Description of the realised programme of C3.
Between the 15 and the 18th of November 20, pupils and teachers from all the partner schools involved in the Erasmus+ project “Entrepreneurship matters” attended the blended short-term exchange of groups of pupils (C3), which was hosted by the Aristotelio Ekpedeftirio Serron, Serres, Greece. The schools from Portugal, Romania and Italy participated in person and the schools from Bulgaria and Austria virtually (due to travel restrictions imposed by their local authorities).
All partners arrived on the 15th and we had a first dinner meeting in the evening where the students from the visiting countries were met by the students of the Aristotelio.
On the 16th of November the hosting school and the visiting partners (teachers and students) had a meeting with the mayor who informed us on the opportunities and the good practice the region has as far as eco-tourism, agrotourism and the opportunities for alternative entrepreneurship for young people available in the region. We also visited some historic and cultural sights in the town and later we had meeting in the Regional Unit of Serres where the participants had the chance to learn about the region, its most important sights and the tourist development. All activities were live streamed through Facebook for the partners in Bulgaria and Austria.
On the 17th November the school accommodated for a 5-hour live stream for Austria and Bulgaria through Microsoft Teams live stream.
There was a performance by the host students and after the greeting by the coordinator, the headmaster and children from each participating country presented their projects according to the planned activities in the application.
The following agenda was followed:
The school of Aristoteles, one of the most notable ancient philosophers and the father of the ancient skill of rhetoric. The Birth of Rhetoric, a project by Fotis Stasinos
The beauty and the importance of Rhetoric is in its timeless relevance and its modern use. The Art of Persuasions by Christine Golemi.
Just 40 Km from the town of Serres and about 100 Km from Thessaloniki, we can meet one of the most beautiful places in Greece, Lake Kerkini. Its unique wetland has been declared as National Park according to Ramsar Convention and it is one out of ten wetlands of International Importance of Greece-Anastasia Papadopoulou -Kerkini Wetland (project presentation)
Our project is about entrepreneurship and future job opportunities and in our region eco-tourism and eco business is flourishing. Christos Thodoridis Eco-entrepreneurship (project presentation)
Empathy, tolerance and equality in life is the core of a well-balanced society “Empathy vs Bullying” project Dimitra Kazaki – On equality (podcast performance)
There is an old saying “We do not inherit the Earth from our fathers, we borrow it from our children”. It is up to us to protect our world and ensure it is a better one. The short was created by the students who started the project but due to the pandemic could not participate and now they had left school. Sapho’s poem in ancient Greek is heard in it. “When the past meets the present”
All presentations and projects will be uploaded on the project website, you tube and eTwinning.
18th November: We visited lake Kerkini as was planned. There we visited the Information Centre where we were informed on the Wetland, visited the museum. Lake Kerkini. Its unique wetland has been declared as National Park according to Ramsar Convention and it is one out of ten wetlands of International Importance of Greece. There we also had the chance to observe the huge variety of birds, see the rare buffalos and waterlilies and gather information for the future projects to be prepared by all participating countries
In the afternoon the teachers had a meeting to discuss the progress of the project, plan future activities and also share difficulties we have encountered during the implementation of the project especially due to the Pandemic. One of the conclusions we came and a suggestion we have is for National Agencies to be more flexible and become more digitalized as there is still a lot of paper when things can be done online. Not to mention the different regulations and rules National Agencies have making it difficult for partners to achieve one of the main goals of Erasmus Plus which is Uniformity and Cooperation. The Participants left home on the 18th.
All the obligatory project paperwork was done: attendance lists, program copies, certificates.
Acquired competences and skills.
During this physical mobility, the students acquired many useful competences, such as: getting a better idea of what entrepreneurship is all about, strengthening their creative and critical thinking skills, being open-minded towards inclusion, cultural diversity and tolerance in education, improving their leadership skills, and their ability to work in transnational teams.
All the participants in the exchange became acquainted with the Greek ancient and modern history, the art of rhetoric, as well as with the local culture and customs, cuisine and lifestyle of Greece. Students and teachers alike improved their communication skills in English, and their interpersonal abilities, promoted their own cultural and educational achievements, got a stronger sense of European belonging, and became part of the e-mates family.Students learned through their experience that public speaking serves the purpose of transmitting information, and motivating people .
The involvement of students with special needs (4) (Autism, Asper, OCD, ADHD and Dyslexia) was the best part. They prepared two of the projects and participated actively during the meeting at the school and during the whole meeting.
Critical thinking, tolerance and equality, information literacy, collaboration and communication in a foreign language, ethical and sustainable thinking, self-awareness and self-efficacy, motivation, and mobilizing resources are the main competences that summarize the meeting. Though the Covid restriction limited a lot of the activities and most of them were quite time consuming (all the groups had to be checked for vaccine passports anywhere we went and some sights were totally restricted (refugee camp, NGOs) and not the whole school could participate as there was a limit of students in the auditorium. The worst part was the fact that Austria and Bulgaria were only virtually with us and though they actively participated and we had a daily communication through Facebook, Teams, WhatsApp, and messenger nothing compares to face-to-face human contact and their students missed the best part of Erasmus+: HUMAN CONTACT, HUGS, SMILES AND LAST DAY TEARS.
Krassimira-Kenny Vounzoulaki
Serres, Greece