The Right to be Different in a European Context Erasmus Project

Project Title

The Right to be Different in a European Context

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: Inclusion – equity; Teaching and learning of foreign languages; EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy

Project Summary

The aim of the project “The Right to be Different in a European Context” was focused on diversity in the multicultural classroom whereas diversity is not only about obvious visible differences that everyone can see (e.g. age, gender, ethnicity) but also invisible differences. This means that as teachers we recognise that people are different in many ways and by understanding, valuing and managing these differences effectively, we all (teachers and students) will benefit.
Most importantly a classroom community that is aware of and embraces its own diversity is likely to engender more productive learning.
Our project – including 5 countries – wants to focus on this issue, arousing awareness among teachers and students. Through discussions, exchange of personal experiences and good practices we would like to introduce new methods of teaching to our multicultural classes to encourage our students to develop their creativity also in a European perspective. All this will help our students become mature, help them make their own decisions and find paths to future solutions. What is more, thanks to materials produced by our project, we will be able to spread our ideas and plans internationally, giving access of our results to other teachers facing issues of integration, hopefully this will ensure a wider acceptance not only of minority ethnic groups but also of all those who are considered different.
The project has been looked upon as developing the whole school curriculum in a variety of ways:
– Modern Foreign Languages: It is a useful resource for pupils to learn basic phrases in a different language and widen their European cultural awareness. English has been the common language and English was used in all the activities of the project. Pupils also developed their linguistic skills through communication via internet and personal contacts during pupils visits.
– Maths: Questionnaires were prepared and analysed in the Maths lessons. The results were collated into bar charts and pie charts for all pupils to see.
– Art: Pupils designed a logo which associated with the project’s topic. They also designed a poster campaign to raise awareness on the topic.
Pupils presented their work and pictures of visits in original, captivating and engaging ways.
– ICT: The logos of each country were finally designed into a common logo, a DVD was edited and modified in the ICT lessons. Pupils also presented work on software such as PowerPoint, Publisher and Photoshop by researching effectively using the Internet. They were familiar with technological communication programs and devices such as interactive whiteboard, e-mail, Skype, whatsapp, facebook and e-twinning.
– Geography, History and Social Science: Classes learned about the geographical features and history of each nation to broaden their horizons and cultural awareness.
The methodology used in the project, was laded from the field of social science and based on two methods: the questionnaire and the interview.
Pupils (about 80 for each school), teachers (about 20 for each school) and staff (about 10), taking part in the project, recognized the importance of a multicultural Europe, in partnership countries in the empirical way and they gained the information on this theme with the use of different methods; by creating authentic materials to be used during lessons; increasing their faculties of speech within the range of English; participating more actively in the social life of their school and the city ; promoting their culture and identity in other European countries; learning to gain the objective information, assuming an attitude to it and if needed to help.

The long-term advantages at the end of the realization of the project are: greater consciousness and understanding the social, lingual and cultural diversity thanks to the experience gained in the project in contact with other cultures; better linguistic communicability of the participants of the project; the greater consciousness of the effectiveness of actions of local communities; extending of the didactic base of schools into materials needed to make lessons of history, civics, literature and English in a more attractive and effective way.
The publication of results and work produced in this project on school websites, e-twinning and the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform will inspire people who are interested in developing their own international projects.
We plan to organize meetings or conferences with local schools to implement the results and experience of the project even in the years to come, hopefully to incentivize future collaborations with new partners for new projects. Moreover, during all the open doors at our schools, the outcomes of the project will be illustrated to newcomers.
Participating countries will continue to maintain links between each other on the internet and common website after the project has ended. They will discuss the long term impacts of the project relating to the objectives identified earlier.
Our aspiration as a group is to develop lifelong links between each other to encourage annual exchange visits.

Project Website

https://www.matteicaserta.edu.it/erasmus/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 49937,36 Eur

Project Coordinator

ISISS E MATTEI & Country: IT

Project Partners

• 120 Primary School “G.S.Rakovski”
• Marnix College
• 4th General Lyceum Serres
• Szkola Podstawowa nr 5 im. Krola Jana III Sobieskiego