Lifelong Learning Programme

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basic information

Title of the Project
Equality in Diversity
Brief description
The main goal of the project is for students to be open to a multicultural Europe by: Expanding the horizon of thinking of students as citizens of a united Europe; Increasing awareness of the cultural heritage of the partner countries; Formation of civil consciousness. Methods: Education cooperation and interdisciplinary approach; Method of thinking experience; Learning by doing; Identification and sharing of experiences between partners. Main products: Collection-book with educational materials “Alphabet of Tolerance”; 10 Golden Rules of Tolerance; DVDs, paper and clay art models; Recipe book and video clip; Culinary show with traditional national dishes – with the participation of the students’ parents and the project partners; The project gave new directions in teaching a second language.
Country
Bulgaria
Year
2009
Target Language
English
Sector
Higher Education
Further Information

THE INITIATIVE PROMOTER’S PERSPECTIVE

Background

Knowledge should be a foundation for skills and competences necessary for regular people to live in the global world. The project’s main product “Alphabet of Tolerance” is a collective creative product. The teachers set the framework and the students have the liberty to get creative, developing skills for critical thinking and choice-making, developing strategies for overcoming obstacles, developing sense of responsibility, etc.
The project is directed towards students at age 15-18. The target language is English.

Objectives

Opening people to multicultural Europe through:
- Expanding the horizon of thinking of students as citizens of united Europe
- Increasing the interest of students in the cultural heritage of their own countries and of the countries of the partner organizations
- Encouraging the tolerance towards “the different”
- Forming a civil consciousness and the belief that we are equal regardless of the skin color, religion, nation, etc.
- Involving students in activities connected to the development of products with informative and aesthetic value, necessary for the social integration of the individuals and their personal development.

Approach

Bulgarian teachers launched competitions for: drawing, essay, poem, translation, recipes for increasing the personal and social tolerance, the 10 golden rules of tolerance, Top 10 of the most tolerant and the least tolerant individuals in human history.
Methods:
- Pedagogy of cooperation and interdisciplinary approach
- Method of the "thinking experience"
- Learning by doing
- sharing and exchanging experience among the partners

Results

- Collection-book with educational materials “Alphabet of Tolerance”
- 10 Golden Rules of Tolerance
- DVDs, paper and clay art models
- Recipe book and video clip
- Culinary show with traditional national dishes – with the participation of the students’ parents and the project partners

Why the European Language Label?

The Foreign Language School “Nikola Vaptsarov”, Shumen, Bulgaria applied for European Language Label in order to ensure larger visibility of the project idea, the developed products and the achieved results.

Activities following the award of the European Language Label

The project created a bridge towards reality, meaning that the main project product can be used for work inside and outside the English classroom for discussions, role plays, translations, etc. The project gave entirely new directions for the teaching of a second foreign language.
The collection-book “Alphabet of Tolerance” has the potential to be produced as a multilingual material if the materials are translated in other languages: German, French, Spanish, Russian, Bulgarian. Additionally, the content of the Alphabet can be expanded with new concepts and materials.

Assessment of the Impact of the European Language Label

The European Language Label award recognised the efficiency and innovation of the project and its products.

Recommendations for future applicants for the ELL

Initiatives that apply for European Language Label should rely on innovation and achieved impact. The award criteria for the award should be taken into consideration and the project description should explain how it addresses them.

THE NELLIP NETWORK’S PERSPECTIVE

Consistency with European Policies in the field of Language Learning

The "Equality in Diversity" project is in consistency with the European policies in the field of language learning because the project activities are directed towards promotion of new approaches to language teaching and learning.

THE NATIONAL AGENCY’S PERSPECTIVE

Motivations

The choice of the Bulgarian National Agency, Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC), was based on the compliance of the project with the published award criteria. The project was innovative and there were proofs for solid impact achievements.

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Comments on this Case Studies

Your comments are welcome


Date: 2014.10.09

Posted by Mayte Martín (Ireland)

Message: Really good project. I have been involved in university seminars to prepare students to go abroad for the Erasmus year but I think it is much better to raise awareness earlier (and have fun with it).

Date: 2014.09.30

Posted by Richard Rossner (UK)

Message: This was an excellent idea for a project, especially for youngsters just getting used to the idea of a multicultural Europe. Words like \'tolerance\' and \'prejudice\' are not often discussed in school, and the competitions and other activities described here show how awareness of these issues can be dealt with in a motivating but instructive way.

21 December 2014

Audio- video presentation of the NELLIP project

An audio- video presentation of the NELLIP project has been created and made available in the Information section of the NELLIP portal. To access the presentation please click here: http://nellip.pixel-online.org/IF_intro.php.