Stories without borders/Histoires sans frontières Erasmus Project

Project Title

Stories without borders/Histoires sans frontières

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: Integration of refugees; Migrants’ issues

Project Summary

The 9-year-old ongoing exchange program between Nannestad VGS and Lycee Simone Veil’s initial aim was to create a transnational learning environment for foreign language learning. Its goal has evolved towards working together in the target language on a common project. In recent years, the two schools have worked together on the topic of climate change and the environment, comparing the policies of the two countries on different issues: local initiatives, tackling the problem of plastic pollution in the ocean and looking at sustainable energy sources and means of transport. The themes are chosen by the participating students, a factor which allows them to take pride in their research and presentation and increases their motivation.

In the light of the current refugee crisis and the rise of immigration hostile parties in most of Europe, the project chosen for the year 2020-2021 will focus on a burning issue that affects us all: migration and the integration of refugees. Unlike the previous projects, it will not only involve the students carrying out research before the exchange visits regarding the different impacts of migration in their countries (historical, linguistic, cultural, etc.), but it will also bring the students to conduct, film and record interviews with migrants themselves on their visits to Norway and France in the target language. This brings an interactive aspect to the findings on their research that they are to present to the other school.

The project involves 44 students: 24 from France and 20 from Norway. eTwinning will be used as a transnational learning platform on which the students will initially make contact and then exchange ideas. Sway will be used for two different projects: first the joint project on the different impacts of migration which all the participating students will present orally during the Norwegians’ visit to France, then to record the experiences of the students themselves in the country visited and the testimonies of the migrants there. The visits to the different places in France and Norway will allow the students to appreciate the contribution of migrants and the importance of democracy.

Both schools as a whole will benefit from this project. The students attend different classes which enables them to communicate with those who are not directly involved. During the exchange, there will be regular updates on the school websites. In the end, the students’ feedback is taken into account in order to improve on the exchange program and the results of the project undertaken: the research on different aspects of migration and the filmed testimonies of migrants will be made available on the school website and shown on the schools’ Open Days.

The mobility of the students will play a key role in the project this year as the students’ own experience of living with a host family in a foreign country will help them to understand albeit in a limited way the upheaval of a refugee who has had to leave everything to settle in a foreign land. The ultimate goal is not only to improve the students’ linguistic skills but also to increase their empathy and understanding of the issue of migration and the importance of cooperation between people from different countries. The visits they make in the foreign countries and the talks from different organizations they will hear will contribute to their understanding.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 32136 Eur

Project Coordinator

Nannestad videregående skole & Country: NO

Project Partners

• Lycée Simone Veil