Projects
Projects
List of currently ongoing, coordinated research projects (as part of research programmes)
“KIWIT: Functions and Consequences of Artificial Intelligence”
Speaker: Prof. Dr Heinke Röbken (project coordinator), participating researchers from the University of Lüneburg: Prof. Dr Stefan Kühl (Sociology), Prof. Dr Marcel Schütz (Organisation) and Prof. Ernst Reinking (Computing Science)
BMFTR
Phase III: 2024 – 2029
€660,000
“East and South African-German Centre of Excellence for Educational Research Methodologies and Management (CERM-ESA).”
Principal Investigators: Prof . Dr Karsten Speck, Prof. Dr Bernd Siebenhüner; Participating researchers from the University of Lüneburg (UOL): Prof. Dr Karsten Speck, Prof. Dr Bernd Siebenhüner, Malve v. Möllendorff (co-ordination)
DAAD
€441,725
Phase III: 2024–2028
“DigiSchuKuMPK – Digitalisation-related and digitally supported school (culture) development through multi-professional co-operation at all-day primary schools. University of Oldenburg sub-project”
Principal Investigator: Prof. Dr Christian Reintjes (scientific director, University of Osnabrück), participating researchers from the University of Oldenburg: Prof. Dr Till-Sebastian Idel, Dr Dorthe Behrens, Franziska Reinisch
2023–2026
€341,100
Archive of completed, coordinated research projects (as part of research programmes)
Digital Initiative for African Centres of Excellence (DIGI-FACE)
Spokesperson: Prof. Dr Ewald Eisenberg (Kehl University of Applied Sciences for Public Administration)
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck, Prof. Dr Bernd Siebenhüner, Sonja Ebbing
DAAD
2019 – Dec 2022
€134,900
EduArc – Digital Educational Architectures: Open Educational Resources in Distributed Learning Infrastructures”, sub-project: “Quality of OER and international perspectives
” Principal Investigator: Prof. Dr Michael Kerres, (University of Duisburg-Essen)
Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter, Prof. Dr Marc Rittberger, Prof. Dr Hendrick Drachsler ( DIPF), Prof. Dr Klaus Tochtermann ( Leibniz Information Centre for Economics)
BMBF
2018–2022
€479,396
Joint project
Diversity in early years settings as an educational challenge: promoting the skills of children and staff through the ‘Wide Positive Behaviour Support’ programme
Prof. Dr Anna-Maria Hintz, Institute of Special Education; Dipl.-Soz. Michael Paal, Institute of Special Education; Dr Ulla Licandro, University of Hanover; Assistant Professor Dr Marie-Christine Vierbuchen, University of Vechta; Prof. Dr Karsten Speck, Institute of Educational Sciences; Prof. Dr Rudolf Leiprecht, Institute of Educational Sciences
MWK “Early Childhood Education and Development – Collaborative Research and Transfer to Practice”
4/2019 – 3/2022
“Innovation plus”, Medienfaktur. Workshop for Digital Teaching and Learning
Prof. Dr Yvonne Ehrenspeck-Kolasa, Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter
MWK
6 December 2019 – 31 December 2021
€50,000
STEM Learning in Informal Settings (GINT)
Prof. Dr Michael Komorek; Prof. Dr Peter Röben
Dr Gabriele Diersen ( Vechta), Prof. Dr Ira Diethelm, Prof. Dr Martina Flath (Vechta), Prof. Dr Corinna Hößle, Prof. Dr Ulrike-Marie Krause, Prof. Dr Claus Michelsen ( Odense, Denmark), Prof. Dr Verena Pietzner, Prof. Dr Gunnar Friege (Hanover), Prof. Dr Christa Runtenberg, Junior Professor Susanne Weßnigk (Hanover), Prof. Dr Dimitris Stavrou (Rethymno, Greece)
Nds. MWK
2016–2021
€648,000.00
Informal opportunities and limitations in higher education as reflected in the experiences of refugees at German universities
Prof. Dr Paul Mecheril
Volkswagen Foundation, Hanover
2018 – 2021
€124,000.00
Social-spatial support and services (SHA) as part of the ‘Liveable Communities’ programme – ‘No Child Left Behind’ project
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck
Bertelsmann Foundation, Gütersloh
2017 – 2020
€191,860.83
On the significance of the discrepancy criterion for intelligence in the definition of dyscalculia: Differential characteristics and support options for children with maths difficulties (Phase 2)
Prof. Dr Dietmar Grube
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2014 – 2020
