The well-being of students in and out of school Erasmus Project

Project Title

The well-being of students in and out of school

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: International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation; Health and wellbeing

Project Summary

The need for the project rose from the students’ lack of motivation to study. The participants also noticed a need to support the students in leading a healthy life in terms of nutrition, physical activity, hobbies and appreciating their culture and themselves. The teachers in participating schools have observed the students have motivational challenges due to the time spent on their phones in stead of studying. School isn’t an appealing place for the students which leads to early drop out and school dissatisfaction. The participants wish to support the students’ well-being on several levels including physical, social and emotional. Increasing the students’ self-awareness and providing them with tools to lead a healthier life will improve their self-esteem and skills.

There are six participating organisations and countries in the project including Germany, Czech Republic, Poland, Greece, Portugal and the coordinating country, Finland. All participants except for Finland and Germany have previous experience of Strategic Partnerships. The coordinating country, Finland, created the project and chose the topic after which they searched for partners with similar needs. One of the participating organisations was spotted via EnglishMatters website’s partner search and the others via eTwinning. The participants with previous experience support the less-experienced organisations. All participants take part in planning, executing and evaluating the project activities.The coordinating country is responsible for the deadline and final decisions of the project. Each organization will host a meeting and is responsible for obtaining accommodation, materials and transportation possibilities for participants. Communication between partners is operated via email, Whatsapp and Google Document that is updated regularly.

The project includes both short-term exchanges of groups of pupils and other project events which are carried out between and before the exchanges. There will be six exchanges to the six participating countries with different wellbeing-related topics: food and nutrition, sports and physical activities, nature and climate, arts and culture, hobbies and pastime, and European co-operation: me, you, us. Activities support the aim of the project by enhancing the overall wellbeing of students and providing them with tools to lead a healthier life. All organizations execute activities in their school before the meetings and the products of the activities will be shared on eTwinning and other online platforms. The products made before and during the meetings include a questionnaire, cook book, personal diary, class competition, group and trust building exercises, videos, stories and art, leaflet about hobbies, a comic strip and an interview.

Participating students and teachers will be selected according to both their English and communicative skills, and readiness to represent their school abroad. Before the meetings, the participants will be supported with travel plans. Two teachers will accompany the participating students to each meeting. Host schools will be responsible for making practical arrangements.

Evaluation of the project will be both qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative will be based on questionnaires and self-assessment executed throughout the project. Continuous discussion will also be conducted by the teachers. The quantitative evaluation will include the number of products, materials, students and staff attended in the project. Each organization will be responsible for the evaluation of their organization’s results but the final evaluation will be executed together.

The main target group of the project are the students. Other target groups include parents, school staff, local community and authorities.The desired results of the project consist of acquiring skills, such as ICT, language skills and social competence and new methodologies, for example, positive pedagogy and motivational tools. The students will have acquired ways to improve their wellbeing and gained more respect towards themselves and others. They will have had a chance to bond with European peers and appreciate different cultures. Additionally, they may have a better self-esteem at the end of the project. Long-term benefits of the project will extend to not only the school community but also the homes and surrounding community of participants. The results of the project will be disseminated, for example, via eTwinning, social network forums, shared blog, educational fairs and meetings with parents, on newspapers and other publications.

The activities are planned around the thought ‘Involve me and I’ll learn’. Involving students in wellbeing-related activities will increase their motivation towards a healthier lifestyle. They will understand the effect of their daily choices on their health and academic results. By supporting the students we create a healthier future and enable European co-operation also in the future.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 197877 Eur

Project Coordinator

Kaukovainion koulu & Country: FI

Project Partners

• Szkola Podstawowa im. St. Mikolajczyka w Jaszkowej Dolnej
• Staatliche Regelschule Am Kiliansberg
• Zakladni skola, Brno, Hercikova 19, prispevkova organizace
• 7o GYMNASIO RODOU
• Agrupamento de Escolas Engenheiro Duarte Pacheco