By implementing the Erasmus+ project E.D.U.C.A.T.I.O.N. we wanted to identify and create resources and opportunities to meet the individual and collective needs of our students and to prepare ourselves and our current and future learners for the challenges of a constantly changing environment and that of a more and more competitive global society. In very few words, preparation for the future, for life, was our ultimate goal, especially for the most vulnerable students from our communities. We also intended to achieve some long lasting results and improved behaviours and attitudes for the extended communities, based on the values, priorities and quality standards of the Erasmus+ programme. While capitalizing on our strong points (both schools have tradition/ experience in some educational areas) and finding solutions together to improve our weaknesses, what we wanted to achieve was the ability to address learning disadvantage, social and economic inequities and low levels of self-esteem and motivation with the financial support of the Erasmus+ programme which allowed us to create some of the most meaningful learning/teaching/training experiences, access to EU standards of education, intercultural opportunities for personal growth.
We applied for this project in order to embrace the latest EU initiatives, policies and priorities of inclusion, equity, active participation of youth and respect for diversity as solutions to our most stringent local problems and challenges and rely on international collaboration and the exchange of experience and good practices to improve the situation in both European schools. The needs identified in the two school communities were: a concerning number of students affected by unfavourable circumstances, victims of the pandemic in terms of limitted access to education, digitalisation and equal opportunities, lower self-esteem and motivation levels, the risk of (self)exclusion and marginalization, a lack of opportunities and resources to reach the individual potential of some of our students as well as our institutional aims regarding the processes of europenisation and internationalisation of both schools.