From Diversity to Employability – new trends and methods in learning and integration Erasmus Project

Project Title

From Diversity to Employability
– new trends and methods in learning and integration

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 : Strategic Partnerships for Schools Only

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Quality Improvement Institutions and/or methods (incl. school development); Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

We are a group of seven schools: Keravanjoki school, KERAVA Finland; Östra reals gymnasium, STOCKHOLM Sweden; Zespol Szkol Sportowych i Ogolnoksztalcacych, GDANSK Poland; Öffentliches Gymnasium der Stiftung “Theresianische Akademie”, VIENNA Austria; Liceo Classico Virgilio, MANTOVA Italy; Instituto Poeta Maragall, BARCELONA Spain; Colegio Campo de Flores, CAPARICA Portugal.

In the preparatory meeting in Vienna in January 2016, we found out that we all had serious challenges with students from very different backgrounds, different cultural and social circumstances and with very different skills. For all that we had to help the students to grow as human beings, study and work on an integrated European job market. We realized that we really need to support students to find their abilities, skills, values and attitudes that they need in the future world.

We had long conversations: How could we see the diversity – diverse thoughts and approaches – as enriching (not as complicating)? How could we encourage students to find their specific qualities and personal strengths and help them to show self-respect? How could we prevent the social exclusion and reduce early school leaving? And we found out that there are many new, useful methods at our schools, which are good to learn together and from each other during this project.

To deal with this situation our group of schools have built up or brought into use two newish methods in learning and integration. To improve all kind of students’ learning we teachers have been e.g. using new digital technology, combining different school subjects, offering specialized courses and trying out completely new teaching and learning methods.

In practical terms each school identified two such new concepts that were developed or in an advanced state of implementation at each participating school. We have met and introduced these innovations to each other, at each participating school in turn. We have taken inspiration from these demonstrations. We have tried out the same methods at our own schools. Experiences have been reported back to the group and evaluated. Each partner school have hosted one Transnational Project Meeting or Learning, teaching, training activities, with all partner school participating. Each partner has presented two new learning concepts. Experiences have been reported back to the group and evaluated.

Event sequense was always about the same: Before Transnational project meeting or Learning, teaching, training activities the hosting school sent out information about the methods that were presented. Some of the hosting schools also sent pre-tasks to participant schools. At the project meetings we always had welcome and starting occasion, introduction, presentation and debate of methods, an implementation plan of the new method at other schools, a feedback session, planning for next meeting and farewell. After project meetings we gave different presentations of new methods e.g. at teacher conferences, in front of parents and other audience, we had trial runs with demonstrated methods at all schools, we exchanged teachers’ and students’ experiences, we shared our experiences and uploaded material from trials to our official website. Between the project meetings and learning, teaching and training activities we always had ongoing communication between partner schools about method adaptations and trial runs.

The last six months were quite complicated because of Covid-19 virus. We made an application for an extension of the project period but unfortunately no extension was granted. That’s why we had to accept that our project may not achieve its full potential due to circumstances.

Due to pandemic situation we still need to do some tasks to complete our project. We can never bring this project to an end as we thought before Corona pandemic, but there are still some things to do:
– As soon as the Corona situation is better, the trial runs of concepts presented in Barcelona can be performed, presented and compared;
– We will never fulfil one Learning, teaching, training activities in Mantova and one Transnational Project Meeting in Almada but we will continue our communication via WhatsApp, e-mail and telephone to ensure the use and sustainability of the project’s methods.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 153295 Eur

Project Coordinator

Keravanjoen koulu & Country: FI

Project Partners

• Östra reals gymnasium
• Colégio Campo de Flores
• Öffentliches Gymnasium der Stiftung “Theresianische Akademie”
• Liceo Classico Virgilio Mantova
• Institut Poeta Maragall
• Zespol Szkol Sportowych i Ogolnoksztalcacych