From understanding foreign cultures to interacting with international friends, Jo Caruana finds out more about the recent British Council Connecting Classrooms activities that took place in Malta.
The world is getting smaller. Never before have people from so many different cultures and countries been able to mingle together, both for work and pleasure, sharing ideas, hopes and dreams for the future.
An opportunity to connect with peers from different schools to share ideas, work in teams and enhance our skills
It certainly seems as though today’s children will grow up in a world that is more international than ever before, with foreign friends to play with and international opportunities to strive for. But how can we – as parents and educators – help prepare them for life in this global community?
Well, for the past year-and-a-half, the British Council has run a project called Connecting Classrooms, an initiative that helps to build long-term partnerships between schools in the UK and over 60 countries around the world.
“The idea behind Connecting Classrooms is to add an international dimension to learning,” explains Ingrid Eomois from the British Council in Malta.
“By putting young people in touch with other students from across the globe, it helps to improve their knowledge and understanding of other cultures, and to prepare them for life and work as global citizens.”
The programme was set up to benefit all those involved, including students, teachers and the wider community. Locally it was launched in 2010, in collaboration with the Education Ministry, with 10 schools taking part.
Now, every year, a special course – the Connecting Classrooms International Coordinators’ Course – is held in one of the participating countries to update and inform educators and coordinators.
Last year, 10 Maltese teachers attended the training course in Cyprus, and this year it was held in Malta on March 27 and 28.
This international assembly, which included local teachers too, was opened by Raymond Camilleri, director of Curriculum Management and eLearning at the Education Ministry’s Directorate for Quality and Standards in Education. He also held a session about the education system in Malta.
Speaking about Connecting Classrooms, he said: “This initiative is laudable. Not only does it give educators and students the opportunity to network on a local level; it also enables them to network within their cluster with students and teachers from Wales, Cyprus and the Ukraine.
“Sharing experiences with counterparts in these countries is a positive learning experience that enables participants to grow.”
Various activities took place throughout the course, including insightful sessions on community engagement, project management and teamwork, all of which took place at the Chamber of Commerce in Valletta.
In addition, the participating teachers visited four local schools participating in the project: St Edward’s College, St Aloysius’ College, St Benedict College Boys’ Secondary School and Maria Regina College Girls’ Secondary School.
Nadiya Ananieva, one of the teachers from Ukraine, said the conference had contributed to the teachers’ professional growth and had encouraged them to continue collab rating with other countries on the British Council’s Connecting Classrooms project.
Meanwhile, since project began, over 200 Maltese students have participated in the Young Leaders’ training course. This specialised activity focused on encouraging young people to get involved in the Connecting Classrooms programme and to champion it in their schools.
The training course raised awareness of issues around inclusion and helped students develop key leadership and group working skills.
One of the students who took part in the training was Leah-Jordan Houston from Maria Regina College Girl’s Secondary School in Mosta. She said: “The Young Leaders’ Training Course gave us students an opportunity to connect with peers from different schools to share ideas, work in teams and enhance our skills.”
To mark the success of the project, a photo exhibition entitled ‘The Beauty of Diversity’ is currently on show at St James Cavalier in Valletta. The exhibition – a collection of photos that showcase diversity in the community, global citizenship and community engagement – displays work from Maltese, Ukrainian and Cypriot students.
In Malta, the winners of the photo compEtition were Liam Sproule from Verdala International School, Pembroke, Petra Mangion from Maria Regina College Girl’s Secondary School in Mosta and Ksenia Budykho from Verdala International School.
For more information about Connecting Classrooms visit the British Council’s website www.britishcouncil.org/malta-education-connecting-classrooms.htm.
The Connecting Classrooms exhibition at St James Cavalier is open to the public until April 30.