Inclusive classroom - Portugal - Detailed description

PROSVETA – SOFIA FOUNDATION

and

 INSTITUTO POLITÉCNICO DE SANTARÉM

Teacher Training Courses

 
The primary school classroom – effective teaching approaches for an inclusive classroom through NFE tools and resources

COURSE OVERVIEW

Every individual is unique, equally worthy and has the right to education. The inclusive classroom meets everybody’s needs and respects the students’ right to live according to their beliefs, customs, practices and established behavior rules. The Inclusive Classroom respects diversity and student engagement and agency. The teacher in the Inclusive Classroom has the  3Hs - the heart (commitment), the head (critical knowledge) and hands (practical strategies). Globalization and migration have brought together people from different ethnic origins, religious backgrounds, beliefs, traditions and languages. However, sharing a common space does not automatically result in overcoming the boundaries of historically constituted communities; it does not necessarily involve opening yourself to diversity, trying to understand differences, valuing diversity and building common grounds for dialogue. But we live together and we should not only tolerate this diversity, we should value it as an opportunity through which we can learn from one another in order to build stronger, more dynamic societies. Children’s rights, diversity, tolerance, empathy, non-violence related issues and non-formal education (NFE) teaching approaches have become even more important considering the diversity of our societies resulting from the migration flows in recent years and the long periods of distance learning due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Schooling could play a key role in overcoming the historically developed negative attitudes to human differences and the lack of life communication and citizenship skills resulting from distance learning. The realization of this role suggests that teachers have the relevant knowledge, skills and tools.

This 7-day course will empower primary school teachers with the skills and knowledge how to organize relevant training sessions for their students so that the teaching process meets everybody’s needs. Students will become more open-minded and acquire active citizenship skills. The course is the result of an Erasmus+ partnerships - cross-sectoral school education project Young Learners Embrace Social Inclusion and Social Involvement (YESI). The partners - Prosveta-Sofia Foundation, IP Santarem – Portugal and AENAO – Greece, developed a Teachers’ Toolkit comprising 38 training resources distributed in 3 modules: Children’s Rights - Human rights, Diversity and Social Inclusion, and Active Citizenship and Social Involvement. Participants in the training course will have free-access to the ready-to-use training materials. Each topic is accompanied by a number of multimedia objects, e.g. animated cartoons, video clips, filmed drama performances and discussions, simulations, case studies as basis for discussions, interactive e-games, etc. Multimedia objects are ready-to-use materials meant to support teachers' work as mediators in the trainings. The multimedia resources are described with the corresponding characteristics as learning objects in the Toolkit.

After participating in the training course participants will be supported in the practical implementation of the newly acquired skills and competences. They are expected to deliver trainings to their students using the topics in the Teachers’ Toolkit which they will be taught how to use. We will provide mentors for all teachers who will be at the participants’ disposal during a 6-month-period after the training course.

MAIN OBJECTIVES

The course aims to support teachers in:

1. Getting deeper in the specifics of the Inclusive Classroom’s major characteristics.
2. Learning what the 3 Hs of the inclusive teacher are.
3. Getting the knowledge of basics in Children’s Rights, Diversity and Involvement education through the topics in the Teachers' Toolkit.
4. Mastering skills which will enable them to discuss with their students questions on existing notions of human differences in modern society and run relevant activities choosing from the ones suggested in the Teachers’ Toolkit considering the local context.
5. Getting to know non-formal education teaching approaches and start using them not only in the suggested civic education trainings but also in the routine teaching process.
6. Responsibly accepting a code of behaviour so that all their actions and interactions bear respect to students’ individuality by participating in the course training sessions together with a diverse group of European teachers.
7. Learn more about the challenges Portuguese teachers have faced regarding the use of the Teachers’ Toolkit through the planned sessions with the involvement of Portuguese teachers who have piloted the training topics.
8. Learn how to work in international teams through the group and pair activities.

 
TARGET AUDIENCE

This course is open to: all teachers in primary schools, trainers, school educational counsellors, career counsellors, school psychologists and other school staff.

DAILY PROGRAMME.

The standard programme comprises 7 days. The first day is dedicated to getting to know each other and the structure of the developed Teachers’ Toolkit, to introduction into non-formal education teaching approaches and cultural activities. The last day is about follow up – instructions how to implement the suggested trainings with students, how to seek and receive support from mentors. Participants are expected to arrive one day before the start of the course and leave one day after the end. In case there is no lockdown and it is safe for both sides, the host organization could organize:

- visits to a local primary school in Santarem or Entrocamento who have already used the Teachers’ Toolkit;

- cultural program with visits to Lisbon and Sintra.

