1 What is Comenius?
Comenius is a Lifelong Learning Programme within the Agency for Mobility and EU Programmes. It focuses on all levels of school education, from preschool and primary school to secondary schools. The Comenius Programme encourages cooperation between educational institutions across Europe, the mobility of participants in the educational process, foreign language learning, development of tolerance, multiculturalism, flexibility, creativity and various skills, and fosters the idea of European citizenship.
2 How did your school include in the project, and why?
The Agency for Mobility and EU Programmes organized a contact seminar in Naples, in 2009. The headmaster of Primary school Pušća, Mr. Arsen Šarunić, applied to this seminar because he wanted to include the school in some new projects. In this seminar he connected with the participants from eight other countries and they wrote a joint project. The project was praised, but, unfortunately, was not funded. However, the planning of new projects was continued. Persistence paid off a couple of years later, in January 2013, when a preparatory seminar was organized in Antalya, Turkey. It was attended by eight countries which came up with Europe's got talent project. This project was accepted. In the summer of 2013, funds in the amount of 22 500 EUR were approved to finance the project, especially the mobility of pupils and teachers.
3 What countries are included and what is the common objective?
Turkey, England, Norway, Poland, Italy, Portugal, Latvia and Croatia are included in Europe's got talent project. The main objective is entrepreneurship education, i.e. introducing pupils to the idea of entrepreneurship and raising awareness about the demands of the world of work. The project helps pupils in developing knowledge, skills and abilities they will need on the 21st century European labour market. Is also represents an important opportunity for the development of children's creativity, competitiveness and employability. The final objective of the project is creating a virtual company.
4 What countries have you visited so far?
The project started in September 2013. Turkish school, as the project coordinator, hosted the first meeting. During 2013-2014 school year, we also visited England, Portugal and Norway. Next school year, 2014-2015, we are going to visit Poland, Italy and Latvia, and host all other participant countries in March 2015.
5 What tasks do you have to do in the project?
The project was introduced to the pupils via presentation which described participant countries. After the presentation, a series of activities related to the project started in our school. We created a logo, a mascot, an anthem, made New Year's cards...
Our anthem, Give me your hand, was chosen as the official anthem of the project. We regularly decorate our school’s Comenius Board, have web conferences via Skype with other participant schools, and publish our presentations, photos and videos on the Project website (http://deoestevao1.wix.com/egtalent#!new-year-acti). During the meetings in each country, new tasks are distributed for the next meeting. Some of the tasks so far have been making presentations and films. We made a short film in which we presented Croatia and our educational system. While making the film, we visited Maslacak preschool in Janusevec, Ban Josip Jelacic High School and Baltazar Adam Krcelic College of Business and Management (both in Zapresic), and Krapina Neanderthal Museum in Krapina. We have also visited the Municipalities of Pušća and Dubravica to find out basic information about the educational structure of the population in our municipality, and the possibilities of solving the unemployment problem. We were interested in the possibility of starting our own companies (small businesses, family farms, etc.) and wanted to find out what are the most common activities in our area.
Having received the information needed, we decided to establish a virtual company, Horvat Family Farm, and we chose Zagorje turkey for our virtual product. Zagorje turkey is a turkey breed native to Croatia. Breeding is allowed only in our region (Brdovec, Dubravica, Pušća, Zaprešić, Jakovlje, Bedenica) and Krapina-Zagorje County.
6 How do your pupils react to the project? Is their effort rewarded?
Pupils gladly participate in all activities. They like web conferences with other schools because they have an opportunity to speak English outside the classroom and meet children from different countries and cultures. The biggest reward is a trip to some of the countries. Of course, not everyone gets that opportunity, but the non-material rewards are equally important. This project enriches pupils both on educational and personal level. They develop their creativity and skills, make friends, and gain invaluable experience that will remain with them for a lifetime.
7 Would you recommend other schools to get involved in such international projects? What will you remember as the best part of this experience?
We would certainly encourage other schools to participate in such international projects because they bring new dynamics and freshness to the educational process. The best part is getting to know your pupils and colleagues better through different forms of work, such as teamwork. As a result of all this, you get better communication and stronger bonds between all participants in the educational process.
