The inner classroom reloaded: Motivation and concentration through non-formal learning Erasmus Project

Project Title

The inner classroom reloaded: Motivation and concentration through non-formal learning

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 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage; Pedagogy and didactics; Early School Leaving / combating failure in education

Project Summary

There are several factors that can interfere negatively or positively in the student’s learning process, from economic, social, affective, psychological, family related, to physical and mental factors. Likewise, another factor that can be determinant to hinder or facilitate students’ learning is related to the teaching performance. When teachers plan differentiated teaching strategies for the development of programmatic contents, aiming to motivate and arouse the interest of the student, they are encouraging the positive attitude and the concentration of students in the classroom, valuing their relationship with knowledge. The teaching work is very complex, it begins within the classroom, but goes much beyond it.

In this regard, we establish the following priorities for our project “THE INNER CLASSROOM RELOADED: Motivation and concentration through non-formal learning.”
Firstly, we include non-formal practices in schools which allow simultaneously the development of the students’ capacity of focus and attention, the capacity for emotional regulation, compassion and empathy, as well as the capacity for relaxation and well-being. This will be achieved through the introduction of Mindfulness in the school’s culture.
Secondly, we use new technologies to make eLearning/digitalization an integral part of teaching/learning methods, since they have a growing and fascinating impact on young people. Participating schools will pass on their experience of ICT tools with the aim of motivating students and boosting concentration, social interaction and the schools’ atmosphere which again will lead to better educational achievement.
Last but not least this project promotes the European dimension through cultural heritage like art, music and language. It is imperative that our students become aware of cultural diversity and of the importance of understanding distinct cultural realities. It’s the schools’ responsibility to open students’ minds towards different-minded and to educate them in tolerance and civic coexistence;

Three schools from Austria, Spain and Portugal will participate in this project. During the project, six transnational meetings will be organized. Three of these meetings will be short-term staff training events, while the others will be short-term students’ exchanges. Ten pupils of each school will attend each exchange, which is a total of 60 pupils. Two teachers per school will participate in each short term staff event. Participants will be selected taking into account their profile and involvement in the project.

The short-term staff training events will focus on the three major priorities of the project, which are Mindfulness and Positive discipline, eTwinning and ICT tools in order to pass on the expertise of each school to teachers of partner schools.Teachers will have the opportunity of job-shadowing in order to share best practices, get objective feedback on activities developed, and to implement best practice examples in their own teaching.

At each students’ short-term exchange, pupils experience each schools’ non-formal teaching and learning activities. Daily practices of non-formal learning methods (mindfulness, positive discipline, eLearning) will be implemented by both the visitors and the local students. Likewise, visitors will participate in workshops in art, music and culinary and will get to know aspects of cultural heritage of each country. Along with this school activities and also in the sense of promoting our cultural heritage, we will carry out guided study visits to the surrounding areas of the school.

Since cultural heritage forms the background of the project, it is essential that all students work together in multicultural teams using methods of non-formal education in order to achieve the objectives established for the implementation of the project.

All the teachers involved in the project will learn to include new practices of concentration, inverted teaching and the use of digital media in their teaching activity, to cooperate and to share good practices, with the aim of having a positive impact on schools, which will become an added value for all members of the educational community. Throughout the project, teachers create booklets with methods in non-formal teaching which will be shared as teaching tools.
Non-formal teaching methods will create a positive study environment which positively affects the students’ concentration. This guarantees better skills and competences for the students’ careers and lowers early drop-out rates. At last, members of the exchange will be qualified to better handle and manage future changes with the help of experiences and resources gained during the project cycle.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 88934 Eur

Project Coordinator

NMS Lebring-St. Margarethen & Country: AT

Project Partners

• IES El Parador
• Escola Básica e Secundária de Canelas