H.E.L.P.: The Truth Erasmus Project

Project Title

H.E.L.P.: The Truth

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; ICT – new technologies – digital competences

Project Summary

The recognition of the truth (in news) is a basic requirement for proper (political) action.
A greater danger comes from digitally distributed news whose authorship, if at all, is difficult to determine and whose reach is many times higher than that of the print media. Particularly explosive is the fact that especially young people get their information almost exclusively from the Internet.
To recognize the truth becomes a central competence for the politically judging person. It is crucial for the functioning of democratic systems.
In many places, the threat to the truth becomes visible: in a small sense, for example, when students researching to do schoolwork can no longer reliably decide which sources can be used and which statements are ideologically undecorated. On the whole, when heads of state explain inconvenient truths to “fake news” and at the same time declare untruths to alternative facts.
Unfortunately, the above mentioned action field is only slowly entering the curricula of the schools. Media education is seen more as an accessory of the time-table, this probably also because the importance of misinformation from the Internet (for political decisions) has only recently received increased attention. To make matters worse, the technical equipment and facilities at some schools do not do justice to the problem.
With students from all over Europe, this project wants to re-examine the concept of truth in the digital age, in order to work out materials for students, which are used in the evaluation of the truth content of information from the Internet, resp. the social networks.
The composition of the partners is a prime example of “unity in diversity”; thus they geographically reach from the extreme west to the extreme east and from the extreme south to the extreme north of the EU. Even in terms of age, the span could hardly be larger. Thus, with the 2nd Primary School of Pefka, a school with very young students (6 to 12 years), while the Mosjøen videregående skole has comparatively old students (16 to 19 years).
The partners hope for results that appeal equally to all nations and age groups.
Unfortunately, due to a lack of space, the individual competencies can not be discussed in more detail here.
The teacher teams of the partners and the involved students work continuously over 2 years on the results. Respective milestones in the work are five international meetings (transnational training, teaching and learning activities), on which results are evaluated and the conditions for further discussion of the topic are created. After a theoretical discussion about the concept of truth on the basis of national perspectives, the scientific concept of truth based on objective measurement / observation is discussed in an experimental event.
Research tasks serve as the basis for the development of a search guide for students.
The guide is the starting point for the investigation of “fake news”. In a short play the students can express their experiences / opinions on this topic. A workshop in a newspaper editorial office should enable the students to write a guide to dealing with “fake news”.
All results are translated into English and into the language of all project participants.
The project focuses on student orientation. The students should start with their (nationally special) experiences on the topic of truth to work on the topic. All results / presentations should come mainly from students; Of course, they will be assisted by the teacher teams.
In support of Szkoła Podstawowa im. Janusza Korczaka w Łowinku all organizationally necessary steps and forms are logged. And the teacher teams will use this to compile a compendium of material to conduct international exchanges – also in their own interest. This will be available in the partner schools and online for other teachers.
The most important results will be the research guide and the guide to dealing with “fake news”. These will be printed and used as a support for students in the partner schools in the future, thus achieving a sustainable impact of the project. The online publication of these documents (with CC license) should also offer other schools the possibility to use.
Further results include numerous presentations, which may be applicable in individual subjects and a short play, which can be performed at school ceremonies (e.g. the cultural mix evening of the Hellweg-Schule).
Teacher teams are also working on material that will reduce the workload for international exchanges. This material should be made available to the teachers of the partner schools and online.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 119222 Eur

Project Coordinator

Hellweg-Schule & Country: DE

Project Partners

• Agrupamento de Escolas Gil Eanes
• 2st PRIMARY SCHOOL OF PEFKA
• Szkola Podstawowa w Lowinku
• Mosjøen videregående skole