Highlights from the first-ever virtual TAXEDU Networking Meeting
On 1 December 2020, TAXEDU partners gathered for their annual Network Meeting in its first-ever online format. Taking advantage of the many digital tools available for generating discussion from a distance, participants were invited to share their experiences with national initiatives on tax education and the added value of the TAXEDU portal. Ideas for the portal’s future development, and how to capitalise on the possibilities it offers for sharing information and insights, were also discussed.
TAXEDU portal and communication highlights of 2020
36 representatives from Member States attended the meeting, which kicked off with a briefing on the latest technical updates and the results of the past year’s communication activities.
The contractor presented the 2020 technical milestones, which included the integration of a Privacy Statement form, the redesign of the Cool Stuff page and the upcoming transition to a new content management system (Drupal8). The technical team is also working on adding a download option for all available resources to facilitate their use offline, as well as a search function in the News section, and the translation of quizzes into national languages.
The main outcomes of the past year’s communication activities were also presented. A key takeaway from 2020 is that new visits account for the vast majority (81 %) of all visits to the portal. To raise the number of returning visits (currently at 19 %), it is important to upload more new content to keep the target audiences engaged. The increase in new visitors is nevertheless a positive sign, indicating that there is a high interest in the TAXEDU portal, which is also reflected in the growing interaction with published content on the TAXEDU Facebook and Instagram pages. In total, posts on the TAXEDU social media pages have received 10,453,000 impressions and 118,400 engagements since their launch, and boast 16,479 and 2,316 followers on Facebook and Instagram respectively.
National initiatives in 2020
In the second part of the Networking Meeting, participants were invited to present the activities they launched in their own countries throughout 2020 and share the challenges they all faced in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
While most participants expressed that they have national initiatives underway, others mentioned challenges due to COVID-19 as a significant obstacle, with the transition to online learning across all school subjects putting a strain on resources available for tax and financial awareness priorities. Nevertheless, most countries noted that while the pandemic undoubtedly posed challenges for foreseen activities, it mainly slowed them down, rather than putting a stop to them altogether. In many cases, the transition to a digital learning is making progress and has opened the door for many new types of learning activities.
The network members were invited by the European Commission to upload national content to the portal. As regular new content will help drive engagement and boost the number of returning visitors, it is important that all countries contribute with the material they have available. Moreover, sharing material used at the national level, regardless of the language, can serve as an inspiration to all countries, and facilitate discussions on what works, and what doesn’t in different learning contexts.
Priorities for 2021
This discussion was continued in the meeting’s third part, where the loading of new material to the portal was considered among the key priorities for the coming year. The network members committed to actively using social media to attract new visitors, as well as to engaging in discussions on the Forum. The Forum’s overall aims are to provide a platform for users to share information and exchange best practices and ideas that can inspire new activities in other countries. The participants were invited to list the topics they would like to take up on the Forum, and share suggestions for how to engage the national networks of teachers and students there.
The meeting ended with all participants expressing commitment to continue their hard work in creating engaging national tax education initiatives and sharing their insights and ideas with network members.