Edu- paths Erasmus Project

Project Title

Edu- paths

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Teaching and learning of foreign languages; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage

Project Summary

Exceptional accomplishments in exploration and further development on the sea, in the mountains and in the world of nature and society, feature strongly in our European history. Reflecting this heritage, European states have led the way in the use of outdoor learning and adventure for the development of young people. Instead of formal education we invited students to learn by doing. By doing this project we intended to strengthen the unity among students and their immediate environment. We managed to connect elements of natural and cultural heritage and reawaken the local heritage through a portrayal of past daily activities linked with the present. The project´s aim was to highlight, protect and promote each country’s cultural heritage, natural beauty, tourist attractions as well as using all gathered information in an educational environment. Moreover, we adapted gathered knowledge to needs of school curriculum which reflects requirements of modern education in the 21st century. Although in text books and/ or tourist brochures they can easily find information about the most interesting sights, they are unable to distinguish those sights and their role and importance in their natural/ cultural environment. Going out of the classroom to the towns, old factories, castles, agricultural dwellings, mountains, parks, meadows or gardens we guided students through the process of active and engaging learning with strong connection to their history and culture.
Teamwork ability of students nowadays is decreasing, as well as the ability to find compromises, cooperate and work out mutual strategies. Enabling participants to work in multinational teams contributed to enlarging their open-mindedness towards differences in languages, cultures and traditions. Since English was the working language of our project and all coordinators possess language, ICT skills, our main aim was to promote, develop and improve language competences through transversal skills. Some of partners have worked together before and we have been aware of the abundance of related information to be found on the Internet, some of which is valid, much of which is a waste of time. IT tools used included the Etwinning website platform, Wikiloc, Joomag, Google docs and maps, school radio…Therefore, continued our dedicated search for open-source digital tools and educational resources, selecting only those applications which have been truly tested among our pupils and received their positive feedback as well as didactic success.
Our intention was to transform all the information gathered while exploring our immediate surroundings into interactive, learner-centred, multi-disciplinary CLIL lesson units, which can be re-used in the CLIL classroom, as an independent learning tool or, in a simplified format, for peer teaching. Each school prepared at least two lesson plans. The information include references to Nature, history, geography, ecology and economy and it is presented in English.
The other objectives of the Edu- paths project can be expressed as follow:
1) to develop sense of responsibility and solidarity among countries,
2) to make students to be actively involved at presenting their cultural heritage
3) to promote the value and necessity of local, national and international cooperation in the prevention and solution of preserving natural and cultural heritage
4) To gain the skills, abilities and qualifications in a new educational surroundings to get a better professional and personal development, adapt new methods into school curriculum
5) To show the improvement of mobility and promoting among young people the idea of learning through the whole life

Realization of the project included not only those members who took part at LTT activities but also all of the students/ teachers who profited directly from produced CLIL material as well as educational path. Most of the products have already been incorporated in each school curriculum so having an European project have been the most effective way of integrating and adapting cultural/ natural heritage for educational purposes. The main target groups are students at the age of 12- 16 as well as teachers using new pedagogical approaches.
In order to achieve the outcomes which project has produced we intend to continue cooperation with partners in further European projects, maintain and develop common website on etwinning for those interested in outdoor education. All learning/ teaching materials will be available to download/ adapt for use in the classroom. Our work on edu- path will continue in order to master connection between local environment and education and offering a new edge to presentation of country/ area of partner countries. The educational material produced during realization of the project will be used in the curriculum of each school in following years.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 96473,47 Eur

Project Coordinator

Sukromna zakladna skola & Country: SK

Project Partners

• OGEC DES ECOLES CATHOLIQUES
• COLEGIO SALESIANO SAN VICENTE FERRER
• Fjölbrautaskóli Suðurlands