The FutureForward partnership has developed two additional resources to make the project’s training materials easier to access and use: the Educators’ Guide to the FutureForward Trainer Platform and the FutureForward AI Assistant.
The two resources respond to different but complementary needs.
The guide helps educators and trainers select, combine and adapt the materials available on the Trainer Platform.
The AI Assistant supports adult learners aged 50 and over in finding their way through the FutureForward MOOC and approaching its content through a simple conversation.
A practical guide for educators and trainers
The FutureForward Trainer Platform contains theoretical resources, practical examples, use cases, lesson plans and methodological materials that can be used in different adult education settings. With several resources available, however, educators may need support in deciding where to begin and how to combine them effectively.
The new Educators’ Guide was developed for this purpose. It does not repeat the content already available on the platform. Instead, it helps educators translate the available resources into concrete training activities.
The guide supports educators in:
- identifying the most appropriate resource for a specific learning objective;
- selecting materials according to the time available;
- combining explanations, demonstrations, practical activities and reflection;
- adapting activities to different levels of digital confidence and experience;
- developing short introductory sessions, practical workshops or longer courses;
- using and adapting the ready-made FutureForward lesson plans.
It proposes a simple teaching sequence: Explain, Show, Try and Reflect. Educators can first introduce a concept, demonstrate its application through a real-life use case, allow learners to try a practical activity and finally discuss the experience and its results.
The guide also includes examples of 60-minute and 90-minute sessions, suggestions for adapting the materials to adult learners and a planning checklist that educators can use when preparing a new activity.
Access the Educators’ Guide to the FutureForward Trainer Platform.
A conversational way to explore the MOOC
The second additional resource is the FutureForward AI Assistant, a chatbot developed specifically to help adult learners aged 50 and over navigate the content of the FutureForward MOOC.
An online course can contain many lessons, examples and activities. Learners may not always know where to find a particular topic or which section is most relevant to their question. The AI Assistant provides a faster and more conversational way to approach the training materials.
Users can write a question in their preferred project language and receive guidance based on the topics covered by the MOOC. For example, they may ask where to learn about:
- the basic principles of artificial intelligence;
- the benefits and risks of AI;
- privacy and the reliability of AI-generated information;
- different types of AI tools;
- prompts and interaction with AI assistants;
- practical applications of AI in everyday life.
The Assistant can help users identify relevant training content and decide what to explore next. This may be particularly useful for learners who prefer to begin with a question or practical need rather than follow the course in a strictly linear order.
The FutureForward AI Assistant does not replace the MOOC or the role of an educator. It acts as an additional point of access, directing learners towards the appropriate materials and making the first interaction with the course more immediate and approachable.
Try the FutureForward AI Assistant by visiting the ‘Project Results’ section.
Together with the Trainer Platform, the Use Case Animations and the MOOC, these resources contribute to a more flexible and accessible learning environment for developing practical, critical and responsible AI skills.
