News

Published

Feb 20, 2024

Author

Jonathan England

# Topics

openaire, , Open Science, Training

Building a community of Open Science trainers

Feb 20, 2024

by Jonathan England, Open Science Training Specialist

OpenAIRE's train-the-trainer bootcamps are an important step towards realising the organisation's mission of promoting Open Science. Through these bootcamps, OpenAIRE aims to empower trainers to become ambassadors of Open Science and help to create a more open, transparent, and accessible research ecosystem.

After a successful first Train-the-Trainer bootcamp back in June 2022, a new cohort of 40 Open Science trainers were selected to experience an intense week of presentations, assignments, exchanges, confidence building and networking. During the week of the 5th of December 2022, research support staff, librarians, researchers, data curators and data stewards from 17 countries gathered to broaden their skills and knowledge as trainers.

The objective of this OpenAIRE bootcamp was to equip participants with a comprehensive understanding of Open Science-related topics and to provide them with the tools and insights they need to effectively train others. Increasing trainers’ skills and confidence in delivering information in their own institutions and countries is at the heart of why this bootcamp was created in the first place.

A satisfaction survey was conducted after the bootcamp to get insights and feedback from the participants. This helps us evaluate the effectiveness of our training and identify areas for improvement. It also provides an opportunity for the participants to voice their opinions and share their experiences, allowing us to better understand their needs and expectations. The survey also helps us to operate in a transparent and accountable manner, demonstrating our commitment to providing high-quality training experiences for all participants.

Participants reported a highly satisfying experience, with many praising the high-quality presentations, enthusiasm of the trainers and networking opportunities. All of them would recommend it to others. However, some participants did raise concerns about the size of the cohort, making it difficult for everyone to interact fully and participate during the live sessions. This feedback will be taken into consideration for future bootcamps, as OpenAIRE intends to host these events twice a year.

Our next bootcamp will be held from 22 to 26 May 2023, with registration opening soon.

Hosted on OpenPlato, a new learning platform for Open Science, participants will be able to continue exchanging with one another and with the trainers, even months after the end of the bootcamp. All materials will be made openly available under a Creative Commons CC-BY licence in the future, so anyone can benefit from these exchanges. A training about Open Science but closed to the public would not be very "Open Science" after all.