5.3 Objectives

Sorry, but I can resist the temptation to show you my way to EDEN.


5.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE PARTNERSHIP
- What are the concrete objectives of the partnership?
- Explain what subjects or problems you intend to address.
- What approach will you take to achieve your objectives?

The concrete objectives of the Virtual EDEN project are: to improve motivation for learning and learning to learn new skills, to develop an innovative method of team work - CLIL, to promote the learning of a foreign language, to focus on linguistic diversity, to promote teachers’ ICT skills and knowledge, to make mathematics more engaging.

The theme of the Project is the natural environment with its existing potential dangers and the optimum ideal state for the land to reach its fullest potential. The project will encourage the students and teachers involved to adapt a more active pro-ecological attitude of their environment in Europe who are aware of the value of natural environment.

The attractive style of conducting lessons and School Partnerships should encourage openness and curiosity of the world, therefore this should improve motivation for learning. The International programme is comprised of some of the youngest pupils so that they become aware of the importance of the environment of Europe from an early age.

Students’ tasks will be focused on: 1. The definition of the ideal state of the natural environment, 2. The definition of the actual state. 3. The comparison and analysis of the results. 4.Presentation of the final results. 5. Creation of The Virtual EDEN and /or foundation of The European Memorial Garden.

CLIL and WebQuest methods will be used with older students: they will learn to work in a group, use various sources of information, use English and use ICT. In Biology /Science lessons students will learn about the state of the environment in their area. They will conduct some research. E.g. the consequences of the pollution of air, water, and soil. They will determine acidity of the soil and the concentration of sulfuric acid in the air. The teachers of other subjects are included in the project – Chemistry – analysis of water; Geography – drawing the maps; Mathematics – solving problems and presenting them as diagrams. Students will present their results to the local authorities responsible for the environment protection and to the local community. Project methods for younger pupils include: they will set up mini-gardens, conduct the weather observation and bird watching. E.g. They will participate in Spring Alive, the European Programme.

During the project’s timeline students will search for the most typical and/ or most unique tree. They will make a record of the chosen item/ tree e.g. height/ width/ age/ population in its native country. Students who are artistically talented will take photos / or draw/. The photos will be the base for creation the Virtual EDEN on the Internet. ICT skills are improved during searching for information and communicating via blog and Skype. The digital camera and video camera will be used for documentation, and the interactive board will be used in lessons and the documentation of the project

The use of English during mobilities and everyday communication will encourage students to learn it more intensively. The project gives the opportunity to learn less widely used languages. They will create thematic mini-dictionaries and be conscious of Latin as a language of Science. E.g. The lichen scale which is a scientific tool in research is easy to use when the Latin names are applied.
Because of the collaboration of teachers of various subjects from eight countries, they will have an opportunity to compare their curriculum, share their expertise, and improve foreign languages. They jointly prepare biology lessons using the WebQuest method.
Teachers of Mathematics will have an opportunity to compare their methods and their effectiveness during the international Mathematics competition Kangaroo.
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