Your life - your story

"The ""Your life - your story"" project was a two year project between 6 organizations from Poland, Portugal, Turkey, Slovenia, Italy and Greece, however the project was framed within a long-term perspective and planned with a view to achieve a multiplying effect and sustainable impact. The main objective of the project was to give disadvantaged adults positive learning and cultural experiences and, to motivate them to lifelong learning, to promote their creativity. Tutors developed the digital storytelling method to engage/motivate adult learners through traditional and non-traditional teaching methods. The project aimed to combine the tradition of storytelling with contemporary technical tools, raising the key competences on EU-enlargement topics and on European common values, increase the IT and English language skills, the sense of European togetherness by offering disadvantaged adult learners (older learners, immigrants, unemployed, refugees) and teachers opportunities to learn about the EU with use of storytelling as a method. The aim of this project was also to create high quality learning opportunities, through the exchange of good practice examples.A common study program was developed with the partner organisations during initial and ongoing partnership meetings and included IT and English worksops, cultural awareness about the European Union, the participating partner countries/organisations and our respective clients groups. The learners created their own EU digital stories, presented materials during the workshops, this way the intercultural dialogue among EU members and the raise of civic keys was promoted. They worked on different subjects using digital storytelling, which brought new benefits for skills improvement. Both learners and teachers learned to organize plot of stories with pictures, using first person narratives, voice recording, editing the sound according to sequence of the event, add subtitles to the stories in English.Each partner organised activities for different learners during the project and all partners organised one meeting/workshop in their own country. Participants gained new learning experiences during the project. European cooperation helped them to share knowledge and understand other cultures better. Learners' mobility and motivation was enhanced and, the project was also a way to combat prejudice, racism and xenophobia by raising awareness of a multi-cultural/multi-racial EU.The project had a good geographical balance, involving 6 countries from Southern, Northern, Eastern, Weastern and Central Europe, which ensured a real European outreach of the project."