Coordinating school from Germany (Unna)

Werkstatt-Berufskolleg Unna

Website: www.werkstatt-berufskolleg.de

About: The Werkstatt-Berufskolleg Unna is a young professional school with a director of 20 years experience in European projects and education. The Werkstatt-Berufskolleg serves and educates disadvantaged students. Here all people are welcome: Young people with extraordinary life biographies, with and without qualifications, older people who want to learn a new profession in their second phase of life, with and without disabilities, from special schools and to re-orient people with learning difficulties. As inclusive school we learn together and share. All teachers have next to their educational training additional professional training and come from the private sector. Therefore, learning “with hand and head” is our motto and programme.

The vocational school based its teaching on the realities of his students. New media, non-formal education, differentiation during lessons and current projects, everything will be developed together with the students. For craftsmanship we run professionally equipped workshops. The classrooms are large and equipped with all the necessary media. Retreats are available, the training room method allows new learning opportunities during the school day.

All students have the right to individual or small group remedial intensive care.

Our students are actively involved in school committees and influence school development and new ideas.

We give people who have been unlucky and / or decide to try again a start on school education to working life, a second and third chance.

The school gets the label “School without racism – school with courage” and FairTrade-school.

In the moment we train 500 students with 42 teachers. The school works regional (circle of 35 km).

35% students have ?migrant-background, 160 students are refugees, 14% are students from special schools, 95% of the new student who are coming the first year to our school are without any examen and education, 15% are school-leavers.

Partner schools:

 1. Partner school from Italy (Pescara)

Liceo Artistico Musicale Coreutico “Misticoni Bellisario”

Website: www.mibe.gov.it

About: MIBE stands for Misticoni Bellisario, two of the oldest and most prestigious art schools in Abruzzo, a region situated in the centre of Italy, on the Adriatic coast. The two schools   merged a couple of years ago and in the last six years two courses were added to the traditional ones, music and dancing which have given our institution a unique status, since it experiences and expresses  art in all its forms. Activities take place in three different buildings located in different areas of the city, given the large numbers (1100 students plus 170 teachers and office staff). Apart from special and characterizing subjects such as Painting, Sculpture, Design, Architecture, Photography, Multimedia, Graphics, Dancing (ballet and contemporary), Music,  great importance is also given to curricular subjects included in the national curriculum, common to all High schools of our country. A special policy of our school is that of exalting   the potential in our students encouraging them to find new and different ways of expressing their creativity. The school is well equipped from the technological and specific point of view, with laboratories (computer, chemistry, physics) and special rooms (music and dancing rooms).Apart from ordinary subject teachers, the staff also  includes highly specialized personnel who work with special needs students and mentally or physically disabled ones.

2. Partner school from Hungary (Budapest)

Budapesti Gazdas?gi Szakk?pz?si Centrum Ter?zv?rosi Kereskedelmi ?s K?zgazdas?gi Szakgimn?ziuma ?s Szakk?z?piskol?ja

Website: www.kersuli.hu

About: Our school is a vocational secondary and training school. Our school is in the middle of Budapest, in the Szondi street.

At Szondi building most of our students take part in a four-year vocational secondary education programme, although some of them can also choose to pursue only a three-year vocational training programme.

In the vocational secondary school students (aged 14-18) study commercial subjects and marketing as special subjects, but at the same time they study general subjects like history, maths, etc. as well.

At the age of 18, students take the Matura Exam (e.g. the school-leaving exam), after which they can go on into post-secondary vocational education, for example at our school, because we also have adult education. After the Matura Exam, the students who are not admitted to college or university can pursue vocational education programmes at our school, and they can become qualified shop assistants, finance and accounting assistants, logistics assistants.

At the end of the 3-year vocational education programme, students become qualified shop assistants. In the first year, students have practical classes at the school, and after the first year they have to take part in a 160-hour work placement during the summer. The students undertake these work placements at different companies (for example: Spar, Tesco, Praktiker, Dockyard). For this purpose, our students sign student contracts with several big firms and companies.

Vocational training schools train students aged 14/15 ? 18/19 in the field of services. Besides the general education, they mainly provide vocational training. Practical classes and apprenticeships is an essential part of their studies. At the end of the progamme, students are awarded a vocational education qualification but they do not sit the Matura Exam.

The post-secondary vocational courses are also basic form of education at our school. Students aged 18-20 can learn here for 1/1,5 ? 2 years to gain a vocational education qualification.

The main target groups of the students are:

• students having Matura Exam, but no vocational training
• students not admitted to college or university who would like to spend a year or two acquiring some practical skills
• students who are already qualified for another profession
• students not intending to obtain a college or university degree, but who need a vocational education qualification

Students of vocational education have several problems concerning their studies and school attendance:

• most of them are not motivated at all, and it is very difficult to get them to learn regularly
• a considerable percentage of the students come from socially disadvantaged backgrounds and present cases of dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia
• dropping out is another problem we have to face and fight against though we aren?t successful enough

3. Partner school from Turkey (Istanbul)

OZEL ESENYURT EGITIMDE RASYONEL ACILIM MESLEKI VE TEKNIK ANADOLU LISESI

Website:  www.eraokullari.com

About:  Our school is a vocational high school of health named ?ERA? in reference to the expression ?opening a new era? on educational system that has four grades from class 9 to class 12. The departments of our school can be listed as Nursery, Assistant Nursery, Emergency Medic, Anesthesia and Radiology.

