The 24-month KA229 Erasmus+ project “Less Plastic, More Future: a Service Learning Approach for Inclusive and Sustainable Europe” is realized by “Istituto Comprensivo Alberto Burri” from Trestina (Italy) together with “Rantzausminde Skole” from Svendborg (Denmark), “Gregor Mendel Gymnasium” from Amberg (Germany), “Fundacion Escuelas Profesionales de la Sagrada Familia” from Andujar (Spain) and “Collège de Notre Dame de Graces” from Ardres (France). In the frame of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the European Green Deal, the main objective we intend to achieve is a real improvement in students’ awareness and sense of responsibility towards environmental issues, in particular in terms of prevention, waste disposal and plastic use/abuse: the project will lead to a change in students’ daily habits and to the acquisition of an “ecological mind”; at the same time, thanks to the theoretical knowledge they will gain, but especially thanks to active and inclusive service they will render to their community in the frame of Service Learning Methodology, students’ civic and social competences will be fostered and socio-economic differences will be overcome. Consequently, due to the larger European scope of the project, true sense of European Citizenship will be enhanced. Another objective we would like to pursue is to lead students to a sense of real belonging to their community: partner schools will open to their territories and work in synergy with local authorities, companies, public and private boards, thus bridging the gap between formal and non formal education and also between school education and the world of labour, making learning more meaningful and attractive for pupils. All these transversal skills will be developed jointly with basic skills and key competences, especially foreign languages (not only English but also other partner languages), ICT skills, critical thinking, entrepreneurship and sense of initiative. Participant groups will include primarily 12-14 year old students from all schools (with particular attention to disadvantaged ones), teachers and administrative staff and also parents’ committees; due to the open and civic methodology of Service Learning, local authorities, public/private boards and companies, experts of the environmental branch, museums, schools and educational agencies will support the project in local activities and "hosting" mobilities. On the whole, we expect that about 2,500 people will take directly or indirectly part in the project. Activities envisage an initial preparatory meeting, five learning, teaching and training activities, Service Learning environmental sessions in each partner country, environmental plastic-free students’ campaigns, school markets of reusable objects, tutoring sessions of younger pupils, conferences, visits and multidisciplinary workshops with branch experts, together with a development of project topics at curricular level. In terms of intangible results, we expect overcoming of prejudices and barriers, intercultural openness and understanding, sharing of European common values beyond national differences; students’ skills and personal development; consolidation of the European dimension of partner schools; teachers’ professional development. Tangible main results will be a project website showcasing all the activities and research materials produced, with a “Newsletter” section; a rich TwinSpace on the eTwinning Platform, which will function as virtual colloborative co-constrution space and communication platform ; a multilingual Handbook on the Service Learning Good Practices realised in each partner school; a short-film on environmental topics resulting from an international students’ festival ; “Green Citizen Guidelines" and a final, common “Declaration” with our future environmental aims. Minor outputs will be presentations, researches, magazines, artistic works, calendars, reports, videos and photographic galleries etc. We expect relevant impact in terms of students’ environmental knowledge, consciousness and active involvement, in their skills and personal development, in enhancement of active European Citizenship, inclusion of disadvantaged groups, teachers’ professional development, environmental awareness of the entire local community, European internationalisation of the involved institutes. On top of this impact, longer benefits will derive from participation in the project: all schools will integrate procedures, practices and outputs in their curricula and their educational offer plans will also be based, to a large extent, on the Erasmus + activities and deliverables; teachers’ exchange of good practices and confrontation on classroom strategies will have a positive impact in the long run; partner schools will implement new policies on the basis of what has been learnt abroad; new European collaborations will derive thanks to project media, TwinSpace and Erasmus+ Results Platform.
The 24-month KA229 Eramus+ project “Less Plastic, More Future: a Service Learning approach for Inclusive and Sustainable Europe” was realized by “Istituto Comprensivo Alberto Burri” from Trestina (Italy) together with “Rantzausmindeskole” from Svendborg (Denmark), “Gregor Mendel Gymnasium” from Amberg (Germany), “Fundacion Escuelas Profesionales de la Sagrada Familia” from Andujar (Spain) and “Collège Notre Dame de Grace” from Ardres (France). The project took place in the general frame of the “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” and the “European Green Deal”. Following objectives were attained: 1. Pupils’ acquisition of an “ecological mind”: their awareness and sense of responsibility towards environmental issues increased, in particular in terms of prevention, waste disposal and plastic use/abuse, leading to a change of their personal habits; 2. Increased civic and social competences, both at local and international level: working in synergy with local authorities, public/private boards, experts from the environmental branch, pupils from all partner countries took part in Service Learning activities, giving a personal contribution and experiencing active Citizenship. Thus, a real sense of belonging to one’s community was achieved. Thanks to the activities realized at project joint level and to LTTAs, European Citizenship was fostered and enhanced too. Since the on-the-spot Service Learning activities took place after curricular learning, pupils’ learning itself became more meaningful and attractive; 3. Social Inclusion: thanks to the open methodology of Service Learning, all realised activities enabled an active participation of disadvantaged students, who were protagonists of their learning and who experienced how their contribution can make a significant change in their living context; 4. Enhancement of basic skills and key-competences: English was widely used as project lingua franca, but other project languages were practised, thus reinforcing European multilingualism. ICT skills were enhanced throughout the entire project lifecycle: the first project year was implemented only digitally, requiring not only the mastery of common digital tools but also a certain effort in terms of creativity; almost all products and activities were realised digitally, with pupils working in national and international teams collaboratively or cooperatively, thus fostering their social skills and team spirit. Pupils were stimulated to find their own solutions to given tasks, thus enhancing problem-solving, sense of initiative and entrepreneurship. Activities covered 17 management meetings, 4 LTTAs (of which one was virtual and three physical), Service Learning environmental sessions in each partner country, environmental campaigns, tutoring sessions of younger pupils, visits and workshops with branch experts, dissemination activities, development of project topics at curricular level. Our intangible results envisage, on top of the attained objectives summarised above, also the surpassing of biases and prejudice, intercultural awareness, pupils’ personal growth, teachers’ professional development and reinforcement of each institute’s European dimension and international networks. The main tangible results consist of a multilingual Handbook on the Service Learning good practices realised in each partner country, Green Citizen’s Guidelines, a final Declaration with shared environmental aims, a TwinSpace and the project website. Minor tangible outputs are constituted by logo proposals, cultural and environmental presentations , pupils’ international curricular cooperative work on plastic (its history, chemical features, current alternatives and EU-regulations, plastic in art and technology, environmental impact of plastic pollution), environmental videos, quizzes, surveys, informational leaflets, lesson plans and documentation materials (reports, photo galleries etc). Moreover, cooperation and project activities found a steadfast counterpart in the project social media, namely Facebook and Instagram. As to the project long-term benefits, we expect positively lasting ones, first of all for the project direct participants. All partner schools had started a process of ecological transition prior to project start and the project itself fostered and reinforced this transition. At project end, pupils are all well aware of the urgence of environmental issues and know how to tackle them in daily life thanks to the theoretical knowledge gained and especially to the experiences they were involved in as active protagonists. The steadfast collaboration with families, with public authorities and environmental boards made the project significant not only for the schools’ contexts but also for their communities, opening itself to all citizens. In the frame of this green transition, we expect positive benefits also in new incoming pupils, also thanks to the project products which will be integrated in the schools’ curricula for the coming years.