This project is called "Let There Be Light "– in our schools, local communities and whole regions. Light is the central idea which will guide our students towards preservation of natural resources and responsible attitude towards our environment. Light, as the alternative source of energy is definitely in the focus of our attention as the vehicle of educating our students to become more responsible and caring for the future of our world. Therefore, the main idea is to use light and its infinite possibilities to enhance general acceptance of good practices in governance of the environment. With this topic we would like to address certain questions:cultures and their attitude towards environment, positive and negative practices in preservation of natural resources, usage of alternative sources of energy, students` involvement in active promotion of better behaviors in environmental issues, encouragement of students` participation in new initiatives, creation of common future and sustainable eco friendly network between partners in this project and local institutions as well. Our priorities are:to lower the number of students who leave schools too early, to provide support and awake interest in students who achieve lower academic results or are underprivileged due to economic or cultural reasons, to enhance students`s interest for further education at universities offering environmental studies in prospective regions, to enable high quality learning opportunities with non-formal education and interest in science and to advocate active participation of our students in the notion of a European citizen. We would like to encourage pupils to get involved in the "green" field, and to show them that if they work hard, there are possibilities in their own towns where they can choose such universities and subsequently find employment in local communities. We are showing them that it is a rewarding field in the future and so they should not quit their educationThe participants will include whole schools and local communities, private and public sector connected with governing of environment - national parks and "green" companies. Moreover, we plan to bring together students who achieve above average results with those who do not do that well academically as a way to give them support and role models. In addition to that, we would like to set the link between our schools and local institutions of higher education that also promote environmental studies. With this we hope to provide sustainable development of our students` interest in this rewarding field. As for implementation, students will meet every week to work on the themes at each institution first separately, then will exchange information through various on-line tools with the partners. Thus they can see the others’ point of view and have a deeper understanding of the issue. The actual exchanges will be essential in the multilingual communication of the partners, the mutual understanding of students from different nations. The whole project is planned so that it gives excellent examples for the interdisciplinary, i.e. the fact that the different subjects are not independent. We will enrich our schools’ curricula in subjects like English, IT, Maths, Geography, Biology, Chemistry, Economics ,Physical Education and Art. Students will combine work, fun and knowledge in an effort to realize their common European identity. During the two years they will have the opportunity to improve almost all the competencies. Teachers will have the chance to meet foreign colleagues, cooperate with them, exchange new practices and learn new methods. By participating in the project students and teachers alike will find possibilities to be more active citizens. They will find common values and appreciate European democracy while getting closer to their own heritage as well.Final results: the web site,promotional video, play, complete business plan. Expected project outcomes: better understanding and awareness of the importance of light and its influence on various aspects of life (economy, health, agriculture, art, tourism, food, implementation and promotion of best usage of alternative sources of energy from each country, developing active citizenship behaviors in students, acquisition of new skills and improvement of competences, cooperation between partners.To sum up, this project will certainly awaken and foster a sense of awareness for the environment in different connections and will help students realize its importance and potentials in terms of their future career. To make the results available for a large audience we are going to choose a wide variety of tools to disseminate the findings and outputs of the project ensuring long-term results and impacts. In addition we are going to invite members of local authorities and also MEPs to some project programmes.
The title ‘Let There Be Light’ expresses the wish of the five participating schools figuratively. Yes, we actually used the topic of light, its many aspects and effects on the environment that students explored and learned about, but light was only the tool to achieve higher goals. The focus of the partnership was on protection of the environment by our students and the whole schools, students` families, local communities. By cooperation with higher educational institutions we directly and/or indirectly influenced our students’ early school-leaving. We encouraged them to continue their studies at universities, namely our project showed them two possible majors – engineering and environmental studies, the latter being a relatively new field in higher education. By cooperating with 3 different levels of education – from elementary schools to universities – we made efforts to motivate students to have goals in education, work for their goals and thus lower the number of students who leave formal education too early. Although coming from two spheres of high school education (general and vocational) we all had one thing in common - the wish for our students to continue their education onto academic level. The participants included five secondary schools (grammar, vocational) and local communities, private and public sector connected with governing of environment - national and nature parks and "green" companies. We addressed local institutions of higher education and local elementary schools, too. With this project we aimed to get our pupils interested in environmental studies. Our priorities were to lower the number of students who leave schools too early. Every school included students with fewer opportunities, we supported them and tried to enhance their interest for further education at universities offering environmental studies in prospective regions. Through project work they experienced the advantages of non-formal education thus received high quality learning opportunities. We also advocated active participation of our students in decision-making in the European dimension and youth empowerment. Our project "Let There Be Light"had 4 phases: 1. "Meeting Point: The Light": there were presentations of partners, definition of activities and ideas (Hungary) 2. "Lux Under Investigation": through research, case studies, experiments, surveys on solar energy, reducing pollution and the influence of light (Croatia, Italy) 3. "New Sparkle Ignited": active citizenship and entrepreneurial initiatives through organizing events (Germany) 4. "Let the Light Lead the Way": finalization of the project, conclusions (Turkey) We have different activities planned and distributed during the course of two years. In the first year we collected and investigated data and concepts, identified environmental problems and the influence light has on the environment in each country. This was preparation followed by more involving activities. In the second year the emphasis was on active involvement of all participants and inclusion of communities in different stages of the project. The first phase focused on observing and developing project ideas. The next two phases focused on identification, analysis, research and practical work while the last phase oriented towards evaluation of results and products. Students had weekly meetings and worked on the themes at each institution, then they exchanged information through various on-line tools with their foreign partners. The actual exchanges were essential in the multilingual communication of the partners, the mutual understanding of students from different nations. The whole project gave excellent examples for the interdisciplinary, i.e. the fact that the different subjects are not independent. We could enrich our schools’ curricula in subjects like English, History, Geography, Art, IT, Biology and Physics. During the two years they had the opportunity to improve their communication, social, IT competencies. Teachers had the chance to cooperate with foreign colleagues, exchange new practices and learn new methods. By participating in the project students and teachers alike found possibilities to be more active citizens. They found common values to appreciate European democracy. With the participation in this project, the five institutions benefited a lot as our students got a new perspective in modern education with the help of informal and non-formal learning methods. Students and teachers alike experienced being active citizens in the European dimension. Making a distinction between the short and long-term effects of a project is not easy as the boundaries can be blurred. The reviving enthusiasm of students and teachers has brought immediate results which will probably last for long. They will be active citizens and more involved in the social context.