Last Tuesday we had online presentations on Education systems with our partners from Poland and Romania. It's always a pleasure to share our work with one another :)
We would like to give our hearty thanks to the principal, teachers at
International European school* Warsaw and host families for
their warm welcome and hospitality and also to our Polish partners for the great variety of
activities we carried out there (street interviews, treasure hunt, talk to Spanish students at University, trip to Lodz, neon
and graffiti workshops, photography exhibitions, presentations about globlalization, visits to museums, FRONTEX and a TV studio.).
It was a very eventful and intense week. Interesting activities and wonderful partners eager to share experiences and why not, some laughs as well!! We really enjoyed a lot!.
On 18th November our students took part in
the International mobility to Poland. We met our partners from Poland and
Romania in Warsaw and we worked together for a week on the topic of
globalisation.
Sunday.
Our students met their host families and
started living together for a week. They will speak most of the time in English
and will have to adapt to their habits.
The teachers met as well and joined to have
dinner together.
Monday.
We started working on globalisation:
- First of all, a survey
among the Polish population. We went to the University of Warsaw and, in
groups of four or five, conducted a survey on globalisation: economic changes,
population’s satisfaction with the new economic system, behaviours, etc
- After that, the students carried out a treasure hunt in the city
centre.Working together, they had to find historical elements of the city that
tell a lot about its past and present life.
- We met together and talk about what we had learnt and our
first impressions.
Tuesday.
We met at school and travelled to Lodz, a Polish city well-known because of its
urban murals painted by artist from all over the world. We went by bus and were
able to stop to contemplate the most important ones. Later, we had lunch in a
kind of urban art gallery where a workshop on graffiti was prepared. Working in
groups our students expressed the meaning of University by painting.
Wednesday.
We met at school where all students presented what they had been working
on in their countries: how music has changed because of globalisation,
gastronomy, what we know about the others, etc.
Later, we were divided into two groups. One of them went to FRONTEX, The
European Border and Coast Guard Agency, an agency of the European Union headquartered
in Warsaw. The students were explained which the purpose of the agency is and
about problems related to migrations. The other group went to see a Photography
exhibition with the aim of seeing how Poland has changed in the last 50 years.
Thursday.
We continued working in groups at school. Polish, Romanian and Spanish students
shared their knowledge and talked about their research on globalisation. Later,
we visited the neon museum, where we heard a very interesting explanation about
the use of neon advertisements in the communist period. Then we did a very
creative workshop: if global economy were communist today, what
would the adversitements look like? We were said to create a sign for Facebook or Google.
After having lunch, we split into
two groups again. The group who hadn’t visited FRONTEX the previous day, went
for the talk there, while the other one went to the exhibition.
Later on, we met in the city centre and went to a Polish TV where a TV series
about Casimiro the Geat was being recorded, therefore we had the opportunity of
doing something really exciting and of getting to know a little bit about the
history of this country.
Friday.
Time for conclusions. We worked together and completed a survey about what we
had learnt as well as evaluation questionnaires. We met up with the principal
and teachers to say goodbye. Then, students went with their families to spend
the rest of the evening together.
Last week, our partners from Romania and Poland came to Málaga (Spain) for our first Transnational meeting.
For several days, we were talking about the project in detail and without a doubt, we make a good team; we really enjoyed working and being together. A very fruitful meeting sharing knowledge, ideas and opinions.
Here you are some pictures of their stay in Málaga and the meeting schedule we planned for their visit.
The mission of the International European School is to prepare its pupils to meet the challenges of the 21st Century as citizens of a united and democratic Europe and the world, who are aware of their rights and are open to all races and cultures.
The school aims to become an exemplary centre for teaching and learning, a school that sets and achieves world class standards in multilingual education. This is based on the school's Pastoral and Social Education programme, and on accreditation to international educational organisations. The school aims to provide each pupil with an excellent foundation for the further study of national programmes within the framework of the International Baccalaureate.
The friendly and welcoming atmosphere is central to the school's Pastoral and Social Education Programme. There is no place at school for bullying, intolerance, violence, drugs or indifference to the problems of others.
Pupils are made aware of their rights, based on the school rules and on international declarations. Every pupil has the right to learn about their own religion at school.
Native and proficient English-speaking staff with the highest pedagogical qualifications ensure that each pupil receives individual attention in classes with a maximum number of twelve pupils.
Teachers assess the work of pupils according to objective criteria outlined in the school's Assessment Policy. Pupils also learn to assess their own work in order to develop a self-critical approach.
English is the language of instruction and communication in class. Every pupil also has the opportunity to study Polish language and culture. Other languages which can be studied are French, German, Spanish, Italian and Russian. Pupils can also learn about their own language, culture, traditions and history.
The Polish basic curriculum is taught in the Primary and Middle Schools. In the Middle School and High School, pupils are also prepared and entered for International British IGCSE and Advanced level examinations. The school's international curriculum enables pupils to make a smooth transition to similar schools in other countries. British examination certificates are recognised as Higher Education entrance qualifications by the most prestigious universities in Europe and throughout the world.
The educational philosophy developed by the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) to serve the needs of multicultural environments has always been a rich source of inspiration for the school.
This includes all three of the IBO's programmes: Primary Years Programme (PYP), Middle Years Programme (MYP) and the IB Diploma Programme. The school is authorized to offer the Diploma Programme of the International Baccalaureate Organization and to present candidates for examination.
In IES Warsaw we have an Multicultural environment that facilitate the communication in different languages. Our pupils have very different cultural backgrounds, so at IES we have to make an effort to understand the background and stimulate the quick adaptation of the pupils in the new class environment. Understand the particular needing of the pupils and develop Teacher skills is our first mission and in order to reach the goal we have all the time to improve our skills and cooperate with different Institutions and ONG, understanding and applying the new media technology to our communication and teaching methods.
The exchange will represent a unique possibility to understand better our Culture, to compare, to raise awareness about differences between the mindset of people from different European region and to encourage the pupils to exchange experiences and opinions.
The collaboration with teachers will also be enhanced and the best practice exchange will enlarge Teachers knowledge and enrich the professional background.