In connection to the COORDINATE project’s goal to encourage and support non-scientific use of longitudinal and cohort data, four workshops have been held in Vilnius, Lithuania.
The first workshop led by PhD Student Irma Dirsytė took place on January 26, 2023. The purpose of the workshop was to engage with the policy makers in the field of education. The workshop was attended by the representatives of the Strategic Planning Department of the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports. During the workshop the participants discussed the advantages of longitudinal data and application in the education process. The participants discussed how longitudinal data helps to understand the life course. How does the scenario of family demographic events affect children's education, occupation, or lifestyle? All the participants were particularly interested in the use of longitudinal research to improve the quality of the learning process and the well-being of children.
On March 21, 2023 a second workshop with the NGO representatives working in the field of supporting women and families took place. During the workshop participants were introduced to the existing international and national longitudinal surveys conducted in Lithuania and how to reach existing research data.
On March 29, 2023 a third workshop was held to discuss the life course perspective and the advantages of longitudinal research with public servants working in the field of health statistics. Participants were introduced to key longitudinal studies and how those studies could help predict health disparities. The participants had the opportunity to learn how to access the existing data from longitudinal surveys in Lithuania.
The final, fourth workshop, took place on April 18, 2023. The population and family demography longitudinal surveys were discussed with public servants working in the field of data collection, editing and presentation. The workshop was oriented toward explaining longitudinal and cross-sectional data differences and life course perspective in longitudinal research. The workshop provoked discussion on the need for longitudinal research and its importance in understanding the modern, constantly changing society.
Irma Dirsytė would like to thank all the people and institutions who helped with the organization of the workshops.