6 Digi-tours of Europe

KA220-SCH – Cooperation partnerships in school education

The context that allowed for this project idea to spring is that of the challenges brought on by the pandemic. There are challenges that the educational systems are facing concerning the level of interest of the students in the online work, together with a lack of resources in underprivileged areas of Europe. The two schools that are formally part of the project have had difficulties in attracting their students and keeping them active throughout the period. This period has imposed mobility restrictions and all the countries have imposed measures to reduce the contact among people. In light of this, students have scarcely attended regular classes and spent more time in online courses. That is an advantage of this era, but at the same time we have to admit that not all countries were properly equipped. We, as coordinators of this partnership, understand this better than anybody. If our students have the privilege of working with IT and computer specialists, this was not the case in countries like Romania, Turkey or N Macedonia. Teachers and students in these countries have had a great deal of obstacles in adapting to the new reality – starting from the lack of equipment, to lack of digital readiness, or lack of interest. This partnership will also enable us to learn from each other in terms of this, to support the partners in better adapting to the new context. In addition, the project is also a means to a second end. The same pandemic period has put a strain on the tourism of our countries and the restrictions imposed on the population have put a great strain on businesses relating to the tourism industry. The project therefore aims to make our areas more visible and promote them, both at the level of the partnership but also at international level. In order to attain this scope, we need of course to work thoroughly on our dissemination strategy. This promotional component will be coordinated by the Spanish partner, as they have the right expertise in the field. Each NGO formally a partner in this project will work directly with schools in their area, in order to ensure that the educational component is well met. Students in formal partner schools and students in the collaborating institutions will be the ones creating the actual materials, doing the research, working together to the development of their communities. The purpose of the NGOs is to create the necessary links with their networks and with the local authorities, in order to attain a bigger impact and to develop strategies for the sustainability of the project results.