THANK YOU, Timotion!
Arad – Livada | September 2025 – February 2026
The Truth Compass project is an educational initiative aimed at developing critical thinking and media literacy among students. The project was implemented by the Garden of Science Association between September 2025 and February 2026, combining educational research, the development of digital resources, and interactive workshops in schools.
The project’s objective is to help children better understand how information circulates in the online environment and to equip them with skills for verifying sources, identifying misinformation, and critically analyzing digital content.
The project was carried out with the support of the Timotion and Generosity for the Future programs, coordinated by the Timișoara Community Foundation.
The first phase of the project was dedicated to documentation and research. The Garden of Science team developed two questionnaires addressed to middle school and high school students in order to understand how they access information and how familiar they are with the phenomenon of fake news.
The questionnaires were administered in partner schools in Arad and Satu Mare and were completed by 337 students. The results showed that students frequently encounter contradictory information in the online environment, but do not always have the necessary tools to verify sources or assess the credibility of a message.
These findings formed the basis for the development of the educational materials within the project.
In the next phase, interactive digital educational resources were developed, designed to explain critical thinking concepts in a way that is accessible to children.
The project team created:
The creation process was participatory: students were involved in testing the materials, providing feedback, and even contributing to the development of certain design elements. As a result, the materials were created by children for children, making them as relevant and engaging as possible.
These are the first materials of this kind produced in video format in Romanian!
The video materials can be viewed on the project’s YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@AsociatiaGradinaStiintei
The final stage of the project consisted of organizing interactive workshops on critical thinking and media literacy in schools in Arad.
In February 2026, four workshops were held, with approximately 100 primary and lower secondary school students participating.
During the workshops, students:
The activities were interactive and dialogue-based, and students were encouraged to argue and support their opinions.
The Truth Compass Project had a significant impact on the educational community.
The main results include:
Students showed a high level of interest in the topic and expressed their desire for such activities to continue. The feedback received indicated that participants have become more attentive to the information they encounter online and are more likely to question its credibility.
The official report of The Truth Compass Project 1 (Timotion 2025 Edition) can be accessed here and on the Facebook page of the Timișoara Community Foundation here.
The Truth Compass project demonstrated that critical thinking can be effectively taught through interactive methods, dialogue, and examples drawn from children’s real-life experiences.
By combining research, digital resources, and educational workshops, the project created a replicable model for media literacy education, contributing to the development of healthy information consumption habits among students.
More images and materials from the project can be found on the Facebook page of the Garden of Science Association.
The “Truth Compass” project is supported through TIMOTION 11, the largest sports fundraising event in the western part of the country. Organized by the @Timișoara Community Foundation together with the @Alergotura Association, @TIMOTION aims to inspire the local community to get involved, support projects with real impact, and adopt a healthy lifestyle.
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