact and social entrepreneurship and what kind of new paths in the entrepreneurial education were discovered with computer science students who have already completed a basics entrepreneurship course. The course aims not only to form the entrepreneurial mindset and innovative thinking of students but strives to highlight all the potential aspects of social responsibility when it comes to innovative ventures. In this experimental field, the course designer and educator cannot state general truths, just lead the way, on how students can detect facts, cases, and examples from the practices of tech companies. New processes in the economy initiate a shift in the goals of social and business ventures, business actors strive to do or show more in the field of social responsibility which leads to new phenomena in some sectors. CSR 2.0 recommendations appeared for new ventures in emerging tech fields on how to avoid the unintended bad usage of their solutions and cases show that more and more stakeholders expect transformational corporate social responsibility strategies from their partners in which strategic approach social responsibility elements are integrated parts of the business strategy, all the potential social aspects are embedded into the innovation processes. The short lecture parts are to initiate thought-provoking questions around the different dimensions of social responsibility, while the synchronous sessions’ methodology is designed to enable the most interactive and engaging atmosphere. The turbulent changes in the social, business and political environment offer us specific topics in the field of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities in crisis situations. Through the introduced and later individually analysed cases students can have a better understanding of the two-faced CSR strategies and the pressing importance of the integrity of social responsibility elements in all business strategies. Participants are also expected to identify shifts in trends towards more responsible business models, uncovering misleading CSR strategies. Guest lecturers from social and business entreprises and from organisations promoting responsible entrepreneurship approach share their invaluable and practice-based approach. All the different assignments and lectures are part of those building bricks that help the students to prepare for their final presentation: it can be the introduction of their imaginary innovative thoughts for profit social startup, a proposal for a socially more responsible strategy for an existing innovative company, or an imaginary tech startup that has a strong focus on a social problem. Students’ individual presentations demonstrate not only their ability in the application of social aspects of new tech innovations, but also their engagement to use the approach we formed together in all possible innovation processes. The course can be and was offered (due to Covid, in the above-referenced international programs) in a fully onsite, a hybrid or a fully online format.

Tools, equipment, technology used

As mentioned in previous chapters, Innosocial course strongly focuses on the analysis of social and environmental impact of new technologies. As such, it is not only at the heart of the topics, but it uses the imaginable most diverse digital tools to enhance interactivity: - for individual learning, carefully selected online videos, articles are shared with the students - quizzes help to digest the more complex topics and at the same time provide immediate feedback for the teacher - as a Learning management system, Canvas is used, not only to store teaching materials and show students advancements but to enable group work and discussions around topics - students inputs are visualized in Miro or Wordcloud - students can 'call' AI to check the competition of their idea and also check if it is correct - in fully onsite courses, post-its, Lego-bricks support brainstorming - fully online sessions are powered in Teams - longer (e.g. block education) sessions are spiced with outdoor sessions.

Outcomes and outputs, main results

The main outcomea of the Innosocial course are: 1) the 'internationalization with impact' - the strengthened and deepened international cooperations with impact and determined domain 2) and the institutional change - mainly in the Faculty of Informatics - due to the interdisciplinary approach that permeates the entire innovation and entrepreneurship education. Important results and at the same time validation for the importance of the chosen topic, that two new Erasmus+ cooperations were built on the values, message and mission of the Innosocial course (see details in 5.7.). The fact that the course has been open for registration for the fifth time (including the pilot phase) and is surrounded by huge interest in an internationally connected format is not a negligible indicator.

