The project EdUp has ended in December 2025. Time for us to look back on two eventful years.

Exchange and partnership are central guiding principles within Europe’s educational landscape. But what happens when these very principles come under pressure—such as in Ukraine, where war and restricted mobility have made their implementation difficult for years?

Against this backdrop, the Erasmus+ project EdUp was launched in 2024 as a targeted continuation of the successful Ukraine support project SUUUpoRT (funded by Stiftung Innovation in der Hochschullehre). While SUUUpoRT supported the immediate continuation of teaching and learning activities at Ukrainian universities by establishing a shared digital teaching platform, EdUp introduced a new and more personal focus: strengthening international collaboration in digital higher education through collaborative teaching formats.

The aim was to continue providing Ukrainian students and educators with access to digital learning opportunities, while simultaneously fostering their further development through intensive academic exchange between universities in Ukraine and the EU. At the heart of the project was the joint development of teaching formats through so-called 'Teacher Twins'.

Collaborative Twinning Experiments

Teacher Twinning formed the core of the project. In this collaborative tandem format, educators from Ukrainian universities were paired with colleagues from European partner institutions—particularly TU Bergakademie Freiberg. The significant interest among Ukrainian educators in participating in this project was confirmed through a nationwide needs assessment study conducted in Ukraine.

The international teams jointly developed thematic ideas, new digital courses, and teaching materials. This process fostered a reciprocal exchange of subject expertise, didactic approaches, and digital teaching methods.

As a result, existing gaps in curricula—especially at Ukrainian universities—could be identified and addressed in a targeted manner. The specific design and application scenarios were defined by the educators themselves, based on their individual needs. The format not only enhanced the quality of teaching but also strengthened long-term academic partnerships in a particularly meaningful way: the resulting collaborations are embedded across multiple faculties and thus anchored broadly within the universities.

Implementation of the Twin Projects

In total, 10 Teacher Twinning projects were established (9 German-Ukrainian and 1 Finnish-Ukrainian team), producing a wide range of innovative teaching formats involving students from both universities:

• COIL projects (Collaborative Online International Learning)
• Blended learning formats with in-person phases (e.g., winter and summer schools)
• Self-study courses and textbooks
• Development of interactive remote laboratories
• Joint creation of digital teaching materials

In several cases, course development was complemented by additional Erasmus+ funded mobility activities, such as research stays for Ukrainian scholars and BIP formats (Blended Intensive Programmes) for student groups.

In addition to the twin-created courses, further 'regular' courses at TUBAF were virtualized by TUBAFdigital and made available via the OPAL learning management system, enabling Ukrainian students to directly access an expanded range of international courses.

Supporting Measures and Capacity Building

The project was supported by numerous accompanying measures:

• Four international workshops (organized by LUT University) on topics such as future skills, innovation in teaching, and industry collaboration
• A staff week at TUBAF focusing on microcredentials
• Introduction of microcredentials as flexible learning formats
• Translation and subtitling of teaching materials

Results and Evaluation

Despite the particularly challenging conditions faced by Ukrainian partners, EdUp achieved convincing results both quantitatively and qualitatively:

• 870 registrations (a strong increase over the course of the project)
• 10 developed twin courses
• 10 digitalized modules on OPAL
• Optimized access and registration processes
• Comprehensive evaluations by students and educators through surveys, feedback, and a joint final project workshop
• Despite the particularly challenging conditions faced by Ukrainian partners, EdUp achieved convincing results both quantitatively and qualitatively:
• 870 registrations (a strong increase over the course of the project)
• 10 developed twin courses
• 10 digitalized modules on OPAL
• Optimized access and registration processes
• Comprehensive evaluations by students and educators through surveys, feedback, and a joint final project workshop

Participating educators rated the project very positively overall. They particularly highlighted the strong networking between institutions, the emergence of long-term collaborations, and the potential for future joint research projects. They also confirmed having acquired or improved new competencies (e.g., academic English, didactic approaches, and knowledge of the partner country’s education system).

Sustainable Collaboration

Some teams have already continued their collaboration in follow-up projects—most notably an emerging interdisciplinary COIL programme (Project 5050) in which students from Dnipro and Freiberg are jointly exploring the shared history of their universities. This development underscores the exceptional commitment and willingness to sustain the partnerships that have been formed.

With EdUp, a forward-looking approach to international university collaboration has been established. Teacher Twinning has proven to be an effective instrument for jointly advancing digital teaching, shaping cross-border knowledge spaces, and sustainably strengthening higher education institutions. EdUp thus sets an example of successful, resilient, and innovative academic collaboration in times of global crisis—bringing the Erasmus+ vision to life: new perspectives, new horizons.

Disclaimer: Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or Erasmus+ National Agency for Higher Education (German Academic Exchange Service). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

The idea behind EdUp

The goal of EdUp is to implement demand-driven digital courses and teaching formats, and to back and further integrate the Ukrainian higher education system by strenghthening the cooperation network.

The predecessor project SUUUpoRT could successfully establish the required processes and create a strong basis for further cooperation between TUBAF and the Ukrainian higher education system. The activities have also shed light on the ongoing relevance of this project complex.

One the one hand, the number of enrolled students exceeded the anticipated number by far. On the other hand, a detailed analysis revealed further needs and the high potential to realize creative, innovative, and particularly demand-driven teaching ideas. And most importantly: To realize them together, since we are convinced that new ideas and a strong relationship arise from mutual understanding and learning.

With EdUp, we therefore aim on better understanding and addressing identified needs, and provide a quality offer. We also wish to further establish the existing cooperation and create new contacts and bonds to our Ukrainian partners. Therefore, the main focus of EdUp is to facilitate collaborative teaching projects between Ukrainian and EU teachers.