ERASMUS SEMINAR IN ROME ON OUTDOOR EDUCATION,24-28 JUNE 2024

The Member of the Pedagogical Team of the Environmental Education Center of Vamos (Environmental Education Center for Sustainability),Adriana Basiou ,participated in a seminar on Outdoor Education in Rome, Italy, from June 24 to 28, 2024. This mobility took place within of the Erasmus+ KA1 program (Erasmus+ Accreditation), which has been approved by the State Scholarship Foundation (Approval No. 2023-1-EL01-KA121-ADU-000125830) with the co-financing of the European Union.

 

Within the framework of the Erasmus+ Accreditation project, the members of the Pedagogical Team of EEC of Vamos participate in Seminars (Structured Courses) in European countries.

In Rome, Italy, the seminar was organized by the organization "INFOL EDUCATION ROME" and  the theme was "Outdoor Education". Teachers from Greece, France, Romania and Slovenia participated in the course.

Infol is a provider of Erasmus courses approved by the European Commission. It organizes courses for teachers and training professionals, internships for vocational schools in Rome and Greece with Erasmus+ funding.

During the seminar:

The participants introduced themselves and their schools and talked about the concept of Outdoor Education from many perspectives (Definition of outdoor education and its benefits, historical perspectives, the role of outdoor education in modern pedagogy, building a foundation for outdoor teaching)

The seminar was then held outdoors in the green park of Villa Borghese, where participants discussed and reflected on curriculum design for outdoor learning and aligning outdoor activities with educational goals by integrating core themes into outdoor lessons. They then split into groups and designed an outdoor lesson plan and a new game.

Moving outdoors, participants were taken to the Museum of Zoology and worked on the theme of fostering environmental awareness and sustainability by connecting students to the natural world. The participants worked with Ultima Generazione ecological activist Chloe Bertini, on a variety of activities that can be done outdoors with students and how to introduce concepts such as "Green Washing" and "Fair Trade", while also visiting cooperative shops and fair trade businesses that do not experiment on animals but have an ecological and sustainable consciousness and practice. In addition, there was extensive discussion on problems such as the change of logo and campaign in companies that continue to damage the environment and how we can be informed about such practices.

In addition, a cultural visit was held on the theme of "Water Management", during which participants were guided to historical underground reservoirs and a discussion was held on the ancient compared to the modern use and management of water resources.

The objectives achieved with the seminar are:

-Better and wider understanding of the principles and benefits of outdoor education.

-Improvement in outdoor curriculum design aligned with educational goals.

-Development of additional outdoor teaching skills and environmental awareness.

-Learning how to cultivate a sense of environmental stewardship in students.

The huge and green park of Villa Borghese, which includes an artificial lake, a theater, bicycles, a clock that works with the movement of water (1 of 2 in the world), a zoological museum and much more, is a one of many evergreen parks in Rome that provide free recreational space for residents and visitors.

The participants received as a gift, flower seeds that attract bees, in order to facilitate these important pollinators of nature.

Participating in Erasmus+ programs is a unique educational and cultural experience that promotes peaceful coexistence and mutual understanding and helps to improve our educational practice, while opening new horizons.

From the classroom to the park: the power of Outdoor Education

 Human beings have always been profoundly influenced by nature. From prehistoric times to the present day, being outdoors has played a crucial role in our cognitive, behavioral, and emotional development. Recognizing this, educators are increasingly turning to outdoor education to enhance learning experiences. This innovative approach not only provides high-quality education but also fosters a deep appreciation for the environment, crucial in our era of climate change.

The new edition of the course “Outdoor education: a new way of teaching and learning” took place in Bologna from 30/06/2024 to 06/07/2024. The participants came from all across Europe, with Alexis and Georgios from 10o Gymnasio Iraklioy and Fotis from Environmental Education Centre of Vamos in Greece, Ruth, Esther and Aida from Escola Guillem Fortuny and Montserrat and Patricia from Escola Collserola in Spain, Urska from Osnovna šola Podčetrtek in Slovenia and Ľubica, Martin, Marek and Michal from Evanjelická spojená škola and Martin and Ľuboš and Peter from Stredná odborná škola stavebná, Tulipánová 2 in Slovakia.

 

Outdoor education extends beyond forests and natural landscapes. Urban environments, with their diverse settings, also offer rich learning opportunities. For this reason the aim of this course was to prove that educations can use non-formal methods like Outdoor Education to teach a great variety of subjects (math, literature, art, music, science etc) both in natural and urban settings. This highlighted the versatility of outdoor education, demonstrating that it can thrive also by taking a short walk around the block of the school.

To prove this point a whole day was dedicated to both settings. The second day of the course was dedicated to practical activities in a local park. Teachers engaged in various educational games, which not only inspired them but also provided practical tools for their own classrooms. These activities were focused mainly on how to foster collaboration and inclusion through experiential learning and non formal methodologies. On the fourth day of the course participants headed to the city centre of Bologna and played an interactive treasure hunt, discovering some hidden gems around town, learning about local history and culture and engaging in missions and challenges!

One of the course's highlights was also the creation of personalized outdoor lessons tailored to each teacher’s specific group of students. After studying the 10 principles of Outdoor Learning developed by Kurt Hans, educators designed detailed outdoor sessions. These sessions were then shared with peers for feedback, ensuring they were well-rounded and effective.

The Bologna course was a testament to the effectiveness of experiential outdoor learning. Participants experienced firsthand the benefits of this teaching approach and acquired the skills needed to implement it in their classrooms. The range of activities explored during the course demonstrated that education can thrive outside traditional classroom settings.