€531,633.44
DIES UNILEAD Training Course 2019/2020
Prof. Dr Heinke Röbken
DAAD
2019–2020
Social-spatial support and services (SHA)
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck
Free Hanseatic City of Hamburg
2017 – 2020
€156,977.03
Joint project: Development of part-time study programmes in nursing and health sciences – PuG II; Sub-project: University of Oldenburg
Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter – in co-operation with Prof. Dr Gisela Schulze (Institute of Special Needs Education and Rehabilitation
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2018 – 2020
€1,803,415.20
Joint project: Network of Open Universities – NOH; sub-project: Coordination, University of Oldenburg
Prof. Dr Zawacki-Richter
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2018 – 2020
€195,450.00
Contact-based study programme: Recognition and pedagogical skills in a migration society
Prof. Dr Rudolf Leiprecht
Federal Office for Migration and Refugees
2018 – 2020
€691,450.82
Political Literacy in a Migration Society (PLiM). An ethnographic study of political practice in schools (Year 8) in the cities of Berlin, Vienna and Zurich
Prof. Dr Paul Mecheril
German Research Foundation
2018 – 2020
€387,550.00
Doctoral programme ‘Border Formations in a Migration Society: Orders of Knowledge, Materialities, Subjectivisations’
Prof. Dr Paul Mecheril
Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture
2016 – 2020
€738,000.00
Textile Blog – Monotonous Diversity (PB222)
Thomas Schneeberg
25 per cent increase in staffing levels
UGO
Dec 2018 – Jun 2019
€575.00
Coordination Office for the Accompanying Research of the Quality Pact for Teaching
Prof. Dr Anke Hanft
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2015 – 2019
€901,884.00
Continuation of the scientific monitoring of the federal-state competition ‘Advancement through Education: Open Universities’
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2016 – 2019
€1,854,446.65
Conditions for the success of active teaching and learning environments using digital media at universities – ActiveLeaRn – Text mining and systematic review
Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2016 – 2019
€304,131.60
Pedagogical Skills in Schools in a Migration Society
Prof. Dr Paul Mecheril
Mercator
2016 – 2019
€150,000.00
Professional analysis, conceptual development and exemplary implementation of a part-time postgraduate programme in ‘Vocational and Workplace Education’
Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter
Federal Ministry of Education and Research
2015 – 2018
€85,168.90
Comparative educational research between South Africa and Germany
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck
Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture
2015 – 2018
€9,500.00
Representation of topics relevant to migration and society in school textbooks
Prof. Dr Paul Mecheril
Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture
2014 – 2018
€23,576.00
Shaping the Future: The Emergence and Impact of Visions of the Future in Societal Transformation Processes
Prof. Dr Paul Mecheril in co-operation with Prof. Dr Butler (FK III) and Prof. Dr Alkemeyer ( FK IV)
MWK
2016–2018
“ComeMINT Network. Professional development through networking – networking through professional development. Conditions for the success of adaptive STEM professional development modules in community networks. University of Oldenburg sub-project.”
Prof. Dr Maja Brückmann, Institute of Educational Sciences (joint project)”: University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen (project coordination); RWTH Aachen University, Aachen; Bielefeld University, Bielefeld; Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum; University of Bremen, Bremen; Technical University of Dortmund, Dortmund; University of Cologne, Cologne; Ludwigsburg University of Education, Ludwigsburg; Westphalian Wilhelms University of Münster, Münster; University of Paderborn, Paderborn; Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen; Weingarten University of Education, Weingarten; University of Wuppertal, Wuppertal.