In the emblem of our school, three dates are particularly underlined. 1453, 1923 and 2013. Whilst the first two dates have historical meanings for our nation, 2013 symbolizes the foundation date of our school which we see as a fresh break through in the educational system.

Our ultimate goal as a school to identify the need of well trained medical personnel in healthcare system and fulfill it with highly educated and qualified people. Our school performs with 276 male and 269 female, 495 students in total and 34 teachers excluding assistant principle and the principle himself.

Main lessons listed as, Turkish Literature and Grammar, English as foreign language, Profession Courses, Gymnastics, Information Technologies, Biology, Geography, History, Philosophy, Physics, Chemistry, Math, Religion and Morals and Psychological Counseling and Guidance.

Our school is located in a cosmopolite district called Esenyurt in Istanbul where Europe and Asia geographically meets and which was selected as ?Cultural Capital of Europe? in 2010. Esenyurt is also known as a metropolitan suburb that evolves continuously and hosts unique cultural mixture.

Our students mostly reside in Esenyurt or neighboring districts not more than 10 kilometers of distance from our school.

Average age in our school is in between 15 and 18. Our school has 226 male and 269 female, 495 students in total. Social economic status of our families can be identified as middle class. Our school has a minor group of students who are immigrant, handicapped or cohesion students.

Our school has 34 teachers in total. Most of our teachers have more than 10 years of experience who have MSc degrees, student oriented, idealist, open minded, far-sighted and visionary people.

Latest information technologies are being used proactively in our school, such as ANDROID based programming lessons are being held under the supervision of our informatics teacher. An interactive method of training is applied in our educational model using smart screens and electronic white boards.

4. Partner school from Greece (Kavala)

 6 GEL KAVALAS

Website:  http://6lyk-kaval.kav.sch.gr/

About:  Our school was founded in 1986 as Multi-directional Senior High School and in 2000 its name changed to 6th Senior High School of General Education. It is situated in the center of Kavala. This year the number of students that attend the school are 358, aged from 15-18 and there are 39 teachers of all the school subjects taught.

The academic performance of our students is very high and this is clearly depicted in the great number of students that achieve excellent marks in their report cards and also in the great number of students that enter University, especially in highly demanding Schools like Law School or Medicine School and in other Schools where special skills are required like the Arts School.

Curriculum in our school includes general education school subjects and optional school subjects.

General Education School Subjects:

• Religion Studies
• Ancient Greek
• Modern Greek language
• Modern Greek Literature
• Algebra
• Geometry
• Physics
• Chemistry
• Biology
• History
• Physical Education
• English
• Project
• Citizenship Studies

Optional School Subjects:

• Geology and Natural Resources Management
• Art
• Sociology
• Art History
• French
• German
• Drawing

The school is situated by the sea, near the center of the town and close to the port. Kavala, our hometown, is a small town in the region of eastern Macedonia in Northern Greece.

Most of our students? families are people of average income. At the same time due to our hometown?s location have also students that are immigrants from Albania, Bulgaria, Russia etc. Lately ships full of refugees from Syria leave hundreds of them in the port of the city in order to find a proper way to continue their lives. About a thousand are living in an old army camp next to our school. Their children will start to attend lessons in Greek schools next days. Some of our students coming from families with great financial problems (due to the economic crisis in Greece) are living at the limits of poverty. This fact means that our school plays an important role in the social and cultural life, by providing not only education but extracurricular activities, stimulating their creativity, facilitating the students, understanding of different cultures in a common European context.

We need to open our school to the world, to show to our students how real life is, to offer them the chance of a better life. During international projects our target groups will have the chance to get cultural exchange and grab the opportunity to learn the values promoted by EU. The only case for our students to get in touch with the foreign realities and cultures is to get involved in international projects.

It is our priority that our students not only gain academic knowledge in the various school subjects taught in our school but also acquire the skills and experiences needed in order for them to be ready to be incorporated in the future work market in Europe. Moreover our school?s teachers are eager to learn about new educational programs and teaching methods and to acquire skills that will make us more effective in our academic field.

Our students show great interest in academic knowledge and this is clearly depicted in the number of students that excel in all the school subjects being taught but are also interested in other fields like music, arts, etc. Most of them also participate in the school?s social activities very willingly.

In 21st century, it?s the most important objective for today?s education world to raise children with the skills and competences which are required by the global competition. Technology education and ICT skills are inevitable and it is a ?must? to accomplish this objective. The concept of teacher has changed in 21st century. Lately, the student centered teaching is preferred instead of traditional teaching which is teacher centered. It?s very important to bring the students into the forefront in the classroom so that they gain autonomy and self-confidence. Improving the quality of teachers, developing the in-service trainings, and keeping the students in the focus point of the educational policies are the most important missions. In 21st century, the most important objective for today?s education world is to raise children with the skills and competences which are required by the global competition. Technology education and ICT skills are inevitable and a ?must? to accomplish this objective.

Never to forget that in a world of rapid changes in all sectors ICTs also change lighting fast and our school follows all these changes in order to be comparative in modern societies’ demands and to offer the best opportunities to our students. Additionally music, art, sports are very important to us as they are a language that can be understood by everyone.