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Today was amazing beginning- getting to know Guadeloupe and its geography, history and a bit of culture. As well we learned important aspects of national identity and our own personalities. It was definitely deep process which brought very touching moments, I must admit. Also, I thought a lot about the importance of teaching/ learning cultural and personal identity issues at school, especially in these days. Quite a task and also vital in the formation of students' personalities. It was great! And thought provoking. Thank you everyone!

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What did I learn today?

Today was our first day of the course and we got to know many things today.

We got to know the wonderful spot where our classes take place – right beside a small private beach next to Rita’s home. Rita, thank you for sharing your home with us!

We also got to know quite a bit about our new colleagues – and we also had to dig deep into our minds to find words that best describe our own identity.

It was a very interesting task to do and I very emotionally learned again, that „family“ is what I value most of all in my life.

When meeting all our new colleagues I learned that the task we had to do for preparing this course „What’s in my name?“ worked really well, because we had read about the others beforehand, so it seemed as if we already knew each other.

The most important thing though that was obvious today and proved once again, that my favourite language English wonderfully works as a lingua franca! None of the participants of the course are native speakers of English – but we all used it so easily – and if it wasn’t for English, communication between five different nations would not have been possible. :-)

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Jessica                                    Choosing the way forward                                                 

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Jessica                                    Choosing the way forward                                                 

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My reflections and what I take with me from my first day.
The value of culture on our identity
We need to get better at working with our values ​​ourselves, so that our students today get to know their culture. How do we get the national work into our school? How can the teachers reinforce the work and get it into all our school subjects. We need to get better at lifting our national identity and must not be afraid to do so. What is national identity for us? What challenges will we face in the future? What should and should the school convey? Can the culture contribute to and influence the students motivation to go to school
I feel a strong concern that today in Sweden we are removing many parts of our national identity and making changes in our curriculum, which means that some traditions are no longer accepted. We are no longer allowed to have school graduations in our church.
Several of our students have dual identities and in today's Sweden you don't get a complete culture. Neither the Swedish or his homeland.
The day has also given me several ideas to bring to our school and to our various projects, where the culture will have a bearing.
-Bring out all the traditions and its history. What is unique?
-Look at ourselves as a culture
-Learn about your own culture
- Bring in multiculturalism, without losing your own culture

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My first-day impressions
Rita welcomed us at the door with a big smile which foreshadowed an excellent day and good training.
The best expectations of the course were surpassed when we arrived in our classroom, a very unique place for an outdoor class, and the motivation that comes with this experience.
The activity "Your identity in 6 words" allowed us to get to know our classmates, their values, attitudes, and strengths. Some of them agreed to define themselves as stubborn, and I reflected on the true value of this word, which is that it allows you to achieve what you believe in.
Other reflections:
-Sad the history of slavery, sad the forms of racism that some people experience, and the importance of the teacher in transforming a society that must leave these acts behind.
It was a wonderful beginning!!!

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Sometimes I think (even though I know it's a narrow way of thinking) that learning is equal to facts I didn't know before.  Thinking about learning this way I know know much more about Guadaloupe's history than I did before today's lesson.

But what I really learned from today, and appreciate a lot, comes from all of you. Things you said during presentation, the small talk over a coffee and other remarks from today's discussions. All that, in comparison with my own history/identity made me think about how I see, understand and experience things. Just a few exemples. Linda's story about handwriting and the fact that the swedish curriculum hardly mentions it anymore. Mariits story about how her husband's indonesian heritage affect their son in Finland and almost everyone's talk about how their parents made a great impact in every day life. Thank you all for a great first day 😀

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The 1st day was very nice. A very extraordinary classroom - I think our students would love it too… - but that‘s what I take with - a classroom can be every place you only have to support it as that…
And the metaphor „A diamant needs pressure“ I will take with me.
Another thing is, identity is changing and it‘s a long process…
The last thing rain made us huddle together and drink some „rhum“…  (we want more😜)

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What I learned today, i.e., what I was made aware of was that it's worth making our students think about their cultural background, especially when they regard their own cultural roots and habits not worth keeping.  They should be given the opportunity to explain their culture to others who are of a different background. And it's to us to provide for such opportunities.  Thus we can contribute to the development of young people's identity.
What's more: I learned lots about some people's lives that are very different from mine. This made me think a lot this afternoon after our first meeting, and tonight lots of impressions are still stirring my mind. Thank you for that :)

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The first day was full of impressions.
First we met at Rita‘s impressive place to work under palmtrees which is a new experience for most of us!
We started by listening to Rita‘s development from a citizen of one country to a teacher in another and a project manager in yet another again. She explained how this has shaped her ideas of identity, how it grew more complex and yet she still remembers where she came from.  Then it was our turn. An easy task for some a difficult one for others. I felt reluctant at first because I feel that my profession overshadows who I am and I really need to learn to awaken the other aspects of my identity.
Two quotes were the initial impulse, the first by Lévi-Strauss saying that culture can only be understood if looked at from the outside. The idea of that mirror coming from comparison is a logic idea but you need to travel to really grasp the idea and - what is more - to face the mirror and whoever looks back at you from it. (Idea stolen from a song)
The second quote was from Benjamin Zephaniah, a known dubpoet who often addresses racism in Britain. He says that if the ingredients of a nationality are not treated with peace and justice then a country cannot profit from its ingredients. Being married to an immigrant in my own country I have experienced the truth behind it.
The first day ended with what we all admire about diversity: food. Everyone brought dishes from home and with all the variety we still enjoyed as one!
What a great opening for this project!

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Your own identity, the culture of your own country and the culture of other countries. You should be aware of these three aspects. Internationalization, respect, global thinking and mutual understanding are possible when you are aware of these three things.

What is new is that my own culture is important for this understanding. So I have to think about my own culture too.

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My thoughts about today:
- we don‘t need to have a „room“ to learn
- be unique to yourself, take your own (out)time
- thinking about myself makes my identity and will never be „finished“
- beeing open-minded to other countries means although being open to new cultures, languages
- sharing food together opens a door to new inspirations ;-)

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1. Day.❤️😁. It was so nice to hear everyone’s thoughts and life story o bit. My thoughts from the day:
- who we are is in core of the identity
- we share so much same but all are wondeful individuals
- accepting and knowing our own life history and also our nation history is important
- values are important quidelines in our life
- identity, values and life is changing and it is ok❤️
- it was interesting and sad to hear about the slavery history of Guadeloupe and how it influlences for peoples life today here in Guadeloupe. Thoughts from Maarit today. 🌿🕊