BMBF
€360,285.60
1 April 2023 – 30 September 2025
“Didactic Twin-Engine Aircraft for Digital Education in the STEM Fields (D4MINT), sub-project at the University of Oldenburg.”
Prof. Dr Maja Brückmann, in collaboration with School II – Department of Computing Science – Division of Computing Science Education; Project leader: Prof. Dr Ira Diethelm
BMBF
€462,678.41
1 April 2023 – 30 September 2025
approved on 6 March 2023
Concept for an evaluation of school support for pupils with significant care and support needs due to a complex psychosocial impairment or a disability in Hamburg
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck, Prof. Dr Annett Thiele, Prof. Dr Ulla Licandro
Hamburg Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs (Education Authority)
August 2021 – July 2023
€100,000.00
Three for One – Early support for the healthy development and educational participation of children and young people with clinical and multimodal care needs through cross-sectoral, outreach-based treatment and support provided by child and adolescent psychiatry, psychotherapy and psychosomatic medicine, in co-operation with the Regional Education and Counselling Centres (ReBBZ) and their Child and Youth Welfare Services (JH) in Hamburg
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck (in co-operation with AOK Rheinland-Hamburg; DAK Gesundheit; IKK classic; DRV Knappschaft Bahn-See; Hamburg Authority for Schools and Vocational Training; Asklepios Clinic Harburg; Catholic Children’s Hospital Wilhemstift; Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg)
Joint Federal Committee (Innovation Fund)
1 October 2020 – 30 September 2024
€5,964,448.80 (University of Oldenburg: €625,177.50)
Second project phase
East and South African-German Centre of Excellence for Educational Research Methodologies and Management (CERM-ESA)
Principal investigators: Prof. Dr Karsten Speck and Prof. Dr Bernd Siebenhüner
Malve v. Möllendorff
DAAD
2019–2023
€2,076,815
doctoral programme“Shaping the Future: Transforming the Present through Digitalisation Scenarios”
Programme directors: Prof. Dr Thomas Alkemeyer, Prof. Dr Martin Butler
Prof. Dr Sabine Baumann (Jade University of Applied Sciences), Prof. Dr Stephanie Birkner, Prof. Dr Katharina Block, Prof. Dr Heike Derwanz, Prof. Dr Mario Dunkel, Prof. Dr Michael Klafft ( Jade University), Prof. Dr Yvonne Ehrenspeck-Kolasa, Prof. Dr Thomas Etzemüller, Prof. Dr Ulrike-Marie Krause, Prof. Dr Sabine Kyora, Prof. Dr Andreas Schelske (Jade University), Prof. Dr Tilo Wesche
MWK
2019–2023
€900,000
Conference: “Can we continue to ignore pupils’ social interactions, emotions and well-being? Promoting teacher-pupil interactions”
Dr Juliane Schlesier
MWK “zukunft niedersachsen”
2023
6,908.00 euros (an additional 10,000 euros has already been approved by the HWK)
“‘Professors at Private Universities: Working Conditions, Role Configurations and Commitment to Teaching, Research and Administration (ProPriHo)’
Principal Investigator: Prof. Dr Heinke Röbken (sub-project lead & consortium lead)
BMBF
2023–2026
€190,700
As at: 10 September 2026
List of currently ongoing, externally funded research projects
“Future Trends in Education” (Future.Ed) Research Consortium: Leuphana University of Lüneburg (lead institution), University of Osnabrück and University of Oldenburg
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck, Prof. Dr Till-Sebastian Idel
2025–2028
Volkswagen Foundation and Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Higher Education
“Face-to-face learning: Recognition and pedagogical competence in a society of migration”
Prof. Dr Ayça Polat, in co-operation with the C3L
2025–2028
€3,469,865
EU funding from the BAMF
“Pedagogy College: A model for a networked further education and counselling programme. Profil plus – Academic adaptation training for the German labour market”
Prof. Dr Ayça Polat
2024–2028
€569,325
DAAD
