MOTIVATION III – THE 21ST-CENTURY STUDENTS

ContextWe are 5 European schools that are bonded by the same purpose: to provide nationwide knowledgeto our students for them to acquire new skills, increase their creativity and be more motivated andengaged in school activities.With this project, we will improve our own knowledge by learning from each other and putting in practice a plan to diagnose and prevent Early School Leaving (ESL) by using the extracurricular activities offers that each of our schools has presently. We believe that we will be successful in this motivation because students will be involved, and this is the best way for them to reach out and get in contact with the European reality and identity, improve new relationships, be open-minded towards different cultures.Every school will participate in this project with its own experience and, therefore, be the host of the other schools by showing their example of good performance, showing the others their methodology and the results that students can get by attending a specific club or activity at school -implementing after-school clubs for students. Serbia will present the results and methodology of the photography club, Romania will show how their environment club works, Poland expertise will be on the ICT club. As for Spain, the drama club will be the highlight and Turkey, with the robotics club will share their experience.The goals of this plan are:To increase STUDENTS’ stimulation towards school (by motivating students’ awareness of self-esteemand safety, developing their identity and increasing personal aptitudes)To diminish ESL amongst studentsTo plan a common long-term program to fight ESLTo increase the number and quality of extracurricular activities in each schoolTo promote crucial aptitudes for the 21st-century student – ICT, digital know-how, teamwork, socialcommunication and social abilities.To cultivate students’ sense of innovationTo facilitate cultural interexchangeTo raise students and teachers’ cultural awareness through dialogue and partnershipParticipantsThe target groups will be 13 to 14-year-old students, in a total of about 300 students. Likewise, teachers from every school – around 150 – will be participants in the project.Approximately 125 students and 50 accompanying teachers will be involved in the mobilities; the students will be part of the target group. The social backgrounds, interests and motivation shown by the students will be the major guidelines for selecting the participants. Our focus of interest will be on students who are at risk of abandoning school.ActivitiesThe first LTTE will be organized in Serbia. Teachers and students will join this first meeting and debates and seminars will be prepared for teachers .Students will be involved in workshops aboutphotography for which they will be assigned specific tasks. Serbia, the coordinator country will provide the lectures for teachers about the subject “Motivating students awareness of self-esteem and safety”. Later on, workshops on the same topic will be run with teachers and students altogether.Likewise, LTTA 2 we will be organized in Romania, where teachers will take part in presentations about “Developing children’s identity”. They will sit in on workshops on the issue, and they will learn about environmental education as well.Poland will organize LTTA3, about “Strengthening children’s sense of commitment” and ICT club activities.LTTA 4 will have Spain as the leader and “Increasing personal aptitudes” will be the topic under analysis and the drama club activities will be shown and shared.At last, LTTA 5, organized in Turkey, will pay particular attention to “Foster parent-teacher-student effective communication and draw a plan of action”, as well as robotics for beginners.ResultsWorkshops, support materials and lectures, meeting reports describing the activities and conclusions, methodologies for putting the clubs in practice and running them, exchanged practices, attendance certificates, pictures taken by STUDENTS, photos of activities, videos, presentations, articles, pictures, interviews, Facebook page, website and Twinspace, .ImpactShort and long-term advantages will be numerous as a result of participating in this partnership. Our human resources will improve their tolerance, as well as their effective knowledge on how to implement and use after-school clubs. After observing all clubs from all partners in the first year, the second year will be used for implementing new clubs in each partners’ school.These new activities will make us reach major objectives like increasing student stimulus towards school, their sense of innovation and cultural awareness. Students will be more engaged in their roles; feel more motivated to develop their autonomous and voluntary work at school and will be catapults to increase other students’ interest in school activities too. We also expect that ESL will diminish by applying our long term program to fight it.