Participants left the course not only with a wealth of new knowledge but also with cherished memories of fun, hands-on activities. They gained practical skills and insights that will transform their teaching practices. The experience underscored the incredible potential of outdoor education to make learning engaging and impactful for students.

Discover more about this course  here.

A visit to an Eco - School in Prague during Erasmus+

Video from Erasmus+ Course in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Video from Erasmus+ Course in Florence, Italy

E book about Erasmus+ course in Helsinki

Συμμετοχή σε σεμινάριο Erasmus+ στο Ελσίνκι

Click to read this book, made with Book Creator

https://read.bookcreator.com

PARTICIPATION IN ERASMUS+ SEMINAR IN HELSINKI ''LEARNING AND ACTING FOR A BETTER FUTURE'' 8-13 AUGUST

 You may see an e-book about this, here.

You can watch a relevant video here

 In the framework of the implementation of the Erasmus+ KA1 program, "Climate Change, Refugees and Immigrants" (approval number from the State Scholarship Foundation 2020-1-EL01-KA104-078696), implemented with the partnership of the Ecological Initiative of Chania and the Environmental Education Centers of Vamos and Anogeia, the Head of the Education Center for the Environment and Sustainability of Vamos , Fotis Pontikakis, participated in an Erasmus+ Seminar in Helsinki, Finland from 8-13 August, 2022.

The topic of the Seminar was "Environmental Education: Learning and acting for a better future".

The organizer of the Seminar was Europass Teacher Academy, which organizes such seminars in 27 regions with over 12,000 participants every year.

The Seminar in Helsinki was attended by Primary and Secondary teachers from eight countries in total: Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria, Greece and Romania. The presenter was the Finnish teacher Mia Torttila.

The objectives of the Seminar were:

• To prepare teachers for the educational challenges posed by environmental degradation and sustainability and to fill relevant knowledge gaps.

• To enable teachers to communicate with their colleagues from other countries about environmental issues.

• To highlight the importance of teaching these subjects to young people.

• To make the members of the educational community more environmentally friendly.

• To present ways to engage young people in actions concerning sustainability and the environment.

• To promote practical steps and measures that can be taken to make a school plastic free.

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At the beginning of the Seminar there were presentations of the participants and their schools, and also of the Finnish education system which is considered one of the best in the world. Other parts of the seminar included:

• A workshop using Lego blocks in groups to visualize environmental problems and their possible solutions.

• Presentation and discussion about ''Fast Fashion'', the endless changes in fashion that result in a waste of natural resources and money.

• Workshops of Positive Pedagogy techniques, with the aim of not focusing only on the problems, but drawing  hope for action and solutions to the problems from positive experiences .

• Presentation of UNESCO's 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

• Discussion of the ‘’Green washing’’ phenomenon, the advertising and promotion of various corporate practices and activities as "green" without proof, through vagueness and irrelevant references.

• Discussion about learning through Problem Solving and also about Phenomenon Learning (Learning through Phenomena/Experience).

• Technical workshops such as ‘’ Debate’’ and «Six hats" on how to solve a problem with a multifaceted examination.

• Various pedagogical techniques and methods were presented and used, such as Cooperative Learning,’’ Think-Pair-Share’’ technique, etc.

• In addition, there was an extensive discussion about the Eco Anxiety that is present in today's youth who are experiencing the intensifying ecological crisis and ideas and techniques of Positive Pedagogy were presented to deal with it through positive actions.

The two guided tours organized as part of the Seminar were particularly interesting, one in the center of the city of Helsinki which helped us get to know the city, its monuments and its history, and the other to the islet of Seurasaari, which is located on the city outskirts and is accessible by bus, followed  by a wooden bridge crossing. This islet is an open museum surrounded by greenery, with squirrels roaming around and dozens of wooden traditional rural houses preserved as they were 100 years ago (see also related video).

 

It is also worth mentioning the impressive modern central public library OODI, in the center of Helsinki, a cultural jewel that also shows the importance that Finland gives to culture and education (see a short related video). This library includes areas for isolation and study for individuals and groups, special areas for children, recording studios and video games for young people, etc.

Finally, a lesson plan on waste was created as part of the Seminar:

LESSON PLAN FOR WASTE

A) PURPOSE: The purpose of this lesson plan is to inform the learners and make them aware of the issue of waste.

B) TIME REQUIRED: 10-12 teaching periods (1 teaching period per week).

C) LEARNING OUTCOMES:

a) Knowledge about the waste problem and possible solutions,

b) Problem analysis skills, ability to recycle and reduce waste,

c) Attitudes: Interest in the environment and willingness to take action by reducing litter, reusing things and recycling.

D) COLLABORATION

a) Voluntary group of teachers and trainees, 

b) School administration, 

c) Parents, 

d) Waste management unit, 

e) local environmental Non-Governmental Organization 

E) METHODOLOGY: Project method, problem solving method, theater game and puppet show, exploratory method 

F) DEVELOPMENT STEPS / SCHEDULE 

1. Initial discussion between teachers and learners – Decide on the topic 

2. Definition of individual topics (sub-topics) related and creation of working groups (eg paper, organics, aluminum, soft drink cans). 

3. Group planning and research – Visit to a local waste management facility, environmental NGO visit to school and discussion, paper recycling workshops, creating dolls from reusable materials. 

4. Critically analyze in each group the findings and the information gathered. Creation of bins for material recycling in school premises. 

5. Preparation of each group for presentation with theatrical game, puppet show, music, Powerpoint, video, comics, posters, etc.

6. Presentation in plenary or in a public event of the results of the groups' research. Discussion and evaluation of experience, feedback.