Small Countries Strong Cultures Erasmus Project

Project Title

Small Countries Strong Cultures

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: EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy; Teaching and learning of foreign languages; Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage

Project Summary

Who are we? Where do we come from? What defines our local, regional and national identities? SMALL COUNTRIES STRONG CULTURES is a project which aims to help young people explore these questions within the wider context of democracy and democratic participation. Starting with our common roots of Celtic and Roman heritage, we will examine how each country has been influenced by these. 2019 is UN Year of Indigenous Languages; this project will encourage participants to explore the place of their local languages (Flemish, Slovenian, Scots, Gaelic) within the Indo-European group of languages and to consider their place in a world where Global English dominates. 2019 is also the Year of Democratic Participation. Participants will explore the development of democracy in the European context and will look at what this means to them in their schools and in the wider environment. Comparing and contrasting the historical contexts of the countries in this project will help participants to understand the routes that each has taken towards democracy: Slovenia and Scotland (re)gained their own parliaments at the end of the 20th Century, Belgium has seven different parliaments. Each country was once part of a large empire and this resonates even today. Small Countries Strong Cultures will encourage young people to value their own cultures and to see how they fit into a wider European framework. The project also aims to emphasise the importance of playing an active part in the democratic process, therefore addressing voter apathy. We believe this to be of vital importance given the changing dynamics in Europe today. Staff and pupils from three schools in Belgium, Slovenia and the UK (Scotland) will take part in this project. In total, we expect over 1000 young people to be exposed to the Erasmus experience through project activities. In each school there will be a core group of pupils and staff directly involved in the management and implementation of the project. Identity and democracy will be examined through a range of activities including historical research, language lessons, debates and discussions, art and design workshops, ICT workshops, photography and film-making, storytelling and song-writing, cooking, etc. Visits to institutions and parliaments and talks given by external speakers will be important in giving participants an overview of each other’s democratic systems. Each mobility will investigate topics which underpin the project’s main themes. The joint staff training mobilities are an important aspect of this too, as they give teachers the opportunity to exchange good practice by seeing it in action in partner schools. A range of methodologies will be integrated into the delivery of the project and activities and methodologies will be chosen appropriate to each activity. Participants will use research methods to examine the impact of ancient civilisations on our lives today; peer-to-peer teaching will improve ICT skills within the group; debating and discussion will allow pupils to develop their critical thinking skills. Classroom learning and teaching will give pupils the basic knowledge and skills that they need to complete tasks and collaborative learning in the virtual world will be encouraged to allow pupils to exchange ideas. Face-to-face meetings are important as mobilities put everything into a real-life context and allow participants to develop their linguistic and cultural competences. The tangible results of this project will include a perpetual calendar showcasing the highlights of the collaborative work, films and videos, music recordings, lesson plans and teaching materials for the delivery of politics and democracy lessons, a recipe book, and an Erasmus song and tartan. The outcomes will be available in English and in the partner languages. The wider impact of this project will be improved linguistic competence, better ICT skills and digital literacy, a clearer understanding of European cultural heritage and enhanced critical thinking competences. Most importantly, at the end of this project, participants should have a clear understanding of their rights and responsibilities as members of a democratic society.This project will bring longer term benefits to the participants. Further education establishments and employers value the competences that Erasmus students display: communication skills, adaptability, creativity and ‘can-do’ attitude, problem-solving aptitudes and openness to discovering new cultures. There will be a long-term impact in each of the schools, too. Strong collaborative partnerships between staff and management benefit pupils and the wider school communities long after the end of a project through the exchange of good practice and further joint activities which emerge from common interests and concerns. With a clear and informed understanding of the democratic process, participants in Small Countries Strong Cultures will be ready to play their part in the Europe they build.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 98490 Eur

Project Coordinator

Wellington School (Ayr) Ltd & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Zavod sv. Stanislava
• Sint-Jozefscollege