EUROPEAN SCHOOL HEADS ASSOCIATION

HEADLINE

Developing International Projects for Schools

On the 21st and 22nd of October some of our ESHA colleagues were involved in different roles in the gathering in Brussels of Developing International Projects for Schools (DIPS).

Paul Byrne represented the Irish perspective on the management of change in education.

Hosted by the Flemish department of Education the Flemish Education representatives welcomed participants and presented on the installing of a culture of evidence-informed practice at schools in Flanders.

In a dialogue and panel discussion the visions and perspectives of several countries were discussed on this, such as Spain, France, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Netherlands and Germany.

The International Education Strategy at Regional Level and the micro and macro effects were also a topic of enthusiastic conversations.

If you want to know more please contact Roslynn Main, Senior Administrator LFEE Europe Ltd Email: immersions@lfee.net

Creative writing in STE(A)M teaching and learning

We have reached the end of an exciting project that was aiming at making STE(A)M teaching more inclusive, enjoyable and participatory for all students.

During the 2 years of the collaboration, the consortium developed and tested a new model for teaching STE(A)M disciplines using the Creative Writing Laboratory (CWL) methodology. This is a form of using storytelling for STE(A)M education, by solving everyday life problems with a creative thinking approach and STEAM thinking.

The following six elements are necessary to build a CWL:

1. an original idea

2. a problem to solve via a STEM subject

3. an activity organised around solving the problem

4. a story, to embed your activity into a narrative

5. a narration, to make the activity, the story and the solution visible

6. a conclusion, to show everybody what your students have achieved.

When we talk about creative writing, it may mean creating traditional text, but it can also mean creating any other means of creative expression that includes a script, such as a comic, a podcast, a film or a series of photos. It is a well-established and effective way to add the ‘A’ to STEM and make it STEAM education. It is an excellent opportunity for students to showcase their skills and competences often acquired outside of school.

Collaboration

A CWL requires students to collaborate, and teachers to use student-centred teaching methods to make it possible. It requires the active support of school leadership. It often requires flexible time and space – going beyond the boundaries of the lesson and the classroom. It is likely to necessitate the engagement of experts or other participants, meaning that it is necessary to implement a whole school approach to make the engagement of participants beyond the students and teacher(s) possible. It often requires teachers – e.g. STEM and Arts teachers – to collaborate with each other and work in a team, and it needs collaboration opportunities and competences.

Learning organisation

Implementing CWLs is an excellent approach for schools to become learning organisations and to support students in understanding real-life problems that are close to them and may lead to not only a deeper understanding of these topics, but also may ease related stress or trauma. CWLs are also suitable for making a direct link between learning and assessment through students receiving immediate feedback that also includes the assessment of their transversal skills, especially creativity, creative and design thinking, collaboration and problem solving.

CREAM policy paper

ESHA was the main author of a policy deliverable that defines the necessary environment for such activities to be implemented at schools. Many of the necessary policies can be created at school level. In some other areas, higher level policy decisions are necessary. Either way, the CREAM policy paper supports school leaders in their decision making and advocacy. The recommendations are based on research done at the beginning of the project, partly by the ESHA team, and the experiences of pilots in Greece, Italy, Poland and Slovenia.

The key aspects that policy needs to consider are the following:

1. There should be measures and policies in place that promote and support the implementation of creative, arts-based methodologies in STE(A)M education.      

2. There is a need to support teachers’ collaborative work and mutual learning as a pre-requisite for successful creative writing laboratories in STE(A)M education.

3. There is a need to link real life and school curricula better together.

4. Policy and leadership practice should promote and support a whole school approach and open schooling.

5. Leadership should raise awareness of the benefits of creative, arts-based methods as a means of trauma-relief and support for well-being.

Available materials

The Policy Paper complements practical tools developed in the CREAM Project for education professionals who want to implement the approach. All materials are becoming available in English, Dutch, Greek, Slovenian, Italian and Polish through the project website.

If you want to learn more, you can also reach out to Eszter Salamon eszter.salamon@esha.org.

