A European Heritage of the Past, Present, and Future Erasmus Project

Project Title

A European Heritage of the Past, Present, and Future

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 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage; Environment and climate change; Creativity and culture

Project Summary

*Context of the project*
What is ‘Europe’? What is ‘heritage’? And why is it relevant?
For students, these can be rather theoretical and not very tangible questions. However, when taking a closer look at our immediate surroundings, it is possible to discover very concrete answers all around us. They are ingrained in our cityscapes, we walk past them every day without hardly ever taking note of them: They are the buildings we live in, we work in, we go to school in; they are the buildings tourists take pictures of – and which we as locals have not looked at twice.
Taking buildings, taking architecture as a starting point, the project embarked on a European journey through time and travels to a number of different countries. During this journey, students discovered examples of culture, art, literature – all linked to architecture. Students also discovered connections between the fine arts and sciences, thus joining these two fields which are often seen as contrasts.

*Project’s objectives*
By first looking at local examples and then comparing these with examples from the partner countries, students discovered historic and current trends that have quite literally shaped Europe. They understood that cooperation in many fields (e.g. the arts and the sciences) has spanned across the European continent for centuries. Often enough, people tend to view their world defined by clear dichotomies of the Self and the Other. In the case of architecture, however, it is all one. Thus, it is possible to talk of a truly “European Heritage” – a heritage that unites people from all over Europe, showing common roots, interests & needs. Especially for younger students, this approach made it easier to answer the question “What is Europe?”
Major objectives of the project lay in the promotion of a common European identity & the promotion of skills in the STEM area.

*Activities*
We used a variety of different activities & methods over the 1.5 year duration of the project. All semesters had individual topics that over time provided a detailed picture of the topic. Quotes by famous architects about architecture from the different project countries were set as each semester’s topic. The semesters had been laid out in such a way that they also followed a timeline – from past to present. The project was stopped because of Covid-19. Thus the topic of “visions of the future” could not be covered. Students first looked at past examples of architecture & the literature, legends and artistic representation in connection with these. As the semesters progressed, the emphasis from history and art gradually shifted to sciences. However, all semesters provided activities and methods from all of these subjects – and many more.
Activities did not only focus on architecture, but also always incorporated the European idea. Be it implicitly, by discovering similarities in the different countries involved; be it explicitly, by looking at the work of the EU in conserving buildings of the past and in creating the future by supporting local developments.
Another underlying structuring principle is the ancient definition of architecture of “firmitas, utilitas, venustas” = Durability, Utility, Beauty. The aspect of durability again can be taken up by looking at buildings that have withstood time and lasted for centuries. The concept of beauty in architecture has changed continually over centuries – but does not vary that much in different countries all over Europe as there has been an ever growing exchange of ideas all over Europe. The principle of “utility” was to be covered in detail when looking at environmental aspects of architecture, when looking at sustainability (in the 4th semester which did not take place).

*Results*
In the course of the semesters, students moved from rather simple descriptions of examples of architecture (e.g. in presentation, printed posters, podcasts, statistics) to playful interaction with architecture (creation of their own games) to the envisioning & construction of architecture themselves (this latter point again was cancelled). They met with experts that provided them with input not only on architecture (for example in connection with the ERDF), but also on Europe, its workings and effects for EU citizens.

*Expected longer-term benefits*
– increased knowledge of local and European historic & cultural heritage
– awareness of a common & uniting European culture & heritage
– reinforcement of an informed, positive view of the EU
– Acquisition of a more varied knowledge of ICT skills (advanced skills when working with photos, audio and video files, DTP, …)
– raising of interest for STEM, connections between the fine arts & sciences
– raising interest in language learning: improving skills in English as a lingua franca & languages beyond
The positive effects of the Erasmus+ learning process are to be expected both with participating students and among fellow students, siblings & parents.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 92258 Eur

Project Coordinator

Werner-von-Siemens-Gymnasium & Country: DE

Project Partners

• Lycée Professionnel Jules Siegfried
• collège Théodore Rancy
• Zespol Szkolno -Przedszkolny w Braciejowce