DISCOVERING THE NATURE TREASURES OF CHIOS AND CYPRUS ISLANDS Erasmus Project

Project Title

DISCOVERING THE NATURE TREASURES OF CHIOS AND CYPRUS ISLANDS

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: Social/environmental responsibility of educational institutions; Creativity and culture; Pedagogy and didactics

Project Summary

High quality early childhood education is a strong prevention measure to school failure and early school learning and therefore, the professional development of preschool teachers is a significant priority. As teachers, we wish to collaborate and learn from colleagues from other countries. The observation and active participation of teachers through the Erasmus program constituted a unique intercultural experience as apart from the exchange of experiences, participants had the chance to observe how the environment of each island is related to the development of local culture.
Teachers consider children’s awareness on environmental issues as a top priority and thus, schools collaborated through the implementation of an environmental program titled “Discovering the nature treasures of Chios and Cyprus Islands”. The participants co-designed the program which was implemented at the 1st Kindergarten school of Agios Minas (7 teachers & 48 children 4-6 years old) in Chios-Greece, and the 8th Public Kindergarten of Pafos (5 teachers & 100 children 3-6 year-old) in Cyprus.
The objectives of the program were related to the professional development of teachers, the upgrading of students’ learning experiences (open learning activities in authentic contexts, digital communication of students), the promotion of innovative learning practices (teaching English with Clil method, outdoor classroom, chairs of conflict resolution and emotion map ) and instructional strategies (learning centers) and the exchange of information in relation to the way the two countries handle and manage sustainable development.
The objectives were achieved through the discussion and exchange of ideas among teachers, by observing other colleagues’ teaching practices, by participating in in-service training seminars and programs organized by the environmental centers of both countries and through collaborative activities of students’ using digital tools.
The assessment of outcomes included a).teachers’ perspectives concerning the impact of the program on their professional development b) children’s attitudes and knowledge related to the protection of the islands’ diverse plants c) children’s perspectives on the collaborative experience of working with children from another school and their emotions during programme implementation and d) parents perspectives on the impact the programme had on their children.. For this purpose, questionnaires and interviews were collected. The dissemination of findings was achieved through twinspace platform and schools’ websites and through video presentation for parents. Moreover, the publication of a book presenting the program is completed which will be presented to teachers in a special conference.
The program contributed significantly to the development of the two organizations and the outcomes will be used after the completion of the study. The added value of the implemented activities will have a long term impact on the quality of education offered to the preschool age children in Chios and Cyprus and will assist in developing future collaborations with teachers from other countries.

Project Website

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/eac/mobility/systemLayers/5_FE/dist/index.html#/project/228599/report/draft/262260/edit/tab/1

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 15694,5 Eur

Project Coordinator

1o NHPIAGOGEIO AGIOY MHNA-NEOCHORIOY-KOUTSOURADEIOS SXOLH & Country: EL

Project Partners

• NIPIAGOGEIO PAFOU 8-ANAVARGOU
• Nipiagogeio Pafou A