Bio-Streams – Co-creating school intervention for healthier lifestyles

A very successful co-creation workshop earlier this year provided an opportunity for school leaders from all over Europe to share their ideas on this topic. In the last few weeks, we have met students aged 9 to 14, and co-created ideas together with them using arts-based methods such as designing their dream school full of activities leading to better health and well-being, creating cartoon stories about health and well-being in their own lives, and using their imagination and associations using Dixit cards. We can say that children would love to have more and diverse opportunities for physical activities, for eating healthy, and for the school to collaborate with their families on these topics.

At the end of the month, our project team, accompanied by researchers from the University of Maribor responsible for ensuring the health-related content of the future interventions, will have a co-creation workshop similar that of the school leaders’ during the Parent Summit in Telavi, Georgia organised by our partner, Parents International as part of the outreach and collaboration activities of the project.

Programme for schools

Based on these, and a Delphi study happening in parallel and that many ESHA members have agreed to participate at, we will develop a programme for schools that can already be implemented in the coming 2025/26 school year. (The Delphi method is a process used to arrive at a group opinion or decision by surveying a panel of experts. Experts respond to multiple rounds of questionnaires, and the responses are aggregated and shared with the group after each round.)

If you are interested in implementing it, especially if you are a school leader in the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Denmark or Greece, please reach out to Eszter Salamon (eszter.salamon@esha.org).

SYNAPSES Academy podcast on Sustainable Citizenship in education

The SYNAPSES Academy presents a weekly podcast for school leaders and teachers. Experts talk you through different elements of Sustainability Citizenship in education in twenty-minute-long episodes. Topics covered include managing the school with a whole school approach, building a community around the school and internationally, building so-called ‘climate playgrounds’ and more.

Listen to the episodes on your way into work, during your morning cup of coffee or in the staff room during your break and let us know what you think!

Merging soil health & education in your country? Become a CoP leader!

17 community of practice leaders sought for across Europe

Connected to soil education or restoration? Having a record of community management? Get involved in Europe’s next sustainability hot topic: education on soil health.

ESHA participates in the Horizon project CURIOSOIL. This project aims to lay a foundation for soil health curiosity throughout Europe. CURIOSOIL ‘s piloting scope is 17 countries. Last week CURIOSOIL launched the recruitment of 17 Community of Practice leaders. You can become one of them.

Make a difference

Becoming a CoP leader in your country offers a (funded) opportunity to shape soil education at your national level. As a leader, you will guide a national group of stakeholders – including educators, environmental experts, and community leaders – to pilot and implement educational materials that meet your country’s specific needs.

This role empowers you to drive change in your community, forge connections, and spearhead collaborative efforts within your national context. If you are passionate about soil education and want to lead this innovative path, this is your moment to make a difference!

And further:

Contact us

For any inquiries or suggestions regarding the CURIOSOIL project and its contributions to the Soil Mission, feel free to reach out. We are happy to assist.

Myrthe Stienstra, myrthe.stienstra@esha.org

Harry te Riele, harry.teriele@esha.org

SuperCyberKids Learning Framework

Through research and expert consultation in education and cybersecurity, the SuperCyberKids Learning Framework was developed and is available on the project website. 

School leaders and teachers can also access the SuperCyberKids Reference Framework for the Integration of the Game-Based Learning Ecosystem on Cybersecurity into Curricula for Schoolchildren (aged 8-13) - Guidelines for Schools, also found on the website.

Online resources for teaching cybersecurity

The current focus is on developing the SuperCyberKids online platform, which will offer teachers and parents guidelines, lesson plans, and resources for teaching cybersecurity in an engaging, playful way.

ProBleu launches call for proposals to enhance ocean and water literacy in schools

ProBleu, an initiative funded by the European Commission, announces the opening of its third funding call to promote water literacy and ocean education in primary and secondary schools across Europe and associated countries.

With a focus on implementing the Mission Starfish "Restoring Ocean and Waters" by 2030, ProBleu seeks to engage school communities in educational initiatives and promote responsible stewardship of our oceans and freshwater resources.