The course venue is Santarem – Portugal where our host and co-organizer Instituto Politecnico de Santarem is located. The course is also offered in Sofia – Bulgaria and Thessaloniki, Greece.

Day 1

- Оrientation and information about the venue and the city of Santarem.

- Getting-to-know each other - networking activities

- YESI project and structure of the Teachers’ Toolkit

- Presentation of Europass Mobility Certificate

- Fears and expectations session

- Welcome dinner (optional)

Day 2

- Course introduction

- Effective teaching approaches from non-formal education

- The inclusive classroom - characteristics

- Children’s right - Human rights module – introduction

- Simulation 1 – participants step in the shoes of students and participate in a training session from the Children’s right - Human rights module ChR_HR12 (topic: The right to justice and law)

- Simulation 2 – participants step in the shoes of students and participate in a training session from the Children’s right - Human rights module ChR_HR7 (topic: The rights of disabled children)

- Daily evaluation

Day 3

- practical workshop – participants prepare a training session making use of one of the topics in the Human Rights section and deliver it to the rest of the group

- Sharing good examples and experiences – discussion with a local teacher who has participated in the YESI project and has piloted the TM with their students

- Introduction into the Diversity section (13 topics)

- Daily evaluation

Day 4

Simulation 1 – participants step in the shoes of students and participate in a training session from the Diversity and social inclusion module DSI11 (topic: Bullying_social inclusion )

- Simulation 2 – participants step in the shoes of students and participate in a training session from the Diversity module DSI4 (topic: Religious diversity)

- Daily evaluation

Day 5

- practical workshop – participants prepare a training session making use of one of the topics in the Diversity and social inclusion module and deliver it to the rest of group

- Sharing good examples and experiences – discussion with a local teacher who has participated in the YESI project and has piloted the Teacher’s Toolkit with their students.

- Introduction into the Identity and Active citizenship section (12 topics)

- Daily evaluation

Day 6

Simulation 1 – participants step in the shoes of students and participate in a training session from the Identity and Active citizenship module IAC6_1&IAC6_2 (topic: Active Citizenship in respecting and protecting animals: outdoor and indoor activities)

- Simulation 2 – participants step in the shoes of students and participate in a training session from the Identity and Active citizenship section module IAC3 (topic: Active Citizenship and the protection of the environment)

- cultural exchange – visits to sites of interest in the region

- daily evaluation

Day 7

- planning follow up activities: course participants are expected to deliver trainings to their students in the period after the training course. They will be guided and supported in this process; will get instructions how to seek and receive support from their mentors and how to provide feedback.

- Europass Mobility certificates – discussion of knowledge gained and skills acquired

- Final evaluation

- Validation of learning outcomes and certification ceremony

- first-hand experience of an inclusive society - guided visit to Lisbon.

Optional activities (within a 10-day program)
- Visits to local schools in Entroncamento and Santarém which have delivered trainings to their students making use of the Teachers’ Manual topics – observation of trainings, discussions with teachers and students.

- Extra Cultural activities/ guided visit to Lisbon and/ or Sintra.

METHODOLOGY

The training course is based on the use of non-formal education methods as an approach for delivering the contents. The general delivery method during the course is simulation of real lessons with students. During the 7-day training course there will be almost no lectures. Participants will, most of the time, step in the shoes of their students whereas the trainers will deliver the contents as suggested in the Teachers’ Toolkit. This will provide trainees with first-hand experience how to deliver the trainings to students after attending the course. The simulations will be accompanied by discussions on different scenarios of delivering the training sessions suggested by the participants.

The pedagogical methods that we use are based upon experiential training, group and peer activities, learning-by-doing and good practices’ exchange.

Teachers will learn about and participate in implementing a diverse number of non-formal ways for delivering contents in which students are active participants, e.g. simulations, role plays, guided drama activities, theatre of the oppressed, interactive video resources, Oxford-style debates, group and pair work, mind-mapping, creating artistic productions – collages, drawings, dances, poems/ prose, etc.

