COREcoles: Construisons la resilience collective dans les écoles

<< Background >>The COREcoles project was born as a response to the visible repercussions of the COVID-19 health crisis on children’s psychological well-being and educational development worldwide. Even when the pandemic seemed under control, its consequences continued to linger, manifesting in classrooms through signs such as apathy, anxiety, or difficulties in concentration. These challenges were compounded by new crises, such as the war in Ukraine, which directly affected the learning processes of thousands of children.In this context, a lack of adequate pedagogical resources to collectively address these challenges was identified. This is why the project was launched: to provide teachers and educators with concrete tools to cope with the difficulties affecting entire educational communities, while at the same time fostering collective resilience.Equally, the project acknowledged the importance of promoting inclusion, diversity, and the development of key skills—both digital and socio-emotional—through a horizontal and collaborative approach.<< Objectives >>The CORECOLES project had as its main objective the promotion of inclusion and diversity in the field of education by training and supporting teachers and educators, in order to help them develop key competences. It specifically aimed to strengthen both individual and collective resilience in primary schools, by creating more equitable environments capable of responding to crisis situations.Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the lack of adequate pedagogical resources to address collective trauma and safeguard the psychological well-being of children in socially vulnerable situations became evident. This is why the project focused on the development of didactic materials for teachers working with pupils aged 6 to 12 in disadvantaged contexts, in order to improve their capacity for adaptation and recovery.In addition, the project sought to reinforce the digital competences of teachers and school communities, recognising their importance in providing an educational response to adverse and changing contexts.<< Implementation >>The COREcoles project implemented a wide range of activities structured around four main areas of work.We carried out desk research and collected good practices on individual and collective resilience, which resulted in two multilingual pedagogical manuals. More than 70 activities were co-designed, tested with teachers and pupils, and subsequently adapted. The tools were formatted, printed, and made available online in five languages.We organised international training sessions, both online and face-to-face workshops for teachers and educational communities, reaching more than 2,000 participants. We also produced 40 pedagogical videos, subtitled in several languages, to accompany and complement the activity sheets, ensuring better understanding and implementation.All resources were evaluated and then disseminated during local multiplier events and two international conferences, thus ensuring their impact and transferability.<< Results >>A toolkit to develop individual resilience in children in situations of social vulnerability as well as in teachers. It includes a story-based manual on the foundations of resilience and 25 pedagogical activity sheets (15 for working with children and 10 designed for teachers), using approaches such as forum theatre, art therapy, and non-formal education.A toolkit to strengthen collective resilience in schools and communities, consisting of a narrative manual, 26 pedagogical activity sheets, and 20 explanatory videos accompanying the sheets to facilitate their implementation.A digital toolkit that adapts collective resilience activities to remote and online contexts, including 20 digital pedagogical sheets, 20 explanatory videos, as well as digital stories created by the children themselves, narrating tales of resilience.All materials were translated, formatted, disseminated in both physical and digital formats, and are available free of charge on a multilingual platform.