Digital Tales about Home Erasmus Project

Project Title

Digital Tales about Home

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 Schools Only

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: ICT – new technologies – digital competences; International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation; Migrants’ issues

Project Summary

1. Context / background of the project:

The flow of refugees to Europe and Germany, in particular, has brought about profound changes. The consequences of this caesura in the history of Germany became a close experience for the pupils as well as for the entire teaching staff of the school, when just before the autumn holidays of 2015 the gymnasium and the canteen were used to accommodate refugees in Lingen by the county of Emsland (Landkreis Emsland). Within just under 48 hours, both buildings were turned into an accommodation for refugees. Subsequently, pupils, parents and teachers offered assistance in accordance with the county. In addition, project days with the topic refugees were carried out at the request of the pupils. The students of the Gymnasium Georgianum were made more aware of the issue by the above-mentioned events. They felt a need to learn about the refugees’ homeland. The two partner schools also have experience with this problem.

2. Goal of the project:

The project had the focus on “Heimat” (home, homeland, patria, casa). In the face of the refugee crisis, the question what is home becomes urgent. This is true for those who have a home as well as for those who are looking for a new home. As a first step the participants were asked what home actually meant to them. The participants talked about their home by means of the technical and creative possibilities of digital storytelling which they learned to use for this purpose. It was by looking at their own home, that the topic of refugees was discussed. Thus, by taking the self-evident presence of their own home-country into consideration and rediscovering it, the participants were sensitized to the situation of the refugees. As a result, all participants developed a new awareness of what home means in today’s world. This new awareness contributed to a differentiated assessment of the situation of refugees by the participants. This also confronted the participants’ surrounding (family, circle of friends, classmates, etc.) with this issue who then also had to deal with it. Social media played an important role during this process.

3. Methodology in the implementation of the project

The central methodological approach can be called cross-medial practical aesthetics as cultural and social practice. Practical aesthetics seeks to gain knowledge about the world in a productive way. The production of digital media played a central role here. Producing these media forced the makers to develop an attitude towards their environment and the people living in it, as well as the problems there. Making a film in this sense exposed the participants to new experiences, to learn something, and to develop as a person.
A key tool in this was the smart-phone as a means of “digital storytelling”. The participants explored and got to know their own home and told about it in short digital stories using their smart-phones. This approach offered an opportunity for refugees to present their former home and also explore their new home.
Thus this project gave the opportunity to get to know one´s own culture as well as the foreign culture. It served to improve language skills as well as digital and cinematic skills in the framework of digital storytelling.

4. Number and profile of the participants:

Young people aged between 16 and 18 were addressed (approximately 120). From the students addressed at this age problems like the refugee problem were consciously perceived and reflected. Moreover, the foreign language abilities and the ability to self-organization as well as teamwork has already been developed to a degree necessary for carrying out the project.

5. Description of the activities:

Preparatory activities on the spot (information of the colleagues and parents, selection of the participating pupils, information of the local press and information on the school website):
– first project meeting in Lingen to prepare the project
– mindmapping, first draft, screenplay and storyboard about the films
– workshops about the production of smart-phone films
– production of the films on the theme of home
– project meetings in Lingen, Mezoberény and Lucca
– events in the local cinema for presentation and discussion
– further cross-national project meetings
– evaluating measures
– final meeting in Lucca

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 67650 Eur

Project Coordinator

Gymnasium Georgianum & Country: DE

Project Partners

• LICEO ARTISTICO MUSICALE “A. PASSAGLIA”
• Mezöberényi Petöfi Sándor Evangélikus Általános Iskola, Gimnázium és Kollégium