Lessons learnt

Key takeaways: - Daring topics do not scare away participants - Interdisciplinary approach opens new frontiers - Multidisciplinary and international audience brings the experiment to a next level - Your values, and an unshakeable belief in them will affect positively the final projects - Let students make their voice heard, but never loose the focus - Empower all the students and the contributors - Complexity is not your enemy, just let the participants digest the different nuggets you provide - Make it as colorful as possible! Be careful: - the methodology introduced works only if applied in a group with maximum 30 members, too large number of participants can kill the interactivity - in case of too huge number of applicants, pre-select with assignments - the applied tools has to be adjusted to the format (hybrid, online or onsite) - interactivity is a must, too short theoretical lectures can freeze students from being engaged

Adaptability and sustainability of the best practice (for other institutions)

The adaptability of the Innosocial aspects of entrepreneurship course is proven in the following ways: - the course can be implemented in an onsite, a hybrid or an online format - the shortened version of the course was adjusted to the needs of an internationally interconnected format, titled 'Social responsibility of new innovations" in the PORTFOLIO project (micro course) - the Creativity, responsibility and entrepreneurship course was designed based on the methodology and context of the Innosocial course, but for a different (undergraduate) audience, in the Innochange project (see details in 5.7). The course has been adapted by 3 different universities in this consortium. Not only the course content focuses strongly on sustainability, but it is surrounded by a long-term purpose and strong interest in further development: - the already mentioned REDINEST impact lab project has just started and aims to foster the development of transformative skills, strongly building on the findings of Innosocial course - although the PORTFOLIO Erasmus project has just ended, the interconnection of the elective courses continues whic incorporates the Innosocial course - Innosocial has been selected into the offer of CHARM-EU association that also contributes to its sustainability

Promotion of best practice

The Innosocial aspects of entrepreneurship course was promoted through different channels: 1) towards students: beyond the education administration system (Neptun), targeted advertisements were sent through ELTE systems and Canvas to reach also students from other faculties to ensure cross-disciplinary exchanges 2) As 2 Erasmus projects (PORTFOLIO, REDINEST, see details in other subchapters) were built on the values and experiences of the Innosocial course, their activities were spread through social media (LinkedIn, Facebook) and the PORTFOLIO project website, aiming to reach all ecosystem partners and professionals in higher education institutions 3) The implementation experiences and the concept was introduced in two different international conferences: * STUDENTS' ATTITUDES ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AS BUILDING BRICKS IN THE IMPROVEMENT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL EDUCATION, In: Luis, Gómez Chova; Agustín, López Martínez; Joanna, Lees (eds.) ICERI2022 Proceedings : 15th International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation *INNOSOCIAL ASPECTS IN THE ENTREPRENEURIAL EDUCATION OF COMPUTER SCIENCE STUDENTS In: Gómez Chova, L.; López Martínez, A.; Candel Torres, I. (szerk.) INTED2021 Proceedings , Valencia, Spain : International Academy of Technology, Education and Development (IATED) (2021) pp. 3054-3058. , 5 p.

Scope and impact

• Course/department level
• Faculty level
• Institutional level
• Cross-institutional level
• National level
• EU/EHEA/International level

The 'impact with internationalization' of Innosocial aspects of entrepreneurship course: 1) At department level: - new colleagues were involved in entrepreneurship teaching activities - master students built networks with students of other international universities and also from other faculties of ELTE - colleagues could learn from the implementation experience of Innosocial, interdisciplinary and at the same time international approach was showcased 2) At Faculty level: - based on the approach and the intense international interest in the Innosocial topic, two new Erasmus+ Higher education projects were generated which not only increased the revenues of the Faculty, but * increased its visibility through the summer schools organized at the Faculty, with an international audience, teachers and ecosystem members (PORTFOLIO Erasmus+ project) * the first interdisciplinary and internationally interconnected micro-course was implemented by the applicant and based on the Innosocial content * a new international impact lab network is being built by the applicant, positioning the Faculty as a unit open to cross-disciplinary experimenting 3) At institutional level: - Innosocial course was selected by the CHARM-EU University Alliance and is offered to their students from different (international) universities - The good practice and findings from Innosocial were incorporated in the National Social Innovation Lab project (TINLAB), chapters and teaching materials were adapted and translated into the Lab's activities 4) At national level - Since the Faculty of Informatics is one of the biggest educators in computer science, its entrepreneurship education with the special favour on Innosocial aspects is featured in all national cooperations and negotiations 5) International/EU level - The Innosocial course generated a new activity in the Innovation and Entrepreneurship education workgroup of EIT Digital, inspiring teachers from across Europe to develop their own advanced entrepreneurship elective courses - The PORTFOLIO Erasmus+ Higher education cooperation project leveled up the idea and built an interconnected portfolio of elective courses with 5 universities, developing and offering entrepreneurship micro-minor with blended mobility - The REDINEST Erasmus+ Higher education project, led by the applicant, brings further the legacy and message of the Innosocial course, building international and interdisciplinary impact labs with the cooperation of 5 European universities - The INNOCHANGE HEI project, led by the Faculty of Informatics, built its internationally featured success story on the inter-university Creativity, responsibility and entrepreneurship course that was designed and implemented by the applicant, based on the experiences of the Innosocial course All the above EU-funded projects leveraged the concept and experiences of the Innosocial course, strengthened and deepened the cooperation with the strategic partners (Université de Rennes, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Babes-Bolyai University) and their experiences were shared with several partners from across Europe.