Key Dates for the Funding Call:

• Call Openning date: September 20, 2024

• Submission Deadline: November 21, 2024, 23:59 CET

• Results Announced: January 24, 2025

• Contract Signatures: January 31, 2025

• Project Start Date: February 3, 2025

• Project End Date: January 31, 2026

Schools can apply for funding for projects under two main categories: ocean/marine projects and freshwater projects. Each project should address topics such as reducing plastic pollution, promoting renewable ocean energy, or improving water governance. We also encourage schools to include citizen science activities in their Blue School project.

Network of European Blue Schools

The goal of these funding calls is to expand the Network of European Blue Schools (NEBS), promoting ocean and water literacy across Europe. Schools applying for ProBleu funding are encouraged to start the accreditation process to become part of the NEBS. Only the schools that receive funding will be automatically accredited as Blue Schools, connecting them to a wealth of resources and further funding opportunities.

Application and more information

ESHA director in the podcast of Wolf Academy

She shares some of her visions on education in our dynamic world and the relation with well-being in this interesting dialogue with Cormac Noonan.

Well-being is seriously under pressure for school heads, teachers and students, not only because of the workload and the demands for results, but also for the pressure coming from the uncertainties in our world, such as the geopolitical situation, the sustainability issues and all sorts of uncertainties for the future such as finding a job or a house to live in.

SYNAPSES Summer School

A weeklong professional development course on a subject that you are truly passionate about, and that under the Greek sun, next to beach and pool. How does that sound? The SYNAPSES summer school, promoting Sustainability Citizenship, was this and maybe more for the ten school heads that joined us on this journey.

The summer school started on Sunday 7th July, when teachers and school heads from across Europe joined us to learn about our initiatives and to exchange good practices. On the first day, participants received six keynote presentations on a range of topics from Sustainability Citizenship, Schools in the age of AI, Empowering communities of educators and Learning on the Go.

Living lab

On the second day, the focus was on the meaning of Sustainability Citizenship, and how teachers could transform their school into a living lab. This was developed through collaborative and interactive exercises. For school heads, it was very insightful to see how, internationally, teachers and school heads approach project questions in different ways… After lunch, participants enjoyed a guided tour and a sunset view of Cape Sounion.

Culture of continuous learning

On the third day, we had our own program with school heads. While teacher participants learned about the Challenge Based and Inquiry Based Learning approaches, school heads worked on leading a learning organisation and creating a culture of continuous learning. The day was kicked off by a short online presentation by Loes van Wessum and continued with a series of exercises aimed at reflecting and brainstorming in teams.

Campus visit

In the evening participants were warmly welcomed to Ellinogermaniki Agogi’s campus. They had the opportunity to experience first-hand the research done at CERN through a dedicated exhibition hosting CERN’s LHC Interactive Tunnel. The tour continued with a demonstration of the seismometer and the Foucault pendulum, concluding with a visit to the Astronomical Observatory.

Curriculum and Sustainability Citizenship

On Day 4, July 10th, school heads focused on curriculum alignment by critically assessing their current incorporation of Sustainability Citizenship in the curriculum and looking at student-centred approaches. During her presentation in the morning, Wieneke Maris gave ample examples, which came back up as inspirational for the rest of the week.

In the afternoon, participants that chose to do so, visited the Acropolis Museum and the temple of Parthenon. This was followed by a social dinner in Athen’s city centre. Others enjoyed a free afternoon at the resort.

Energy efficient school buildings

On Day 5, July 11th, teachers and school heads were mostly together for a shared programme. The day started with learning about energy efficient school buildings, finalizing plans for implementation in their schools that they had prepared and improved during the week. The day ended with a reflective workshop on the week’s activities and an information session on EU funding opportunities.

In the evening, all summer school participants enjoyed an evening meal together, accompanied by a band and dancers, dancing and singing to Greek music.

Implementation

On the final day, July 12th, participants were already packing their bags, but before it was time to go, they had the opportunity to present their plans to the group – what do they want to implement when going back to their school?

Curious? There are photos, videos and they will all be on the ESHA and SYNAPSES Platforms soon.