Education for Sustainable Consumption - A Global Challenge
Our project has been very assertive because the subject is essential in our world and several subjects are concerned : it is a multidisciplinary topic which can be taught in different ways, by using a lot of different practical activities.We ran this project in a very planned and organised way by implementing varied activities concerning the main aims.
First, we organised our three years work with a GANTT chart: This GANTT chart has been modified several times according to the process of work and to the surveys we did after each step. We did some changes on the first plan: for example, at the beginning of the project,we decided not to create a website because our activities were very efficient and clear on the twinspace of our project. All the documents, movies, pictures are on the twinspace.
During each LTT, we had a meeting between coordinators in order to focus on the situation,evaluate the activities and to decide on new tasks for the next LTT. Those coordinators meetings were very useful. We used emails, facebook and regular skype conference between two LTTs to communicate,which was also very efficient.
The methodology used in this project is based on the use of ICT : surveys on google drive, exchanges of ideas on different google drive forms, kahoot, plickers, issuu, joomag, use of QR codes... We produced a lot of videos. Students learned how to build a survey, an interview ,how to use web2.0 tools in education and how to edit their films. They also learned how to use google drive, how to collaborate to run a task.
We think that communication between students is essential, we tried to create a team spirit as much as possible, and each time we organised an LTT, we mixed the students to create international groups so as to encourage them to know each other and improve their English and produce together.
We also think that learning is better with “peer to peer” : that’s why we encouraged our students to share their new knowledge and skills with younger students. This way of working has been a guideline during the three years of the project. We ‘ll explain it in theme 4.
Theme 1: Here we are
Logo and etwinning courses
We organised a logo contest to choose our logo. Each teacher got courses on etwinning and twinspace from the project coordinator, Teresa Lacerda, who is an etwinning ambassador. Those courses were useful to implement an efficient twinspace. https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/21854
On twinspace, some forums were opened to exchange information about cultural events . For example, we tried to open a forum about easter in our countries. But it was quite unsuccessful because very few students went on it.
Getting to know each other
Before each LTT, we created a google slide where students could introduce themselves, add pictures: urging students to get in contact before the LTT was a key condition for its success. Thanks to this, from the beginning of meetings, the atmosphere between most students were very warmful. (For example : https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22094 or https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22097 )
We also shared the recipes of our traditional dishes and published an e book on issue that can be seen on the twinspace of the project. https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22055
We created a “survival dictionary” in our eight different languages : we wanted to help the students to know the common and important words and sentences to exchange with every student. This dictionary has been printed in 70 copies. Before each LTT, the students who were involved in it could get it to help them during their stay. The grant of project management was used for it.
Theme 2 : Energy sustainability
This theme was central and we decided to have a lot of practical activities.
Energy patrol
We used google drive to lead different surveys in every countries in order to collect information and compare them. We had surveys about waste, energy (at home and school), about prices in our countries, about different ways of life…. The results were summed up in different posters. The posters were printed with the grant of project management. We also had a lot of inquiries that can be seen on the twinspace : https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22047
Renewable scale models
The grant was also used to build our models and solar devices. All those productions can be seen on pictures in the twinspace of the project. Schools have all worked a lot on this theme. Those who had the skill to reach some of the points shared their productions with the others, for example Turkey built a solar vehicle called “Solar strip” : this model can be viewed on https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22051
Ecological garden
Each school has created an ecological garden, that can be seen on the twinspace of the project. Some of those gardens have been created during the LTTs.
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22053
Visit, learn, disseminate
We all tried to associate the largest number of students to the project, not only during the LTT, but also during the “normal” school time : we organised a lot of visits to the most relevant places of each country, we organised different events at schools ( competition about collecting waste papers in Turkey, eco-market in Reunion Island, Portugal or Spain, special sustainable education day to promote sustainable way of life). All those activities can be seen on the twinspace of the project Pages”.
(https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22056)
Theme 3 : Consumption
The students have learned that adopting sustainability to our life is a way to save money.
