This covers two activities:

You may know that eTwinning, the online community of schools, is also an Erasmus+-funded activity for schools. In this course, we refer to eTwinning in connection to Key Actions 1 and 2, but we don’t focus on it. However, we provide you with links so you can explore eTwinning by yourself.

1 - Modules & Activities

The course lasts 5.5 weeks and is divided into 4 modules, one module per week with an extra 1.5 week to complete all work at the end. We will be opening up a new module every Monday. Once open, the modules will remain so until the end of the course, so you can still catch up at a later time.

Each module consists of

2 - Duration & Workload

The course will last 5.5 weeks in total, from 30 October to 6 December 2017.

All the course content will remain accessible after that.

Each module lasts one week but remains open for completion until 6 December. This leaves you with enough flexibility, should you be very busy during one week and need to catch up at a later date.

We estimate the workload to be around 2-4 hours per week, depending on your level of engagement.

3 - Discussions & Exchanges

As part of the activities, you have some opportunities to interact and converse with the other course participants. One of the tools used is Padlet. For an introduction on how to post on Padlet, check out this FAQ.

If you like, you can also share your ideas and thoughts on Twitter using #EplusMOOC.

4 - Assessment & Certification

Upon completing a module you will receive a digital badge. After completing all the modules (i.e. the whole course), you will receive the course badge. Please note there is no certificate for completing this course.

5 - How to get help

If you have a question on the course or if you experience technical issues, please always check the course FAQ section first. There you will find common questions and answers; if you cannot find the answer you seek, please post the question in the relevant forum category.

Please only email us or contact us on social media in case of a real emergency. We are a very small team and cannot respond immediately if you contact us via these channels.

This course is based on the Erasmus+ official documentations and input received from the European Commission (DG Education and Culture, and the Education and Culture Executive Agency) and the Erasmus+ National Agencies, as well as the eTwinning National Support Services. The course is put together by European Schoolnet, which is running the School Education Gateway platform on the Commission’s behalf. We have tried to provide references and sources whenever possible, and offer links so the participants can find further information.

For more information about eSafety, as well as lots of resources to use with your students, check out the following links:

 

 

In a whole-school approach¹, all members of the school community (school leaders, middle management, teaching and non-teaching staff, learners, parents and families) feel responsible for – and play an active role in – improving the learning experiences for all learners. The entire school community engages in a cohesive, collective and collaborative action, based on multidisciplinarity and cooperation.

A cross-sectoral approach and strong cooperation with a wide range of partners (social services, youth services, psychologists, nurses, speech therapists, guidance specialists, local authorities, universities and research, NGOs, businesses, unions, volunteers, etc.) and the community at large is necessary to deal with issues which schools do not (and cannot) have the relevant expertise for.

The whole-school approach is beneficial to all learners, not only to those at risk of underachievement or dropout. It can improve the motivation, engagement and social inclusion of all learners. As schools cannot address educational disadvantage, disengagement and early school leaving alone, they have to collaborate and integrate efforts with different stakeholders and services, inside and outside the school. The school is the logical site to initiate such community collaboration.

For further details, please see the Programme Guide and consult your Erasmus+ National Agency

Title | Language | Topic / Project
Satura un valodas integrētā apguve – drošs solis pretī panākumiem | LV | Erasmus+ project Implementing Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in Project Work
Mokytis kitaip - Learn Otherwise
  | LT | Erasmus+ project Learn otherwise - "Creative European School: CLICK"
„Aukštyn kojom“ darželis skina kelią demokratiniam ikimokyklinukų ugdymui | LT | Erasmus+ project Pirmasis demokratinis darželis Lietuvoje
W świat dzięki językom obcym | PL | Erasmus+ project Języki obce otwierają drzwi do wiedzy, przyjaźni i świata / Languages open the door to knowledge, friendship and the world.
Angielski inaczej | PL | Erasmus+ project Rozwój metodologii nauczania języka angielskiego dwujęzyczne(Development of methodology of teaching English bilingual)
Olé- a big thumbs-up for Erasmus+ enhancing and developing language skills and sharing best practice,Spanish lessons take digital turn for William Patten Primary School linguists | EN | Erasmus+ project CPD for Staff to Enhance and Develop Language Skills and Share Best Practice
Bringing the outside in for schools in South East Wales | EN | Erasmus+ project Inspiring Outdoor Learning - A Vision for Schools in South Wales
Erasmus+ School Education: The Kindling of a flame | EN | Erasmus+ project Staff Mobility - St Kevin's College, Finglas, Dublin
Erasmus+ permet d’ouvrir le lycée sur le monde | FR | Testimony of staff who utilised a mobility opportunity
Mange gevinster ved europæiske partnerskaber mellem børnehaver | DA | How a kindergarten can benefit from European cooperation - from an eTwinning project to a KA1 project
Fra fri leg til klar strategi(From free play to clear strategy) | DA | Describes the different steps and benefits of international coooperation for this school which has had several KA1 and KA2 projects (including advice to schools that want to engage in international projects)

