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Today we had an open and questioning debate on the understanding of what culture is and how cultures are constantly changing. That becomes really important when we are told to identify our own culture and nationality and how the cultures have adopted pieces from other cultures without being aware of that fact. When we as teachers introduce our students to the international society, we need to wake their curiosity and try to understand the society and norms of themselves and partners from other countries before you can understand why people do what they do.

Our identity is always changing and our role is to guide the student in their identity finding process.

Interaction and communication are very important when you meet other people.

The international lunch with the different stories about the different traditions was very nice.

I'm looking very much forward to the many following course days.

Many smiles, Kristina

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First of all I would like to say that it was a pleasure to meet the entire group and our common connection, Rita.

Then, in this session, once again, I could conclude that our values are the most important thing we stand for and that part of our work as teachers is to make students understand their own identity and their own values. We live in a global village and all of us need to find out the things that unite us and not the ones that separate us so that common understanding is achieved.

And, one of the most interesting things that happened today was the fact that we could taste food and drink from the cultures each participant belongs to as well as listen to the explanation of why they brought that food into the training course international lunch. This was a very interesting moment of tasting and sharing different traditions among all participants.

Furthermore, I could learn mainly about culture in islands that although European, deal with issues not common for European countries in Europe.

Greetings,

Margarida

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Olga, Estonia 🇪🇪 “A classroom with the door to the world 🌍”

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Olga, Estonia 🇪🇪 “A classroom with the door to the world 🌍”

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🔟ideas💡 I’ll take with me from the session:
✅Culture is the way people exist.
✅Cultures don’t have borders.
✅We have to preserve our  internal uniqueness.
✅My identity is fluid, changing.
✅Common feelings make traditions.
✅My course-mates are risk-takers, knowledge seekers and human lovers.
✅Find similarities in differences.
✅We learn deeply only through communication and interaction with one other.
✅Positive language: Remember!🆚Don’t forget!
✅We care about the things we love ❤️.

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Today, the first day of the course, reinforces the notion that borders are just geographical lines that do not define cultures or people. National identity exists in each one of us, within our traditions and our values, but there is also international identity that makes us feel like we belong to a larger world.

Our personal identity results from a set of knowledge and feelings that we acquire throughout our lives and experiences, through contact with others and with whom we identify with.

I find very interesting the focus in our similarities and not in our differences.

See you tomorrow

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Today it was interesting talking about personal identity and experience how our identities connect us with each other.

I also learned, that culture not defines the boarders between countries. Our cultures are inspired by other places in the world.

I find it interesting talking about the difference between national and international. Normally I thought, national as us and international were all the other people in the world. But it gives meaning thinking it as, it is what lies between nationalities. Thank you for a nice day.

Best regards Carina

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Meeting European people in dialogue, culinary experiences from national kitchens, and new knowledge about intercultural development.

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First day of the course offered me learning through reflections created in a dialogue about how history co-defines present-day cultures and frames social interactions across social and national contexts. Here, I particularly experienced that the conversation about encountering cultures of different nationalities serves as an enlightening mirror for one's experience and reflections on their own nationality and national culture. It is instructive to discuss how we achieve intercultural learning by exchanging knowledge linguistically and through experiences with primary insights from cultural encounters. This led me to reflections on my own nationality, which can and should be understood historically, culturally, and in a national/international context. A cultural boundary-less development, where cultures adapt from others, requires us to focus on the internal values of our own national culture. Thus, I see that the national experience becomes the core of understanding the international. Our personal identity, along with the sense of belonging to a nation, is the essence of understanding international cultural encounters.

The exercise about personal identity was a thoughtful activity that directed inward and led to reflections on the elements that constitute my core values, ultimately contributing to meaning-making in my roles as a family man, motivated individual, knowledge seeker, human lover, educator, developer, and Danish citizen.

A delightful start to a fantastic cultural encounter among the participants and Rita.

Warm regards,
Thomas

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I am happy to be in an international environment because I feel like a citizen of the world. We are all so different and at the same time we have something in common: profession, education, children. I smile at the world and the world smiles at me, because life is beautiful and the door to this beautiful world is open to us.

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The day today has been very educational, and I've already gained many insights for our work in developing intercultural competencies among our students and staff at the school. For me, it has become clear today that when we, as a school, aim for an international profile, our work must begin with ourselves. Both staff and students need to understand their own national identity and culture to build upon and gain an understanding of others'. One could say: if you have a national identity, you can venture out, experience, and bring back new knowledge about other cultures, making you international and able to engage with many different cultures.

Cultures, international and national identity, evolve throughout life, and our task as a school is to open up the world for students, so they become curious about other cultures and feel comfortable showcasing their own culture, recognizing similarities among different cultures rather than differences.

Today, I've gained ideas for specific exercises I can do with my staff to help them understand how to work on intercultural competencies with our students. I've also received concrete ideas and inputs for various topics we can create project courses, PLBs, with our students, such as Columbus, racism, slavery, communication including body language, tone, and speech, as well as storytelling about Europe's different countries, covering origin, geography, history, food, and traditions.

Kind regards Trine