Advertisement
Each school produced different advertisement. The storyboards of those advertisements were written in international teams during the 2nd LTT in Hungary. Each country had the task to produce one storyboard for the LTT in Reunion where a contest was organised to choose the best advertisement. Some countries had more advertisements, all this work can be seen on the twinspace and on the youtube channel.
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22069
Local supermarket audit :
In Romania, we organised a market audit in international groups in a nearby mall. The groups of students had different missions: for example, one group had to compare the price of a homemade dinner, with a ready meal wrapped in plastic pack. They just realised that it was cheaper to cook on their own than to buy ready meals; they also became aware that it consists of low fat. Other groups had to study the sustainable environment politics of the mall. All that work was practical and concrete because we all believe in inquiry-based learning.
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22082
Eco-Bank and consumption / Old professions
We organised eco-markets in several schools : young people are so influenced by media and publicity that we thought they could discover second-hand objects can be a good opportunity. They could learn that overconsumption is not a good solution and that having “fair trade” is a good option to save money. When we organised those eco-markets, we had to fight against a priori resistances of our students! But later, they were all very happy to have done it. We also organised a kind of “troc” during different LTTs : the students involved had to come with something they want to exchange.
During some LTTs, the students have discovered old professions during visits or short performances. Moreover, the name of the LTT in Portugal was “Innovate, copy the past”. The idea was to involve the students, in international groups of course; to create a firm, based on old professions, but in a sustainable way. They exchanged their culture, their tradition, in order to get an idea of a new firm, which could re-use traditional things and skills modified in modern life. They explained their management plan , their strategy, their aim and how their firm would promote a sustainable life in their presentation. They worked several days on that activity and in the end, we had 14 groups, 14 different presentations. All of them presented their work and ideas and we voted to choose the best idea (using Plickers). The day after, teachers from university and managers from sustainable companies came to the school to listen to the 5 best presentations and to give advice to the students. It was very formative. https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22084
What do we buy ? ITC to manage personal budget :
The Portuguese team organised a special day in Portugal. Older students created games and they presented to younger students. The younger students earned money according to their success in the games. This money was a fake money, created by the older students. But with it, the young students had, in groups, to choose how they would spend the money : they chose between different ways of living. They argued and learned.
All the materials of that activity can be found on twinspace : (https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22083)
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22085
Theme 4 : Education
Learning scenarios
We developed a lot of learning scenarios: our aim was to promote education of younger students. Learning by peer to peer was an aim of the project.
First, during the LTT in Reunion, the students, in international groups, imagined different apps they could create. Then, they learned to use the basalmiq software, which is a software to create app. Then, the schools who had the technical skills to do it developed the app: Italian team created “Erasmus project App” and Portuguese team “Elekatch”. Those apps are for tablets and smartphones. They were tested in LTTs (In Romania, in Portugal and in Hungary) . https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22089
Other countries created different games : memory games, quizzes...etc. All those games were tested by our students during the LTTs. They all can be seen on the twinspace page.
Learning scenarios implementation
All the scenarios that we created were tested later on younger students.We urged our students to share their new knowledge and skills with younger students. This way of working has been a guideline during the three years of the project.
We organised different learning days in each schools where there are primary classes. Primary school and secondary school students were mixed for those days. In Portugal for example, the younger students learned in two different groups : those with ICT, those without. In the end, they compared the results.
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22090
Evaluation of learning scenarios
Learning scenarios were created and implemented with and without the use of mobile devices by Biology students of the last year of secondary level, involved in Erasmus +, eTwinning project "Education for Sustainable Consumption, a global challenge" and applied in classrooms of 3rd and 4th grade from primary
level. The primary school students involved in the study answered a pre-test and a post-test being verified the highest rate between those who used the mobile devices.
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/1699/pages/page/22091
In addition, Romanian students observed the implementation of the learning scenarios which were presented by the other partners in the 7th LTT in Hungary. They took notes and presented their evaluation after the learning scenarios.