CONTEXT/BACKGROUND OF PROJECT In the project Overcome, we will cover our needs working the immediate priorities: promoting social inclusion, fighting school abandonment and promoting a comprehensive approach to language teaching and learning. Five schools will participate; Germany Mittelschule (GER), Novaschool Añoreta (SPA), Gymnasio Zakakiou (CYP), Osnovna Sola Fram (SLO) and Harjurinteen Koulu (FIN). This association is heterogeneous, with the participation of private and public schools, from north and south Europe, small and big communities, disparity of economic prosperity. It reflects the diversity of the European Union. In addition, this environmental variety offer us the opportunity of doing different types of outdoor activities. About 400 students, ages 12, 13, 14, are going to be directly involved in he planned activities. Although this is the target group of this project, the results can be exploited by other educational stages. OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT The six objectives of this project respond to needs and priorities: O1 -Providing direct personal contact with nature favouring citizen participation and supporting personal health. O2-Promoting collaborative and holistic approaches to teaching and learning. O3-Reducing disparities in access to outdoor activities. O4-Developing essential personal and social capabilities. 05-Improving of communicative skills and the use of ITC. O6-Building an intercultural awareness in participants. DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES We have designed a collection of activities in connection with the priorities and objectives. The most important are the outdoor activities that we plan to organize in the five short-time exchanges with the pupils. We will write up a glossary with all the activities in an outdoor library which will consist of multidisciplinary teaching units which will be available in a Moodle we are going to create for the occasion. All project´s results will be available on the Moodle. Another important part of the project is the participation of local Role Models who has to do with the outdoor activities. This is an E+ initiative that will create a network of people to inspire young people living with social difficulties. As part of these activities we have a group of projects and workshops such as; workshop about how eTwinning works, deciding a logo and slogan for the project, writing up a dictionary with the most useful words that pupils can use during the short-time exchange, doing a calendar with the most important dates, welcoming ceremonies, researches about health food and cultural visits that offer the possibility of a holistic learning. METHODOLOGY TO BE USED The methodology which best fits with the planned activities is learning with action (learning by doing). RESULTS ENVISAGED With activities we expect to win tangible and intangible results: Tangible results include: Outdoor Library with teaching units. Open Educational Resources (OERs) A guide with local role models. Results about health food research. Calendar with the most important dates of each country. Dictionary with the most useful words for the short-time exchange. Erasmus+ corner in each school. Logo and slogan competition. A website with testimonies of teachers and pupils. A developed TwinSpace. Evaluation reports. Intangible results: Knowledge and experience gained by learners and staff. Increased skills or achievements. Improved cultural awareness. Improved language skills. IMPACT ENVISAGED We think that one of the strong points of the project is its potential impact, if the project is successful it has the potential of changing our institutions. For us it is also important to capture the impact of the project in local communities. We will measure the number of appearances in local press and asking educational community using questionnaires. We specially consider the impact of international group of students on domestic students, educational institutions and hosting communities. POTENTIAL LONGER-TERM BENEFITS There is scientific evidence in the benefit of outdoor activities for young people, improving young people’s educational course and social inclusion. We expect to sustain these consequences in the long term. For the sustainability of the project, it is very important the crosscurricular outdoor library that can be used in in our day-to-day and the know-how that teachers are going to learn. Teachers can go on using that knowledge in the long term or in other school because the project has the potential of be exploited in other organizations.
Our project was based on outdoor education, which meant activities outside of regular school hours that motivated, encouraged hard work and perseverance and required teamwork. These activities should help prevent early school leaving and provide opportunities to improve social inclusion in our school communities (social inclusion) through developing positive relationships with the environment, with others and with ourselves through interaction with the natural world. These relationships have been essential to the well-being and sustainability of individuals, society and our environment. The outdoor education provided students with hands-on and active learning experiences in natural environments. There, students developed the skills and understanding to move safely and competently while valuing a positive relationship with natural environments and encouraging the sustainable use of those environments. Another focus was on the realization that a healthy and sustainable lifestyle makes performance possible and can increase it. Each school also presented local role models from sport and society. A comprehensive approach to language teaching and learning has also been implemented. Five schools took part: Deutschland Mittelschule (GER), Novaschool Añoreta (SPA), Gymnasio Zakakiou (CYP), Osnovna Sola Fram (SLO) and Harjurinteen Koulu (FIN). The schools were private and public schools, from northern and southern Europe, from small and large communities and with different economic wealth. The selection reflected the diversity of the European Union. In addition, the ecological diversity offered us the opportunity to carry out different types of outdoor activities. About 400 students aged 12, 13, 14 were directly involved in the planned activities. In addition to the outdoor activities, they also got to know other cultures in Europe, experienced mutual respect, break down prejudices and strengthened relationships and friendships with each other. In accordance with European priorities, our project therefore also focused on intercultural dialogue to promote international understanding and world peace. Teachers and students shared experiences to strengthen cooperation. Students developed social skills by sharing ideas, activities, knowledge, tasks, materials, etc. They learned a foreign language in a real communication situation and also developed reading and writing skills. We used tools like videos, web, e-twinning, social media twitter, youtube to share and compare posters, logos, digital dictionaries, project calendars, ebooks and images, different lifestyles. Knowledge and skills in many areas such as sports, culture, history, languages, geography, art, etc. have been passed on. The partner schools had students of the same age with similar needs, as well as a variety of students from different cultural, social and economic background. We carried out the project according to the planned activities. Due to the pandemic, the schedule kept getting mixed up because a student exchange was not possible at the moment. Thanks to many online meetings between the teachers and the students, we were able to keep up the project activities despite these difficult conditions. Each school has developed and implemented extra activities (additional internal school projects, Erasmus days) and presented them to the others. Through cooperation, mutual understanding and a high degree of improvisational ability, we were able to catch up on and carry out all points of our schedule in 2022.