SMASH (Success in MAth and Science at Home), a 2-year project (December 2007-November 2009) funded by the European Union under the Lifelong Learning Grundtvig action, was proposed in response to the need for reaching out to parents and informing them about new developments in mathematics and science education. Taking into account best practices in mathematics and science education, adult education, and distance learning, the project aims to enrich European children’s learning of mathematics and science by providing parents with guidance on how to enhance their children’s learning experiences.

The project consortium has developed and pilot tested an intercultural parent-trainer training course in mathematics and science education. The course will be offered to the European educational community as a LLP Comenius/Grundtvig in-service training course. Professionals participating in the course will gain expertise in how plan, design, and facilitate an effective parent training program in mathematics and science education targeting parents of elementary and middle school children (ages 6-15) They will be equipped, through combined use of e-learning and physical meetings, with the most up-to-date knowledge, techniques, and implementation tools for the provision of high-quality, culturally differentiated training in mathematics and science education to parents in their communities.

The project will offer long-term sustainability through its information base, which will support multilingual interfaces for maximum dissemination, and collaboration of parent-educators around Europe. The information base will offer access to validated pedagogical models, didactic approaches, and technology-enhanced and culturally-adapted resource materials for parent educators that will be of use not only to the project participants, but also for independent study. Parents unable to attend parent-training sessions could still study independently using the project information base, which will provide open access to all of the project’s outputs and resources. The long-term beneficiaries will be children who will benefit from a conducive to learning home environment that enhances their mathematical and scientific development and prepares them to meet the challenges of the digital age