“MIRASTO: Migrant self-help organisations and further education in social pedagogy. A responsive study (BMBF joint project)”
Prof. Dr Ayça Polat, Dr Joachim Stöter (C3L)
€264,059
BMBF
“Primary schools and their stakeholders in child protection (GruKisch)
Qualitative secondary analysis to determine the baseline for improving the involvement of primary schools in Lower Saxony”
Prof. Dr Anke Spies
2025 – 2028
€250,000
Lower Saxony Ministry of Education and Research
“Generations in Protest: Civil Society Engagement from an Intergenerational and Biographical Perspective”
PD Dr Martina Schiebel
2024 – 2027
€612,300
DFG
“Evaluation of the state programme ‘Youth Social Work in Berlin Schools’”
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck
2024 – 2026
€239,887
Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family Affairs of the State of Berlin
“Digital Initiative for African Centres of Excellence (DIGI-FACE)”
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck
2026 – 2029
€113,278
DAAD
“RECOMPOSE – Recomposing the Blackbox. Critical Digital Education through AI-Powered Music Generation”
Prof. Dr Felicitas Macgilchrist, Prof. Dr Jorge Marx Gómez, Prof. Dr Mario Dunkel
2026–2029
€394,853
Strategically Unlocking Potential (PSE). Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Higher Education
As at: 2 September 2026
List of completed research projects funded by external grants
1 July 2023–30 June 2025
joint project:
“Professors at private universities: working conditions, role configurations and commitment to teaching, research and administration (ProPriHo)”
Prof. Dr Heinke Röbken (Sub-project lead & consortium lead)
BMBF
1 May 2023–30 April 2026
190,701.31 euros (University of Oldenburg only)
Child protection concepts for primary education in a dialogue between theory and practice
Prof. Dr Anke Spies
MWK Innovation Plus programme
1 October 2022–30 September 2023
50,000.00 euros
Prospects for the Future of Learning: Artificial Intelligence Applications in Higher Education
Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter; PD Dr Wolfgang Müskens
MWK Programme ‘The Digital Society’
2021–2024
€336,000
Research funding for the third funding phase of the scientific monitoring of the PRIMUS school trial
Proposal for the continuation of scientific monitoring of the PRIMUS school trial
Prof. Dr Till-Sebastian Idel; together with Prof. Dr Christina Huf, Dipl.-Soz. Aysun Dogmus, University of Münster (WWU)
Ministry of Schools and Education of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
2020–2023
€212,544
Promoting writing skills through feedback
Prof. Dr Ulrike Krause in collaboration with Prof. Dr Vera Busse, University of Münster
German Research Foundation
1 June 2021 – 31 May 2024
€384,418.00 (University of Oldenburg: €190,352.00)
Laypeople as actors in all-day schooling. Exploratory analyses using a multi-perspective mixed-methods design (Laktat).
Prof. Dr Till-Sebastian Idel, Institute of Educational Sciences; in collaboration with Prof. Dr Gunther Graßhoff, University of Hildesheim Foundation; Prof. Dr Markus Sauerwein, Fliedner University of Applied Sciences, Düsseldorf
DFG
1 August 2021 – 31 July 2024
€470,388.00 (funding allocated to Oldenburg: €175,880.00)
Reconstruction of non-traditional educational and career trajectories of former students without an Abitur
Prof. Dr Olaf Zawacki-Richter
DFG
2020–2023
€355,274.00
Professionalisation for the Migration Society (ProMig). Academic support for the Oldenburg pilot project ‘Diversity-reflective and anti-discrimination skills training for educational staff in schools within the migration society’
Dr Anja Steinbach; Prof. Dr Anke Spies; Prof. Dr Rudolf Leiprecht in co-operation with the Oldenburg Research Centre (OFZ) and the City of Oldenburg, Office for Immigration and Integration
MWK PRO*Lower Saxony
1 October 2020 – 30 September 2023
€227,205.40
As at: 2 September 2026