Through that programme, she learnt new art techniques such as papier-mâché, decoupage, ceramics and jewellery-making in a workshop. Once back in Poland, Renata shared that knowledge and organised micro-teaching sessions, workshops and newsletters with her colleagues, who were really interested in these new techniques. Throughout that experience, she realised the important role of art in educating disabled people, as it allows them to express their feelings, show their mind and sometimes their thoughts. The Erasmus+ programme has allowed Renata to open up, accept new opportunities, and become stronger and more confident while using new teaching techniques.

If you have logged in, you can also:

 

 eTwinning is a free platform for all school staff in the 38 participating countries.
 Since being part of eTwinning is about communicating, collaborating, developing projects and sharing experiences, it can be a stepping stone to Erasmus+-funded projects. Several well-organised Erasmus+ projects have their roots in collaborative eTwinning projects developed by dedicated teachers. On the other hand, successful activities from funded projects can be transformed into eTwinning projects to prolong their lifespan after the project funding has ended.

You can use eTwinning:

Project title: Raising nursery school pupils’ awareness of spoken English and discovering a different European culture, through nursery rhymes, games and exchanges between classes, thanks to a travelling puppet and her mysterious suitcase (Project description at the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform)

OBJECTIVES

The teachers’ mobility was a defining feature of a more global project, itself part of an eTwinning project and which involved all of the educational community. The teachers  benefited from training in how to use eTwinning, which enabled them to develop their digital skills. By the end of the eTwinning project, they had acquired new linguistic, professional, digital and cultural skills.

Read the full case study in the publication How to Develop the European and International Dimension of your School

You may find that some course organisers and job-shadowing providers offer pre-filled application forms; we recommend you do not use these sorts of pre-filled applications, as this can have an impact on the quality of your European Development Plan. After all, these pre-filled applications do not correspond to the reality of your school / consortium needs.

 

The Strategic Partnerships offer a unique opportunity for pupils of any age to visit partner schools in other countries. Options cover short group stays (3 days to 2 months) or longer exchange periods for individual pupils in secondary education (2 to 12 months). In addition to funding for specific activities, all Strategic Partnerships are provided with a flat-rate grant to cover organisational costs and other project-related expenses.

Under Key Action 2, organisations can apply for funding to work in partnership with organisations from other participating countries.

Strategic Partnerships supporting exchange of good practices: Strategic Partnerships supporting Exchange of Good Practices allow schools to expand their international networks through cooperation with diverse partners such as youth organisations, universities and businesses – as well as other schools.

[New in 2018] School Exchange Partnerships: Only schools may participate in this type of Strategic Partnership. The projects can use mobility opportunities for pupils and staff to help the participating schools develop as organisations and increase their ability to work on international projects.

School Exchange Partnerships replace the “school-to-school” Strategic Partnership projects with some changes in the rules. The application will be shorter and simpler. School Exchange Partnerships allow four different activity types (see Programme Guide page 116):

 

Watch our webinar from 2 November for an explanation of Key Action 2 by the Austrian National Agency. 

Involve all the pupils in the preparatory activities for the mobility by getting them to:

 

In this chapter, we will explain how to use the tool

Please note that if you are aiming for the “School Exchange Partnerships” project, you can post your announcement in the eTwinning forum designed for this purpose (eTwinning account needed).

Please note that these materials have been prepared by the UK National Agency for a UK audience and are not designed for the 2018 Call applications. This disclaimer applies to the use of these materials.
https://youtu.be/ETVGHpXNXc0

 

You can find more Key Action 2 Strategic Partnership Good Practice Examples and Success Stories on the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform.