From peer to peer: European schools cooperating to be bullying-free Erasmus Project

Project Title

From peer to peer: European schools cooperating to be bullying-free

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 school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2016

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Inclusion – equity; Quality Improvement Institutions and/or methods (incl. school development); Early School Leaving / combating failure in education

Project Summary

Bullying and cyberbullying also occur beyond the school setting. The school is not the cause or the only place where it takes place, but the causes can be found in the various contexts in which life goes on during childhood and adolescence, such as family, school or neighborhood. That is why it was necessary for the From Peer to Peer project approach to be community, territorial and integral, if we wanted to act with coherence and effectiveness.

The issues of bullying, violent relationships or disabling inside and outside schools leaked as cases specific in the education departments, and in other municipal areas of the different territories of the EU. In this sense, the European Union itself is worried about this problem and in 2013 adopted a declaration calling for a European day against bullying. However, in most cases of bullying, there is a situation in the schools of non-recognition, by passivity to name, generates a certain silence and justification for personal characteristics of those involved at all levels. This became a priority need on which to act.

The loss of confidence in educational institutions to resolve the conflicts generated by the coexistence with the “different” (the martest, the fattest, the immigrant, the non-member of my group, etc.) led us to consider the need , if we wanted to make a significant change, to face this problem from a territorial (local, municipal, regional, national, European) and preventive approach, transcending the doors of each of the schools and generating a culture of teamwork and cooperation between all the parties involved. In this sense, it was necessary that there was cooperation at all levels, working with direct and indirect recipients. On the one hand, schoolchildren of different ages, families, teachers and local community, which have cooperated locally, and in each of the partner countries (Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Hungary, Romania and Greece), in the execution of the activities proposed in the project, and on the other hand, a cooperation at the international level, where entities of different nature have come to collaborate, such as town halls, schools, universities, associations of educational and research centers, regional governments and formative entities of non-formal training. In this sense, a cooperation was proposed at two levels, which have worked in an interrelated manner, where the conclusions and progress that have been generated at the international level have been likewise, applied at the local level through workshops, conferences, meetings, pilot projects, etc.

From this maquila, cooperation at the international level has worked as a source of good practices, ideas and collaborative learning among the seven project partners, and as a supervisor of the activities that have been carried out at the local level, evaluating the initiatives, their success and the possible points to improve.

The objectives established for the project have been:

-Know first hand how the phenomenon of bullying is being managed in other European countries.
-Compare the situation of school coexistence in centers of different countries.
-Apply, as far as possible, the experiences learned in our centers.
-Promote a positive and socializing education.
-Improve school coexistence.
-Contribute to the eradication of all types of violence in childhood.
-Promote interdisciplinary and multicultural training for teachers and professionals in the field of education.
-Make a baseline study of the phenomenon and its management in the different target territories.
-To compile the best practices in different intellectual products that serve as a basis for pedagogical material at the level
European.
-Create a work methodology based on the best practices found at European level and applicable in the centers
school
-Create pedagogical material that improves the capacity and the abilities of the teaching staff in the management of bullying, according to the
new technologies and communication channels.
-Exchange of experiences of application of the program

As a result of international cooperation, the most important activities carried out have been:

– The generation of an analysis on the situation of bullying in Europe and in the different participating countries, whose results have been reflected in various infographics;
– The creation of a MOOC (Free Online and Massive Courses) that gathers the good practices of the partners on the subject, so that they can be transferred to other entities and professionals from all over Europe.
– Completion of a specialized course in Leuven (Belgium) where representatives of partner organizations could deepen on the subject.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 117785 Eur

Project Coordinator

Ayuntamiento de Ibi & Country: ES

Project Partners

• UNIVERSIDADE DE COIMBRA
• Wesley János Óvoda, Általános Iskola, Szakiskola és Gimnázium
• INSPECTORATUL SCOLAR JUDETEAN ARAD
• UC LEUVEN
• ISTITUTO COMPRENSIVO STATALE B. LORENZI FUMANE VR
• ACTION SYNERGY SA