How to learn what HOME actually means

BEYOND THE SCHOOL PROJECT

Project development and implementation:AntikomplexVyšehradská 49128 00 Praha 2Czech Republic+420 221 979 212info@antikomplex.czwww.antikomplex.cz

Technical support and distribution of the project abroad: Centre for Modern Education Ltd. Pobřežní 34186 00 Praha 8Czech Republic+420 234 705 524info@cfme.net www.cfme.net

Would you like to join?• So far the project has been joined

by several hundreds of schools and organizations in the Czech Republic, as well as in other European countries including the United Kingdom, Ger-many, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Ro-mania, Lithuania and Latvia.

• Theproject’swebsite andothermate-rials are now available in English, and more language versions are being pre-pared.

• Wewillbehappyifourprojectinspiresyour work. If you want to cooperate withusandhelpusdeveloptheprojectfurther, we will be even happier.

Project website: WWW.KRAJINAZASKOLOU.CZ

Partner of the project:

This project has been fundedwith support from the Euro-pean Commission. This communication reflects the viewsonly of the author, and the Commission cannot be held re-sponsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

design: signatura.cz

Skills• Teamwork

• Perseverance

• Textwriting

• Communicationwithinthefamily,acrossgenerations

• Explainingone’sviewofeventsthroughstorytelling

Where?• Most often, the project is carried out in schools.

Ideally, it becomes part of history, geography, language(textwriting)andICT(preparingphoto-graphs for a website or an exhibition, website crea-tion) classes.Mostoften,however, schools realizeit as an extra-curricular activity, e.g. as a  special seminar

• Theprojectcanalsobeimplementedbyyouthclubs

• Olderpeople can take itupaswell.Theoptionofprojectsorganizedwithseniorsstillneedstobeex-plored…

What age? • 10yearsandolder

• The project can be carried out with different agegroups–ofcourse,atdifferentlevels.Forten-year-olds it is a game with pictures, with older children personal interpretation plays a more significant role.

How long?• Itisa long-termproject,usuallytakingabouta year.

It can be organized during a  “project week”, butlonger time provides for more interesting results.

Project-based educationMany teachers say: “We don’t have time for suchprojects,wehavetoteach.”Butprojectteachingisalsoteaching, often better than the traditional approach. Projectsbringnewperspectivestoteachingandlearn-ing: they encourage cooperation between subjectsand long-term cooperation between students working ona  commonproject, theyprovide theexperienceofhavingsuccessfullyfinishedone’swork…Thisissome-thinga traditionalcoursecannotoffer.

Home• Thisisa veryopenproject,openingschoolstothe

local community. A  school is not only a  building with classrooms; it is also an integral part of the lo-cal community.

• Throughanauthenticexperienceofexploringtheirenvironment students build a relationship towards it. It is not about nationalism or patriotism, but about being naturally and more deeply involved in local life.

1. Collectoldphotographs– ideally in thechildren’sfamilies, from collectors, old people or a local her-itage committee, because in this way children will also learn some stories connected with the pictures. Museums,archivesandbooksshouldonlybecon-sulted as a second option.

Thethemescanvaryconsiderably–fromchangesin a  school to the changes in transport to social changes.Firstofall,itisnotnecessarytocomparea  very old photograph with a  recent one – even a  picture made two years ago can provide some interestingcomparisons.Second,itisnotevennec-essary to compare the same places; the important thing is to have a clear idea of what is being com-pared (a local festivity, lifestyle, etc.)

2. Look for places where the old photographs were taken or look for the same situations. This is themost adventurouspart of theprojectwhichgivesstudents the opportunity to see their towns and regions with new eyes. Such experience encour-ages curiosity and a desire to learn more about the region.

3. Confrontingtwopictures isnotenough.Themostimportant part is creating commentaries for them. Thisisnotonlyaboutexperiencingthecountryside,butalsoaboutturninga changeintoa story:Whathaschanged?Why?Isitgood?Whattodoaboutit?It is difficult to tell the story in such a way that eve-rybodyunderstands.Butthisisthegoal–tocreatea new, living history that makes life more intense and interesting.

4. Therecanbea widerangeofoutcomes.Everythingdependsonthepossibilities.Witha schooloryouthproject,however, it isgood tohavea  specificgoal,such as an exhibition, a  brochure, a  book and, of course, a  website. A  multimedia website featuring videos, sound and images fading into one another is availableinEnglishatwww.krajinazaskolou.cz

Theenclosedmemorygame,basedontheworkofbasic and secondary school students in the Czech Republic,isanotherexampleofprojectoutcome.Itis also an illustration of the diversity of themes you cancoverintheBeyondtheSchoolproject.

Basically, the method is really easy.

HOW TO DO IT?

BENEFITS

PROJECT ORGANIZATION

Knowledge• Localhistory

• Geography

• Language

• ICT

How much does it cost?

• It depends.Themethod is simple and canbe ap-plied at almost zero cost. It is, however, always ben-eficialfora projecttoreceivesomesupport–suchasaneLearningcourseorsomewebtools.Projectsalso benefit from having a  clearly defined goal, such as an exhibition, a book, a calendar. It is nice when more schools come together (e.g. across bor-dersorindifferentregions)andfindanopportunityto meet.

• Oftenschoolsraisefundsatthebeginningtolaunchtheproject,andthencontinueworkwithmainte-nance costs.

• Fundsareraisedfromthepublicsector,suchastheState, local administration, foundations, the EUetc., as well as from sponsors.