Local Portuguese teachers who have previously used the Teachers’ Toolkit and have delivered the suggested trainings to their students will participate in specialized sessions during which they will talk about their experiences and provide some first-hand tips and support to course participants. Local visits to the schools would be organized in case this is safe for both visitors and host schools.

The training team is multinational - experienced trainers from Bulgaria, Portugal and Greece, who have participated in the design of the Teachers’ Toolkit and previous teacher training sessions within the YESI project.

SESSIONS PLANNED AND PRE-REGISTRAION

You can find below the sessions planned for 2021 and 2022. Considering the situation with COVID-19 pandemic, all dates are provisional. If none of these dates suits you, we may organize an additional session for your school if there are at least 8 participants interested, so feel welcome to contact us at prosveta_foundation@prosveta.bg to let us know about your needs.

For pre-registration (2021 - 2022) fill in your data at https://forms.gle/C8DRfn7HhxP53Rcv9  and we will send you a confirmation for pre-registration.

27.09.2021 – 03.10.2021

28.03.2022 – 03.04.2022

26.09.2022 – 02.10.2022

COSTS AND ERASMUS+ FUNDING

Course fee: EUR 80 per day per participant : EUR560 for the standard 7-day training course.
Certification and support fee: EUR 50-100 per participant depending on the group size and services required.

ERASMUS+ FUNDING
Primary school teachers, trainers, school managers, pedagogical advisers and any other staff of education organizations are eligible to receive an Erasmus+ grant covering all the costs including travel, accommodation and daily subsistence, cultural activities and all fees. The training course is designed to be fully funded by Erasmus+.

CERTIFICATION AND VALIDATION OF LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the course, each participant will receive a certificate of attendance and a Europass Mobility Certificate.
We will support the participants in the certification process  by delivering a special session devoted to Europass mobility certificates, as well as in the validation of learning outcomes process by providing mentors to all trainees during the implementation process when they will deliver trainings to their students using the Teachers’ Manual topics.
We will provide photos of the training course and a selection of videos that can be used for visibility and dissemination purposes. The Тeachers’ Toolkit and all digital resources will be freely available to all trainees for prospective trainings and re-dissemination among colleagues and students. The Тeachers’ Toolkit is available in English, Portuguese, Greek and Serbian.

WHO WE ARE

The training course in Portugal is organized by the consortium  Prosveta-Sofia Foundation - Bulgaria and Instituto Politecnico de Santarem – Portugal (Prosveta – IPS Consortium)

The training sessions will be hosted by Instituto Politecnico de Santarem (OID E10165803) through its Higher School of Education.

THE HIGHER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION is one of the five faculties in INSTITUTO POLITECNICO DE SANTAREM. The Higher School of Education of Santarém (ESES) is an institution of tertiary level providing academic training for degrees of First Cycle of Basic Education, Childhood Education, Social Education, Cultural Animation and Community Education, Education and Communication Multimedia and Visual Arts and Multimedia. ESES also delivers training courses in order to meet the professional, civic and cultural needs of teachers and society. ESES promotes innovative practices for teachers of all educational levels in different areas with civic education and multimedia communications being among them. ESES has broad experience in international and national projects related to continuing professional development of teachers. The consortium between Prosveta-Sofia Foundation and Instituto Politecnico de Santarem has been organizing teacher training courses since 2018.

PROSVETA-SOFIA FOUNDATION is a non-government non-profit organization founded in 2007 as a legal entity with non-profit public benefit. Its mission is to support the modernization of education at national and international level, and work to improve its quality. It supports the implementation of leading European and world standards in Bulgarian school education through various initiatives.

Prosveta Sofia Foundation has extensive experience in conducting training and awareness seminars. For its 14 years of existence it has organized some 700 workshops with teachers on current educational problems concerning the teaching and learning process in pre-school and primary school, as well as the implementation of modern methodological approaches in teaching basic subjects taught from 5th  to 12th grades.

Prosveta-Sofia Foundation has been subcontracted by the Ministry of Education of Bulgaria to run a number of projects.

The experts and associates we work with are experienced in providing teacher trainings and designing educational contents for all school education stages, in designing scripts for multimedia objects which are being outsourced to multimedia companies, etc.

Prosveta Sofia Foundation has sustainable interest in civic education projects and trainings. We have organized some 40 seminars for more than 1300 Bulgarian teachers related to the subject area making use of a teaching aid entitled “Being a citizen” http://www.bglog.net/nachobrazovanie/41654.

