Context/background of the project “SmartUp Europe for an Optimistic Future”! Europe and in particular the EU is under massive stress. This is caused by e.g. the refugee crisis, a shift in energy production towards renewable resources, Brexit, a decrease in the personal identification with the EU and topically, trade problems with the US. These 21st century challenges require not only efforts of politicians but also the struggle of its citizens to preserve the achievements and enhance the basic principles of the people in the EU; in short the sustainment of “Social and educational value of European cultural heritage” here defined as what the EU has achieved in the last 60 years. The six schools teamed up in this project have a variable history with Europe and detected a need for support in actively tackling these problems in the environment of the schools wherever possible. Their common objective is to foster EU ideals and to provide their students with the necessary setting that they can stand for the slogan “We are backing Europe! (“and the EU” could be added, as both terms are used almost synonymous in the context of the project)”. Objectives of the project The question is what schools can do in this respect, especially working on a level below policy-makers. Pursuant to our title we seek to smarten the image of the EU for our students and thus project a more optimistic perception to Europe and the EU in general. The project aims to make the participants understand that there are various fields in the EU lattice work where they are personally affected and where we can help to find forward-looking solutions and mutually benefit in cooperation with partners in Europe in areas e.g. language competence and social and digital skills. Number and profile of participants The six schools cooperating in this project have a very similar background as they all are situated in a rural environment and have students in the age-group 13-17. Their orientation however differs, from general secondary to vocational. Yet all schools are united in their commitment to Europe and their long-standing activities in pan-European student cooperation. Description of activities and methodology to be used in carrying out the project Now how does this appear in detail? In conjoint analysis the schools found out that there is a need for a more practical approach where students are confronted with aspects of the future problems. Step by step they develop means to help solving them with the joint effort of six European partners. The scope of the topics includes among others organic food, integration of refugees, renewable energy and voluntarism. In the case of energy e. g., the students in Germany will in a first step collect and present types of renewable energies operated in their surroundings. In the next step they will pass it on to their partners for presentation and to compare to the local situation. In a last step we will design a tutorial comprising the various forms of renewable energies and their impact to the use of the partner schools and hopefully many others. We will do so with all the topics mentioned above. The idea is that each country concentrates on a few issues and transfers the results to the other partners for application and evaluation. The mobilities are meant to present the special subjects to the guests so that the “experts” can help to implement them in a kind of mentoring system at their schools. A short description of the results and impact envisaged Obviously there is a need in schools for practical guidelines as dealing with Europe has very often been limited to information about political institutions in Brussels. The aim of this project is to experience the EU and its member countries from inside and provide active participation for students dealing with problems they are facing in the 21st century. In brief the main goals of this project are as follows: -Students get to know and work on various topics they are affected by and that are directly associated with the future of the EU -Schools develop tutorials on these topics published on a website for exchange and advancement and for the use of schools in general -Students and teachers cooperate with European partners; develop transnational understanding and experience working, living and communicating in another country The potential longer term benefits The envisaged tutorials will be available to the partner schools and the items in this regard will become long-term elements of the school curriculums. Thus the EU gets a permanent presence in the schools with its problems and, more important, with feasible solutions for its future. SmartUP Europe means to illustrate that Europe always provides answers but on a European level and in due consideration of “… the value of European cultural heritage”. Besides the tutorials will be models for other schools to deal with the issue and an opportunity to enhance the material according to their Needs.
Context of the project We selected our partners on a solid basis. The Italian and German schools have worked together on multiple projects. Part of those project was the first coordinator of the Cypriot school. The Portuguese and Spanish partners worked with the Italian and German school before but were new to this constellation. The newcomer to Erasmus+ itself was the Finish partner school that got into contact with the German coordinator via a contact seminar. At the point of the application the German Erasmus team was led by an experienced coordinator and thus provided knowledge and structure. The background of each school is similar: rural areas, students are not that exposed to the world outside their area and in some parts never "experienced" the advantages of the European Union themselves. With this project we wanted our students to deal with European topics that have an impact on their lives (volunteering, building resilience, climate change and digitisation). Because of the growing numbers of refugees that sought asylum in the European Union since the middle of the 2010s the need to take care for fellow humans was lifted to another level. With this project we wanted to raise the awareness and show our students ways to get involved in helping others in need by volunteering. The worked with people having special needs, disruptive students and old people living in nursing homes. To build up their resilience and mental health we introduced our participants to applied neuro-science (Hiperion-Project) and various sports (Well-Being-Day). The climate change was made subject of our discussion by working on school gardens, alternative ways of power production and the use of algae in the present and the future. Throughout the project we were working on digitising our schools and outputs with the help of our Italian partner. Objectives of the project We wanted to foster EU ideals and inspire a positive attitude of students towards Europe and the European Union. At the point of application Euro skepticism, nationalism and hostile attitudes towards the EU and towards refugees were rising. During our project the Brexit was finalised and another problem (CoVid-19) emerged. We wanted our students to experience the EU and its member countries from inside and by dealing with problems we are facing everyday. We wanted to sensitise those problems and showing small steps to tackle them. By working on this project we hoped to support the skill development, social inclusion, critical thinking, youth engagement, language skills and social skills of our students by adding more possibilities for personal growth. Some of them never had to use English outside the classroom and had never seen an airport or even other countries before. Our goals were: 1.) Students deal and work on various topics associated with the future of the European Union. 2.) Developing manageable and adaptable tutorials for schools on these topics and make them available for everyone. 3.) Students and teachers cooperate with partner schools on different parts of Europe to develop transnational understanding by experiencing working and living in another country for a small amount of time. Description of activities The project and its activities were subdivided into three parts: 1.) Work on one (or more) problems at your own school and create a tutorial. 2.) Have a look at the progress and results during the LTTAs and PMs. Exchange ideas and experience. 3.) Testing the partners' tutorials at your own school and create your own version of the tutorial. The LTTAs, PMs and other project events are described in chapters 7 and 8. The third phase of out project got struck by the pandemic outbreak and had to be adapted. The schools concentrated on guaranteeing and providing online or hybrid lessons.We gave priority to online classes, security measures, and the emotional situation of our students. The seriousness of the situation made the project take a back seat. Project's results We created eight tutorials on six topics (well-being, volunteering, school gardens & the use of seaweeds, IT skills and neuro-science) presenting them in a well-structured and adaptable way. The tutorials show in a systematic way how to implement the topics in schools and what to consider beforehand. Concerning our students the social and language skills were enhanced and they reported to have a feeling of personal growth that is backed by their peers, parents and teachers. Expected long-term benefits "SmartUp Europe for an Optimistic Future" made Europe and the European Union come alive. The six schools and their students worked together, thus got a glimpse of life outside their region and experienced a feeling of belonging together. The tutorials are implemented into the schools' curricula and will have an impact in the years to come. The partnerships between the schools will be continued in new projects and the ties between the students are still active today.