strangers: in strange lands Erasmus Project

Project Title

strangers: in strange lands

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: Teaching and learning of foreign languages; Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning; Migrants’ issues

Project Summary

The theatre project “strangers: in strange lands” was part of the conventional curriculum and extra-curricular activities of all part-taking schools. The current project’s aim group were 14 – 19 year old students. The duration of the project was 2 years. Therein students of four different countries (Hungary, Lithuania, Spain and Germany) met with all aspects of their different political and cultural perceptions and awareness. The key aspects of this theatre project were refugees, tolerance, courage, moral courage, individuality and Europe of course, which were then be transported by the arranged play.
During the project week, workshops were organized, that all students of all countries attend at the beginning of each school year. There they created the framework, characters and first part of the play in international study groups. The results were collected in a script. The first act and the script were the basis for the creation of the whole play (plot, dialogues, stage, costumes) at each school in the school year. Since it was a project among different countries it was desirable to incorporate typical aspects of ones own culture, e.g. music, dance, clichés or anything like that. In addition to that, political and social aspects were also important facets to be included in the plot.
Amid a theatre festival week at the end of each school year, the plays were enacted, filmed and put on DVD. In international round table discussions the typical aspects of each county, cultural diversities of the plays and the steps or rather the solutions of the given problem (1st act) of the plays were discussed. Furthermore a feedback concerning the actual working-processis were a starting-point for a discussion how the project contributed to, the common understanding of Europe, the awareness of cultural differences and the collaboration of all participating students.
In the work-in-progress-phase the interim results were shown in social media groups (e.g. Whatsapp) oder shared in indivudual mails, so that the students got the opportunity to discuss the results and ideas. In this way they were enabled to participate actively in the forming and creating of the other schools’ plays.
For coordinating and planning the project in detail the teaching staff met at the beginning and again by half term of each project year. Besides, the meetings were also held to evaluate the project on the go and to intensify face to face communication among all staff members.
The project language was English. So the students (and also the teachers) got the chance to converse in Europe’s lingua franca in a real-life-situation. Beyond that, the project was also to contain elements of the respective mother tongue to interest the students in learning new languages. A second pillar of the project was to enable the students to inform themselves and others about the cultural diversity, habits, geography and history of the partner countries. Especially experiences in nature, sports games in mixed teams meant to motivate students to interact with each other more. Similarly, the teachers were given the opportunity to try out in regional handicrafts during the meetings in the second year of the project.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 114235 Eur

Project Coordinator

Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium Göttingen & Country: DE

Project Partners

• COLEGIO PUREZA DE MARÍA
• Kauno Roku gimnazija
• Pécsi Árpád Fejedelem Gimnázium és Általános Iskola