ERASMUS+ EMPOWER FOR EMPLOYABILITY

Geniko Likio Pentapolis participated in the Erasmus+ project "Empower for Employability" during 2018-2021. Students learned about different learning types and learning styles, testing themselves and developing strategies and examples for successful learning. Moreover, they investigated aspects of motivation and how to become more successful by boosting motivation with relation to body language and power poses as well as its importance for success, via motivational speakers and the students delivering their own motivational speeches The student workshop about “How can school and formal education become more motivating”? was organized using teaching methods such as snowballing and discussion groups, and triggered a debate on the topic by engaging the participants. Two workshops, run by a teacher of humanities and a STEM teacher, explored how project-based learning can engage unmotivated students in knowledge and skills acquisition. Finally, positive thinking and mindfulness for pupils were boosted by reflecting on a traditional Italian story and its morale so as to inspire optimism. 

 

Our assessment was qualitative and we had students express their thoughts and feelings as well as impressions on their learning diaries on one hand and the twinspace forums and post-it walls on the other. Some quotes about what they have learnt: “We learned about different learning types and which one suits us. We learned to collaborate with people who don't speak our mother language and even though it was a bit more difficult, we managed to overcome this problem. We made new friends and we created bonds.”

Dissemination 

The project blog http://empoweremployability.blogspot.com/

our FB page https://www.facebook.com/lykpentap/ 

and the Instagram hashtag #empowerforemployability 

As the major dissemination activity, we had a one-day seminar whereby students and teachers presented their experience, after the MEP Maria Spyraki discussed the impact of Erasmus+ projects on the occasion of the celebration of 40 years of Greece in the EU. 

At the local education board website 

>http://srv-dide.ser.sch.gr/didenew/?p=20316&fbclid=IwAR1YrJB7Ibv3sQD-HLo3_FbEY4rQLHnhoLpCl-_W2PODIZhd7YoGaQfaRzM 

There is a congratulations note about our dissemination event 

>https://serraikanea.gr/med/145194-serres-i-maria-spyraki-kentriki-omilitria-se-diadiktyaki-imerida-tou-gel-pentapolis.html 

Throughout our project the Greek participants had the opportunity to develop 

•    Linguistic skills due to the use of the English language both as a medium of communication in an authentic context and as a medium of academic performance 

•    Cross cultural communication skills 

•    Flexibility and resilience to cope with unpredictable circumstanced 

•    Independence in learning since they were allowed to take initiatives so as to work online throughout the pandemic 

•    Increased self-esteem as they had not only to cooperate with international peers, but also to organize and present their work in written and oral form for the purpose of dissemination in school presentation before an audience of more than 100 people 

•    Self-reflection skills while working collaboratively during the meetings as well as on the eTwinning platform 

•    Problem-solving skills to effectively overcome new challenges that were raised. 

•    A more sophisticated attitude to what learning is, what it consists of, how it can be managed and approached. 

•    Their entire personality and maturity due to the new experiences they had, from using the metro to move in a capital city (Bucharest) as they come from a rural area, to being able to interview a Member of the European Parliament during one of the dissemination events. 

•    A European perspective of their role as future citizens with respect to cultural differences and diversity. Thus, as part of the project, the students: 

•    developed a programme that leads to developing personal competencies in the students as planned, however, the fourth module was only partly and digitally implemented 

•    were given the CPC to use for their applications in order to enhance their chances on the labour market. 

•    The certificate focuses on 4 aspects that teachers have identified as the most problematic areas: time management, reflecting yourself, lifelong learning and project management (digital version for the last one) 

•    became aware of the importance of learning and life-long learning in particular by getting involved in the planned actions of the corresponding meeting as described above 

•    learned how to monitor and evaluate their actions

 

Developing Personal Competencies