In 2015 Prosveta-Sofia Foundation launched the Otherness project www.othernessproject.eu – a KA2 Erasmus+ project, a cross-sectoral partnership in school education, being the coordinating institution. In the project we created a manual with 48 topics which are meant to support teachers in providing civic education trainings. In 2018 we launched coordinating the My Europe – Your Europe – Your Say project http://me-you-us.eu/en/home/ which created a Handbook for teachers with 66 training resources on human rights, diversity and active citizenship education. In 2019 we launched the YESI project http://yesii.eu/en/home/ which designed a practical guide for primary school teachers to support them in creating inclusive classrooms meeting students’ needs and empowering them with skills and knowledge to be responsible citizens.

OUR QUALITY STANDARDS

We are committed to Erasmus Quality Standards and comply to the Basic principles of the Erasmus Quality Standards. Participating organizations are also expected to comply to the Basic Principles when planning project activities.

• Inclusion and diversity:

Prosveta – IPS Consortium - This is the major focus of the contents of the structured course “The primary school classroom – effective teaching approaches for an inclusive classroom through NFE tools and resources”.

Participants’ schools are advised to ensure fair and equal conditions for all potential applicants who will be selected to participate in the course involving teachers with different backgrounds and planning a massive implementation of newly acquired skills in the school through in-service seminars for the rest of the teachers and whole-year students’ training activities with the training resources presented during the training course.

• Environmental sustainability and responsibility:

Prosveta – IPS Consortium - topics of environmentally sustainable and responsible behaviour are being addressed in the training course as separate training sessions in module Active citizenship (AC) and social involvement, namely training resource 3: AC and the protection of environment, and training resource 6: AC in respecting and protecting animals.

Participants’ schools are advised to make maximum use of the funding provided by the Programme to support sustainable means of travel, i.e. travel by train whenever possible. Participants will be advised to travel by train from Lisbon to Santarem, and all planned cultural trips will be organized by train.

• Digital education:

Prosveta – IPS Consortium – the designed Teachers’ Toolkit, which is to be presented to the participants is available online. The lesson plans are accompanied by numerous digital resources designed with cutting edge technologies.  After participating in the training course, the participants will be provided with mentors who will support them through virtual cooperation in the process of delivering trainings for their students.

Participants’ schools will benefit from virtual cooperation after the training course, which is part of the training agreement between the school and the training provider consortium.

• Active participation in the network of Erasmus organisations:

Prosveta – IPS Consortium is an active member of the Erasmus network by providing training activities for participants from different European countries and by providing opportunities for exchanges of good practices between course participants and local Portuguese teachers through the planned visits to schools.

Through their participation in the training course, Participants’ schools will gain experience and skills related to internationalization of their schools, skills how to work in international teams and project management skills. They will have practical opportunities to pair up for future projects with the visited Portuguese schools and the other participants’ schools.

We are committed to Quality trainings and comply to the principles set in the European Quality Charter for Mobility:

1. Information and guidance:  Potential candidates for mobility will be offered equal access to reliable sources of information and guidance.
2.  Learning plan: The learning plan, which will be drawn up by the sending organization and us, as course organizers, and the participants, will outline the objectives and expected learning outcomes, as well as how these will be achieved and implemented.
3.  Personalization: the mobility undertaken for education or training purposes will be tailored to fit in with the personal learning pathways, skills and motivation of the participants and will develop or supplement them.
4.  General preparation: Prior preparation of the participants will be recommended. It will include thematic preparation (on human rights, tolerance and citizenship topics) and cultural aspects of the country of the venue.  Participants will receive a list of online materials to read prior to the training course.
5.  Linguistic aspects: Participants will be offered some linguistic preparation regarding the topics to be discussed during the course by the course organizers.
6.  Logistical support: Logistical support will be provided to the participants, regarding travel arrangements, insurance, accommodation, etc.
7.  Mentoring: The training organizations will provide schemes such as mentoring to advise participants while delivering trainings to their students making use of the knowledge and skills gained during the training course.
8.  Recognition: Participants will receive appropriate documents demonstrating their participation in a credible way, e.g. certificates of attendance and Europass Mobility certificates.
9.  Reintegration and evaluation: On return to the home country, participants will be given guidance on how to make use of competences and skills acquired during the training course.
10.  Commitments and responsibilities: The responsibilities arising from these quality criteria will be agreed by the sending and hosting organisations and the participants.