6.1 Digitalization

• Outstanding, innovative, excellent practices of online / blended / hybrid learning
• Digital skills development and assessment both general and profession-related, embedded in course design, in teaching and assessment
• Novel digital solutions (tools, frameworks, devices, tasks to enhance efficiency and motivation)
• Digital scientific sources used in T&L

Reasoning: As described in 5.2., diverse digital tools support the interactivity of the course implementation. The digital skill development also happens in a student-powered way, as students work in distributed groups with members of different disciplinary background, so computer science students are in charge of explaining the latest technologies in a generally understandable way. This approach can create a creative harmony among participants, contributing to the closing of the digital divide.

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6.2 Internationalization

• Developing students' multicultural awareness
• Students engagement in international projects
• Courses implemented in international cooperation (projects, co-teaching, virtual/blended mobility, etc.)
• Courses offered to international multicultural students both online and offline
• International projects/research results embedded into course development and T&L

Reasoning: INNOSOCIAL - Internationalization with an impact 1) Intercultural perspectives arrive in the interactive discussion through the participants who are joining from different (international) universities to the course sessions, through questions of possible different interpretations of the discussed topics in different regions and by analyzing diverse restrictions of the chosen topic. To provide the possible broadest perspective, all cases and examples introduced have a global impact. 2) Innosocial course (see prev. chapters) is part of interconnected education with partner universities from PORTFOLIO and CHARM-EU projects, enabling and assuming active cooperation of international colleagues. 3) The course was designed to support and highlight diversity, all the interactive sessions and assignments can be completed with true openness from all sides. 4) The nature of the discussed topics, networking sessions and ice-breaking parts all intentionally support the intercultural exchanges.

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6.3 Inclusion and diversity, universal design

• Universally designed teaching material - adjustable for special needs
• Alternative, flexible assessment methods for students with special needs
• Senzitivizing students to consider special needs when practicing their profession
• Course includes hints on how the services/products of the profession could be universally designed/inclusive

Reasoning: As Innosocial course embraced aspects from social entrepreneurship as well, new tech innovations that are created to help those who are differently abled are discussed. It is an expectation in the team and individual idea presentations to offer a design or a solution that is not only responsible socially and environmentally, but is or can be further developed to become entirely inclusive. Marketable social innovations serve as core examples of how to innovate inclusively.

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6.4 Sustainability

• Teaching material contains profession related sustainability aspects
• Special courses reflecting to UN 2030 Sustainability goals, Green Deal - mini-courses, microcredentials
• Social entrepreneurship projects, service-learning in the topic
• Environmental attitude, skill development and assessment either general or profession-related
• Sustainability aspects are considered in all phases of the learning practice - "hidden curriculum"

Reasoning: As Innosocial course aims to form the responsible thinking of the future leaders and innovators, it explains several contexts of sustainable processes and thinking through practical examples. SDG goals, Green Deal and related cases and questions are groped in modules of the course, and as mentioned above, Innosocial relies on social entrepreneurship approach as well. In the micro-course 'form' of Innosocial, environmental responsibility aspects of the new tech innovations were covered as well.

3.3 Public contact datas

Name	Email address	Website
Barbara Hegyi Dr.	bhegyi@inf.elte.hu	https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarahegyiphd/