With Europe in transition (Brexit, migration) and living in the hinterland, we try to comprehend local and international topics: we have themes which aggravate us and bring us together, but then there are local topics that are of no public interest which we should, nevertheless, learn to appreciate and regard as part of our heritage. Our goal is not only global thinking but empowering youth from local communities with pride of their identity. We research signs of the times transnationally by writing and creating visual images. In the process we will learn to master e-learning and digitalization which belong to the new skills of a citizen. In the project 'Signs of the times' (SOTT) there are four participating (upper) secondary schools from four European countries: Forssan yhteislyseo, Finland (an upper secondary school with 540 students, aged 16-19, and 30 teachers), Bernstorff - Gymnasium , Germany (all fields of secondary education inc. with 920 students and 70 teachers), Liceul de arte vizuale 'Romulus Ladea', Romania (a public vocational school with 480 students, aged 10-18) and NGHNI 'Konstantin Preslavski', Bulgaria (a national high school of humanity and arts with 1536 students, aged 10-18, and 135 teachers). The school in Bulgaria is situated in the city of Varna but the other schools in the provinces/hinterlands. Bulgaria on the other hand lies at the outer border of the European Union and thus falls into the same category. It is a bonus that the participants represent both relatively new and old member countries of the EU. The schools in Bulgaria and Romania have visual arts as their speciality whereas the ones in Germany and Finland are regular (upper) secondary schools with a variety of subjects and programmes available. The school in Germany has the status of Europa Schule and experience of integrating immigrant students. The emphasis of the project lies on the inclusion in the European community but also on localities with unique characteristics, and thus on equity. The project consists of four short-term exchanges of groups of pupils with six students and 2-3 teachers from each country participating. In-between the meetings the participants work online, the results of which are to be published in a co-edited digital magazine. Each participating school in turn organizes educational workshops with preliminary tasks and above-mentioned post work. The main method is problem/phenomenon-based learning, which is why we cannot decide on the topics of the texts to be written in advance. In problem-based learning one has to tolerate the fact that the problems of reasearch arise and specify during the process. On the other hand here lies the beauty of the method. The objective is not to memorize facts but to engage in the study of a phenomenon from different points of views. Our topic of interest is the youth in the hinterlands of the EU and their experience of the surrounding world and how to (re)present it (Signs!). Phenomenon-based learning works in cycles of six months which give natural pace and rhythm to the meetings. At the end of each cycle we study which things have been learnt but we also look forward; 'Which are the problems I still want to solve?' At every meeting we study and employ different methods such as writing, photography, a comic strip, video etc. So, the products and output are of various kinds, which is a benefit. The challenge of phenomenon-based learning lies in the recognition of learning when there is no conventional test grade as a result. Youngsters are being tutored to recognize things learnt and otherwise practise self-reflection, too. This coincides with the topic of the project ; it is our goal to increase youngsters' self-knowledge, too. Experiences of learning and improvement in study skills make young people develop. At the end of each meeting our objective is to assess the outcome and the things or skills learnt. The work to recognize learning continues in all participating schools under the guidance of teachers. Another primary method of the project is e-learning where Forssan yhteislyseo leads the field; a part of the exams in the matriculation examination are carried out digitally and e-materials are used creatively in all tuition. There are definitely many good practises to be shared. Apart from the increase in teachers' professional competence and increase in students' skills of study, expected results are personal growth and empowerment. It will play a significant role in raising active citizens of the European Union. The participating countries may learn from organizing such a long-term problem-based project of learning and this know-how will e.g. be disseminated at the national ICT conference in Hämeenlinna in April, 2020. In addition, teachers will write articles in their national professional papers and magazines such as Stylus (Visual arts) and Virke (Mother tongue and literature) in Finland.
Our topic of interest was the youth in the hinterlands of the EU and their experience of the surrounding world and how to (re)present it (Signs!). The aim of the project was to study current issues in Europe with special emphasis on current topics in media. The tools were planned to be writing (genre pedagogy), art in its various forms, for example photography, short films, animation and PhotoVoice™. There were four participating (upper) secondary schools from four European countries: Forssan yhteislyseo, Finland (an upper secondary school with 540 students, aged 16-19, and 30 teachers), Bernstorff - Gymnasium , Germany (all fields of secondary education inc. with 920 students and 70 teachers), Liceul de arte vizuale 'Romulus Ladea', Romania (a public vocational school with 480 students, aged 10-18) and NGHNI 'Konstantin Preslavski', Bulgaria (a national high school of humanity and arts with 1536 students, aged 10-18, and 135 teachers). Each school involved was responsible for teaching a tool and then it was put into action also in other schools, in between LTT`s. The background of the project methodology and themes lies in the present curricula In Finland, and especially so in phenomenon based learning which brings different school subjects together to study the same topic. We wanted to test it in an international environment. Fake news and the importance of media literacy. We wanted to show our students why media literacy is so important in our Europe/world in transit. In practice, they learnt how to recognize a piece of fake news. Media skills, creating a video film and a journalistic text. Our goal was to influence the youngsters not only as consumers of media but also as producers of content. The theme Hinterlands arose from urbanization which takes place all over Europe. Young people move to big cities and small rural communities are deserted. Therefore, it was of our interest to help the youngsters to see the special quality of these places hinterland. In addition, our goal was empowering youth from local communities by making them produce content in and on media and take over their world instead of somebody else setting the focus on what is important and calls for attention. Pedagogical results are as follows. The main method of teaching was phenomenon/problem-based learning, which we were able to test in practice for three years. We found the risks and critical points in the process. The method of PhotoVoice™ was tested, as was producing and publishing an e-magazine. Concrete results are as follows. Short films which were produced throughout the whole project. Photo exhibitions, Photo replica in Romania and Hinterlands Photo Shoot in Finland, were both thematic exhibitions. Animations which were produced in two countries, Romania and Bulgaria. Students’ digital portfolios. E-publication. Participants’ profile. From 15- to 19-year-old European students. These youngsters live in different parts of Europe and come from apparently different societies but they are united by an identical media world. Activities implemented during the project (both in and between LTTs) are as follows. Germany: Short film workshop Romania: PhotoVoice™ Photography workshop, short film workshop Bulgaria: Film workshop based on folk lore, animation workshop Finland: Lecture on media criticism, Hinterlands Photography workshop and e-portfolio workshop Between the LTTs we shot a short film based on folk lore, wrote texts for the e-magazine, discussed the project themes on eTwinning platform. The results and impact on students: The European identity of the youth grew stronger, they were able to look at their home region with different eyes. Their role as an agent in media was strengthened. Their self-esteem got higher when working in an international environment. The digital skills in filming and photography got stronger since they were making films, drama and animation throughout the whole project. Their role of an active citizen grew stronger, too, because the method of PhotoVoice™ made them reflect on the problems in their own society/environment and solutions to them. Not so media sexy topics such as drugs arose in the process. Through working on portfolios their comprehension of entities and phenomena got deeper, their self-esteem got higher and they were being empowered. Through the theme Hinterlands they could see their environment with different eyes. Still another Hinterlands photography workshop was organized in Romania after LTT4. The results and impact on teachers: Testing a new teaching method and conclusions drawn from it. Discussions and peer evaluation in informal situations, and in teachers’ meetings more officially. This project also initiated another further application in Finland and Spain, which, however, was not funded.