RESPECT 4 DIVERSITY, DIVERSITY 4 RESPECT Erasmus Project

Project Title

RESPECT 4 DIVERSITY, DIVERSITY 4 RESPECT

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: EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy; Creativity and culture; Gender equality / equal opportunities

Project Summary

Respect 4 Diversity, Diversity 4 Respect was born out of the need to educate our young people in an ever-changing society, where principles that were once a given are now being challenged with severe right-wing politics, favouring Xenophobia, homophobia and suppressing the vulnerable in our societies. We have seen how the Brexit has made the UK government consider removing EU citizens from its country, something that has never happened before in the EU since its inception after the Second World War.

“Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world,” as Nelson Mandela once said. We intend to ensure that our pupils who take part in this project learn to respect Different Individuals Valuing Each other Regardless of Skin, Intellect, Talent or Years and RESPECT the similarities in all of us in Religion, Ethnicity, Sexuality/gender, Personal disability, Elderly, Culture and Tradition.

In this project, we brought our pupils from Spain, England and the Netherlands face-to-face with members of the community in the three countries during short term exchanges. The exposure helped the pupils to understand the very principles of respect and compassion for these individuals/groups and as we had imagined, it challenged any prejudice the groups originally had. During the week in each country, the pupils had the opportunity to get to know what it is like to walk in the shoes of one of these people. On the penultimate day of the mobilities, the pupils used the arts to perform what they had learnt in their groups, through dance, music, drama or whatever form of expression the pupils wished to use. These performances took place in front of local dignitaries and decision-makers in a bid to promote the acceptance of these groups in our society. With news reports made and a vlog created, an e-magazine and a newspaper, we hoped that the message about our project will travel far and wide and become a sustainable mini-project in all of the schools, long after the exchanges have finished.

In addition, our pupils will have honed lots of interpersonal competencies in working with fellow pupils from the different countries alongside communicating with the minority groups. The students had to be innovative to maximise the opportunity of information technology to communicate and share their (new) views.

The three schools are all different in size, character and catchment area. Our desire to help our young people to reverse and challenge prejudice in society is just as strong. With roughly 75-80 pupils taking part from each country in separate mobilities, the full power of the project will only be realised once the learning has been taken home and families, fellow pupils and schools become involved in making RESPECT 4 DIVERSITY, DIVERSITY 4 RESPECT a hot item on every school’s agenda.

The wider audience involved will be local action groups, charities and local politicians and the mayoral office. These groups’ involvement will be paramount in supporting the project and ensuring that the pupils develop a rounded understanding about the different sections of the community. They will be called to help, either assisting in a senior care home, working with refugees or talking to members of the LGBT community about their lives. All experiences will be documented in the vlog, the e-magazine and the newspapers created in each country and of course the press releases that have created interest for local radio, television and not to mention the digital and printed press.

The impact of the project will be felt in full by the young people participating in the teams that will be formed. They were taught to understand, show compassion and respect the minority groups that they encounter and were challenged by their peers to rethink some of their prejudice that they have grown up with.

The impact will be felt in the wider school communities through information sharing and participation. Impact will be longitudinal, informing teaching practice in all three schools as they develop the teaching of these skills beyond the boundaries of the project.

The long term benefit will be mini-projects set up in schools, similar to what we start that keeps the momentum going in challenging prejudice in society.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 91175 Eur

Project Coordinator

RSG-Enkhuizen & Country: NL

Project Partners

• Laidlaw Schools Trust T/A The Excelsior Academy
• INSTITUTO EDUCACION SECUNDARIA GINES PEREZ CHIRINOS