Promoting social, emotional and physical wellbeing Erasmus Project

Project Title

Promoting social, emotional and physical wellbeing

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 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation; Health and wellbeing; Creativity and culture

Project Summary

The project “Promoting social, emotional and physical wellbeing” is a two-year academic program with objectives that are transversal in many subjects and fields. Throughout the project, all the participating schools handle and contribute different aspects to the topic of wellbeing depending on their interest and earlier experiences with the topic. There is no doubt that wellbeing is important since it allows us to feel emotions like happiness, contentment, curiosity, satisfaction – all of which help us function well in the world and lead our lives to their fullest. Teenagers with strong physical and mental wellbeing are able to manage their emotions, enjoy positive relationships with friends and family, apply themselves at school, participate in activities that interest them and, finally, have optimism about the future. Unfortunately, the current research shows that 90% of adolescents increased their subjective stress levels in the past three years. It shows that girls often up to very often feel overwhelmed (72%) compared to boys (49%). Physical symptoms that occur are often headaches and insomnia. Mental symptoms relate to dissatisfaction and tension. Reasons that lead to the symptoms are different: overuse of smartphones, poor diet, and low physical activity, information overload, fake news, poor social skills. That all can lead to social exclusion and segregation in the schools.
In this project, we aim at helping our teenage students to understand the importance of reaching their personal physical and mental wellbeing and we want to provide them with the instruments to do it. The long-term objective of our project is to encourage the development of “social and intercultural competences“ and help the pupils to use their knowledge to make the correct choices in the present for a better future. This is linked to the priority of social inclusion by supporting pupils to live by shared values, equality, social inclusion, diversity, and non-discrimination. The project will also foster students’ development of social and intercultural competences, critical thinking, media literacy, healthy choices in everyday life and improves their future employability, socio-educational and personal development.

To achieve the objectives there will be 5 short-term student exchanges for all the participating schools, that each one of them will host a five-day-long program that will teach pupils one aspect of wellbeing. The aspects to be discovered have been agreed by participants based on their earlier experience with the topic. The aspects of wellbeing that exchange programs offer will be:
* healthy and sustainable food choices;
* the importance of physical activity in our wellbeing;
* social media and its influence on mental health and school community;
* facing challenges through resilience;
* Self-awareness, critical thinking.

We would like our students to be the protagonist of their learning and gaining their own “know-how”. The expected results of the project will be measured on surveys that will be done among participants (pupils and teachers) before and after every exchange. The expected result of the project are:
– Raise participants’ skills and knowledge about healthy food choices. The project will give them training on the relationship between eating patterns or food-related habits not only with health effects but also with respect to environmental concern.
– Raise participants’ knowledge of the importance of physical activity in their wellbeing. The concept of “School on move” that is used in Estonia will be introduced to all participants, which will give good tips and tools that help pupils and teachers be more physically active throughout the school day.
– Teach participants´skills and knowledge by giving them training on how to handle stress and pressure. Participants will learn how to be able to search actively and problem-oriented for causes and solutions in the course of life
-Raise pupils social competences by learning different methods, games, and activities (in experience education or social learning)
– Raise parental awareness and engagement about the wellbeing of their children. Indeed, parental engagement can play a vital role in helping children develop healthy life habits.
– The workshops/activities held will urge the participants to adopt a more critical approach to the information when they come across online.
– Produce changes in participants’ attitudes toward their own responsibilities and choices concerning their wellbeing.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 114276 Eur

Project Coordinator

Pärnu Ülejõe Põhikool & Country: EE

Project Partners

• Liceo Ginnasio Statale “Luigi Galvani”
• IES JOSE DE RIBERA
• Öffentlich-Stiftisches Gymnasium Bethel
• Liceo Galilei