The Open Air Is Our Classroom
Throughout our project we used a questionnaire to monitor the changes in the participants’ attitude towards the participating countries and in their lifestyles with regard to a new awareness for sustainability.
The questionnaires were created using Ques, provided by PL Rheinland-Pfalz.
For the cross-country games near Susiec we insisted on mixed groups so that the participants had to solve all the given problems and tasks in English or they would not have understood each other. The participants were really eager to finish quickly and efficiently because the games were timed and there were winners and prizes. Twice, the icy cold river had to be crossed in some inventive way and fitness was required for some of the tasks, the toughest being pushing another person up a hill as a ‘wheelbarrow’ which numerous pairs could not do. The pupils definitely got to know each other much better on that day and improved their language skills.
During our visit to Poland, three tress were planted in a modern and very well-kept park in Tomaszów Lubelski, one by each country, to symbolize the growing friendship between the participating nations. The press documented this really moving ceremony.
We all visited our trees subsequently to see how they were getting on in their new surroundings. Since the park is very popular in Tomaszów, it will remind everybody of our project as well as of the idea of European friendship.
On the 13th and 14th of June, our headmaster Ulrich Klein and myself, Joanna Whittaker-Simon, both from the Erasmus-team, went to the annual network-meeting of all Europe-schools hosted by the Europa-Haus in Bad Marienberg in the Westerwald. It was the aim of this meeting to share ideas about the organisation of projects and events concerning the European idea. At this meeting, each school used the opportunity to present what it was working on with regard to the European idea and which projects it was taking part in. We presented our Erasmus-project by exhibiting a photoalbum and all kinds of objects we had brought home from our mobilities and by showing our material on our laptop. Many colleagues asked us how to apply for an Erasmus-project and were grateful for our advice. It was very worthwhile to see the scope of ideas the diverse schools had on the European idea.
The Polish students made a video after the visit in Ireland and made it available via YouTube: