Looking for Our European Identity Erasmus Project

Project Title

Looking for Our European Identity

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; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Social entrepreneurship / social innovation

Project Summary

In light of the difficulties that the European countries are experiencing right now in terms of cooperation and feeling interconnected, the main objective of this project is to explore Europe’s cultural heritage in order to enhance the feeling of unity despite national diversities. By learning about and especially by meeting other cultures in Europe, we wish to give both teachers and students a broader perspective on Europe, to strengthen their intercultural understanding, respect and tolerance and thus create a sense of solidarity beyond borders.
When working with cultural heritage, we will focus on fostering an innovative and entrepreneurial mindset among the students since this will provide them with important competences for their future life. Working in an active, creative and cooperative way will engage the students in the project in looking for our European identity.
Another important objective is to strengthen the professional development of the teachers in order to enhance the learning outcome of the students. The teachers will learn about teaching in other countries and will qualify their abilities in working with intercultural competences, language teaching, ICT and innovation and entrepreneurship. They will also become more skilled in transnational cooperation.
The main participants in the project will be 3-5 teachers and 24-30 students enrolled in international classes at each partner school. Apart from them, many students and teachers at each school will be involved both through presentations, exhibitions and visits in class. At each school there will be a coordinator who will be in charge of the project and of the international class and who will communicate and cooperate with the partner schools.
The students in the international classes will participate in the transnational trips, they will communicate with peers at the partner schools, and they will work with and learn about European cultural heritage. The pivotal point of the work with our cultural heritage will be different innovative tasks. During the project, the international students will do both innovative tasks at their own school and innovative tasks in international groups during the visits. All tasks will be about cultural heritage and will develop the cooperative and linguistic skills of the students. The work with innovation will build on a model from the Danish board of education which implies self-efficacy, action, creativity and a connection to the world around us.
Each partner school will be visited by students and teachers once during the project. If possible, the students will be privately accommodated in order to experience everyday life and local culture. They will visit important places of cultural heritage and experience cultural heritage in customs, food, art etc.
Apart from the trips with students, the teachers will meet for two training events. One with a course in eTwinning and one with a course in video-editing and blog design. Both courses will provide the teachers with useful skills in their work with the project. The events will also be used for coordination work and for getting to know each other better.
Besides the events, the school coordinators will communicate regularly through emails, drive, eTwinning and chatrooms in order to manage the project successfully. When writing the application, the coordinators have agreed upon a detailed work programme that describes all the activities in the project. They have also created a document describing the responsibilities of the different partner schools and an overview of both the local and the transnational innovative tasks. These documents will be an essential help in the management of the project.
Participating in this project will improve the linguistic, innovative, creative, digital and cooperative skills and competences of the students. It will foster knowledge about our European cultural heritage, critical thinking and more tolerance beyond borders. Finally, it will give them a better self-confidence and have a positive influence on their future as active citizens in a globalized world.
For the main participating teachers, the project will enhance their professional competences and their linguistic level, it will give them a broader perspective on other European cultures and educational systems, and they will become even more qualified in implementing international projects. All this will make them better teachers.
Other students and teachers at the schools will learn about European cultural heritage, they will meet foreign students and teachers, and they will get an opportunity to use English in an authentic way.
Students and teachers from other schools in the area will learn about European cultural heritage as well, and the project can inspire them to carry out international projects themselves.
The five partner schools in general will benefit a lot from the project since it will promote the schools as innovative and progressive in the local community.

Project Website

https://lookingforoureuropeanidentity.wordpress.com/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 157676 Eur

Project Coordinator

Hobro Søndre Skole & Country: DK

Project Partners

• Szkola Podstawowa nr 15 z Oddzialami Dwujezycznymi im. Alfreda Szklarsiego w Myslowicach
• Tamasi Beri Balogh Adam Katolikus Gimnazium, Kollegium, Altalanos Iskola es Ovoda
• Staatliche Realschule Hösbach
• IES Gómez-Moreno