Improvement of Practices for All – Critical Spirit Erasmus Project

Project Title

Improvement of Practices for All – Critical Spirit

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 : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2016

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy; Pedagogy and didactics; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

IPA Critical Spirit is a project that has two goals:

– The importance of developing critical thinking

– The importance of reflection and transformation of pedagogical actions

This project brings together 9 partners from 5 different countries from the world of education:
– 3 training institutes (Helmo-BE, Thomas More-BE, ICT-FR)
– 2 secondary schools (Georg-Klingenberg-schule-GE, SOU Konstantin Konstantinov-BU)
– 4 elementary schools (Ecole Fondamentale Libre de Chênée-BE, Ecole Sainte Thérèse-BE, Ecole Immaculée conception-FR, CEIP La Pasada-SP)

The different audiences affected by this partnership were: students, teachers and trainers.
At the start of this project, there is a real need for all the actors to be able to question themselves, to take a step back from the different realities at the regional, national and European levels.
At a time of societal questions concerning immigration, the increased development of new technologies, climate change, and democracies that sway and/or question, it seemed important to us to allow the development of the critical spirit to all stakeholders.
The whole process has been divided into two actions;
– on one hand the realization of pedagogical devices elaborated during the learning and training activities between trainers, teachers, students from different institutions
– on the other hand, throughout the project, the realization of a path of reflection on the evolution of one’s own critical thinking through experimentation, adjustment, … devices created and implemented within contexts different institutions
All the partners met during 5 learning and training activities spread over the three years, each activity having a different entry point (thematic, methodological, others).
Each receiving partner illustrated the gateway through training, field visits and observations. During the meetings the partners were invited to build devices centered on the “entry door between partners (students-teachers-trainer, different generations, different country).

November 2016 Belgium: Memory Tools Mental Management “One can not develop one’s critical mind without knowledge of the world ….”

November 2017 Bulgaria: Methodology: suggestopedy / learning in a context “The critical spirit takes its meaning in a culture, in a societal, cultural, generational life … Taking into account the learning and context of these are conditions for the development of critical thinking among learners… ”

March 2017 Spain: Thematic: Environment “Reality of the partner, this theme has met the needs and challenges of our time …”

March 2018 France: Values, methodology, project: Thinking plural – emancipation.
“As we move forward, the need to question in our practices and our beliefs the notion of critical thinking around cultural and communicative objects has proved indispensable …”

November 2018 Germany Theme: New technologies
“In a digital and virtual world, take the time to question all information, actions that are just a click away. A necessity …”

At the last meeting in May 2019 in Belgium, the partnership decided to structure its reflexive path and to restore it.
Concretely, two times:
– the first devoted to the dissemination of devices, videos, resources via conferences and workshops shared devices
– the second devoted to a synthesis work accompanied by Bruno Derbaix, (Author of the book “For a civic school, live the school fully”, his work is oriented towards a more sincerely citizen education in schools and elsewhere. In this fight, sociologist and philosopher, professor of religions and comparative beliefs, coach and accompanist, expert, active member of the association “The ambassadors of citizen expression”. This work was done between partners and returned during an open conference by Bruno Derbaix.

The result is materialized by the website: IPA-ERASMUS.WIXSITE.COM/MONSITE including built devices, traces, illustrations in the form of videos and writings.
The notion of critical thinking is taken up in institutions within the various educational paths intended for learners.
The teacher-trainers were able to question themselves individually and collectively about their practice, their belief to be critical of their posture in the face of a changing world, to profiles of today’s students.
We leave with more questions and questions … it opens other possibilities.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 177330 Eur

Project Coordinator

Centre Scolaire Saint-François d’Assise Sainte-Thérèse ANS & Country: BE

Project Partners

• THOMAS MORE MECHELEN-ANTWERPEN
• OGEC Ecole Immaculée Conception
• Collectif pour la Promotion de l’Animation Jeunesse-Enfance
• Georg-Klingenberg-Schule
• Haute Ecole Libre Mosane
• Institut Catholique de Toulouse
• école primaire libre de Chênée