Creative learning draft1

PREFACE

Creative learning is the title. (Clear) It aims to become a useful tool for all those involved in the educational process and provide material for significant experiments at school.

CLEAR addresses mainly to teachers and concerns primary education.

It has theoretical and practical character.

It attempts to redefine philosophical and pedagogical concepts such as learning, creativity, imagination, and suggests ways so as the school become a field of creative forces and fertility source for teachers and students.

It aims that the school become a space vivid and attractive so that the teacher and the student, can love and support it.

The student could link the knowledge with the pleasure and the teacher could reassess its role in the educational process. The teacher-student relationship can reveal its true meaning and magic power.

The goal is the school community to become a creative interaction field where both individual advancement and collegiality will be promoted equally.

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To hunt these grand objectives, CLEAR suggests as weapons theatrical techniques, technology (multimedia, etc.), game, creativity and arts.

The arts-music, visual arts, Theatre-do not constitute independent fields of knowledge or “supplements” of education. There are not “lessons” that can be put roughly in the jam-packed train of program so as to provide an alibi for an education sterile and mechanistic.

Art can be a driving force to the “vehicle» of treatment, can provide the key to a comprehensive and essential education, can become the missing link between learning and creation.

CLEAR focuses especially on the relationship between drama and learning.

It is based on the common pedagogical place where imitation, action, role play are the ways that the child spontaneously chooses to communicate with its environment and learn from it.

Theater, as the meeting place of diverse forms of artistic expression, gives the child the opportunity to explore its inclinations and interests, to unfold its personality.

As an activity, eminently collective, it favors the socialization of the child making the child an “addict” to the communication and team spirit.

CLEAR can be an alternative for children with learning difficulties, who are unable to respond to the traditional teaching methods and as a result, they placed in the margin of the educational process.

CLEAR and its creators put a great deal: that drama can work as an effective method of teaching all kind of courses. Maybe not as exclusive method, but as an option, so that the

learning process can become colorful, charming and funny.

CLEAR is one of those ideas that need the right conditions to thrive. We need the right framework and planning, we need support, logistics and above all, teachers with inspiration broader education and –especially- political will.

Otherwise, it is doomed to be lost in the ocean of good intentions of confusion and babble talking.

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INTRODUCTION TO A NEW METHOD

CREATIVITY

Creativity is defined as the tendency to generate or recognize ideas, alternatives, or possibilities that may be useful in solving problems, communicating with others, and entertaining ourselves and others.

Three reasons why people are motivated to be creative: Need for novel, varied, and complex stimulation Need to communicate ideas and values Need to solve problems

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In order to be creative, you need to be able to view things in new ways or from a different perspective.

Among other things, you need to be able to generate new possibilities or new alternatives. Tests of creativity measure not only the number of alternatives that people can generate but the uniqueness of those alternatives. the ability to generate alternatives or to see things uniquely does not occur by change; it is linked to other, more fundamental qualities of think-

ing, such as flexibility, tolerance of ambiguity or unpredictability, and the enjoyment of things heretofore unknown.

Characteristics of the creative personality: 1. Creative individuals have a great deal of energy, but they are also often quiet and at rest.

2. Creative individuals tend to be smart, yet also naive at the same time.

3. Creative individuals have a combination of playfulness and discipline, or responsibility and irresponsibility.

4. Creative individuals alternate between imagination and fantasy at one end, and rooted sense of reality at the other.

5. Creative people seem to harbor opposite tendencies on the continuum between extroversion and introversion.

6. Creative individuals are also remarkable humble and proud at the same time.

7. Creative individuals to a certain extent escape rigid gender role stereotyping.

8. Generally, creative people are thought to be rebellious and independent.

9. Most creative persons are very passionate about their work, yet they can be extremely objective about it as well.

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LEARNING We define learning as the transformative process of taking in information that—when internalized and mixed with what we have experienced— changes what we know and builds on what we do. It’s based on input, process, and reflection. It is what changes us.

Term coming from Greek philosophy and history culture. Education usually holds two meanings: the narrow one is the school education. The broader one is, according to the ancient Greek beliefs, the creation of a good, decent, conscious citizen as well as the creation of a culture which equals the spirit of the cultivate human.

As Richard E. Mayers mentioned1 learning is the relatively permanent change in a person’s knowledge or behaviour due to experience. This definition has three components: 1) the duration of the change is long-term rather than short-term; 2) the locus of the change is the content and structure of knowledge in memory or the behaviour of the learner; 3) the cause of the change is the learner’s experience in the environment rather than fatigue, motivation, drugs, physical condition or physiologic intervention.”

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Learning also is the complex psycho-physical function of familiarisation and assimilation of knowledge and development of skills. The learning process requires the use of a complete methodology that involves all aspects of the person’s personality (physical, mental, emotional).

EDUCATION The act or process of imparting or acquiring general or particular knowledge, developing skills, for a profession or the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life.

TEACHING Teaching is the on purpose and by planning transfer of knowledge that aims at the students’ education.

Teaching is the teacher’s supply of knowledge, is the student’s introduction to the current culture, is the exercise of the physical and mental powers and skills within the educational system.

KNOWLEDGE The fact or condition of being aware of something or of knowing something with familiarity gained through experience or association. Acquaintance with or understanding of a science, art, or technique the fact or condition

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PEDAGOGY

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Pedagogy is the discipline that deals with the theory and practice of education; it thus concerns the study of how best to teach (transfer the knowledge). Spanning a broad range of practice, its aims range from furthering liberal education (the general development of human potential) to the narrower specifics of vocational education (the imparting and acquisition of specific skills).

Instructive strategies are governed by the pupil’s background knowledge and experience, situation, and environment, as well as learning goals set by the student and teacher.

LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS Education is considered to be necessary for the physical, emotional and intellectual development of man.

For this reason, the functioning of the means (the learning environments) that educate the man is considered to be vital. These means are: The natural environment, the family, the school, the church, the mass media, the society and the state.

The Natural Environment The natural environment plays a vital role in the learning process. The climate, the ground, the weather, not only do they affect our emotional and physical world but also give us the first substantiated examples. Within our natural environment we can find the basic learning structures (biological, mathematical, chemical, social etc.) and it offers us plenty of stimulus and for this reason the environment is an endless source for learning. Consequently the kind of the natural environment we live in (forests, heat, lack of green etc.) can affect not only the quantity of learning but the quality as well.

The Family The family factor plays a very important role because it is the first and the basic cell of social life. The child formulates its first attitudes towards the social situations in the family life. The child is affected by the parents the family circle and familiarize the human relationships and tests its first social behaviors and knowledge. The first foundations for its character and personality are put in the family.

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The School Schools and every kind of educational institutes exert a very decisive effect on the children not only through the people that are involved in the teaching process (teachers, students) but also through the organization and the way of life of their members. The educational philosophy (a result of state and social philosophy), the educational relationships and the material taught (to what extent it applies to the children’s needs and society’s needs) affect the learning process decisively.

School is the first organized, basic educational cell within which the learners adopt or question the knowledge the acquire.

The Church-Religion

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Although these two terms are strongly interrelated, they have two different aims. Religion refers to the philosophical level offers answers to philosophical and existential questions. Church teaches the principles and morals not only of religious life but also social life and formulates specific views and attitudes. Depending on the philosophical frame of each religion, we have different emphasis on learning and education.

Christianity kept the faith on the power and meaning of education that the ancient Greek had. According to the priests the teaching of the Christian beliefs plays an important role by affecting and altering the person’s beliefs.

Christianity also stressed the importance of the person’s responsibility. To the extent that

church affects learning by its organisation and its teaching of morals on every level (social, intellectual, emotional and philosophical), it consists a very powerful learning unit.

The Mass Media The mass media are an integral part of our life from the first steps of our life. Their power as a learning environment is found in their presence at children’s life daily and for many hours every day. As a social means it is considered to have the most powerful effects on society’s members because it affects directly and indirectly on every level of personal and social life, on language (supports, or formulates linguistic forms), on religion, on arts, science, on economy, on morals.

The State Aristotle was the first to recognize the main characteristic in man’s nature: that he is a “political animal”.

Man can only live, create and survive within the society’s limits. Politics as the utmost art in action ensures the people’s bliss and in theory it defines what is this bliss.

The effect of the state of government is placed within this frame. All the social structures (and therefore the educational structures as well) reflect in a way the kind of the governmental system and vice versa (liberal, authoritarian). A liberal, democratic environment creates a way of life that respects the personality of a developing person.

On the contrary an authoritarian environment resigns the family and every social element to the state, supports the authoritarian relationships between the children and the parents and is in favor of a despotic domination. The state and governmental system as well as the politicians of a country have a great impact on the development of the

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youth’s personality. The state affects education and school system with its laws. It intervenes dynamically and in many ways, directly and indirectly, not only as a carrier of certain beliefs as to what education is and which its aims should be, but also as an indicator as to how the teachers, the students, the parents should function and what attitude they should have.

The Society When we refer to society as a means of learning what exactly do we mean? What is the society? Society is the total of people, their relationships, of institutions, of principles and all the factors mentioned above (state, family, church etc.). By the term Society we mean a big, autonomous and organized form of people and social groups that affect each other in the frame of a common culture within the specific geographical limits and has common goals and interests. The child’s personality is a product of a slow but steady development that is being affected by all the social factors.

Family is the most important unit, the centre of the social influence. Within the family the first conceptions are developed. It is the social laboratory to work on beliefs and principles. Then the school comes to reinforce and develop these influences. The system of government together with the Mass media and Church are also vital factors that help the children achieve their goals and prepare them for the successful adaptation in the society.

Learning Environment in School

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People have spent a great deal of time in the classroom, beginning in kindergarten and extending for years beyond. They are lucky those who have a

school or classroom where the teacher paid close attention to the learning environment, or the physical, psychological and instructional atmosphere.

The learning environment in the classroom is vital to student success and impacts students in many ways. A negative learning environment, or setting that adversely affects student learning in many ways, such as low student achievement, poor behavior, student anxiety, or depression.

The Physical environment in the classroom: The use of space includes how furniture is arranged and organized, how materials are stored and maintained, how clean the classroom is and the overall color and brightness. Bright posters, organized spaces and cooperative learning arrangements help. Students need a clean, bright, organized space to strengthen learning experiences.

The psychological environment is how students feel about their learning. A calm atmosphere helps students to learn, both intellectually and socially. The students react negatively when they feel things are unfair, unclear or are worried about getting in trouble.

The instructional environment is the setting for all teaching. She plans her instruction to make sure her students are able to comprehend by using different teaching practices, such as lecture, hands-on activities, cooperative learning groups and plenty of games using theater, role playing, narrating.

All these various and different methods make the school an attractive environment and the students to be focused, engaged end efficient.

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CREATIVE LEARNING

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Learning is a complicated psycho-physical human functioning (inner and exterior factors are both involved) , thanks to which humans obtain knowledge and develop dexterities. The capacity of learning appears on the very same day a person is born, lasts for life, and is considered as a critical condition for one to fulfill his personality.

The quality, as well as the aim of learning follows one’s personal evolution. Thus learning, instead of being a simple psychical phenomenon-a reflective reaction to environ-ment- progressively becomes a deliberate action pursuing the farther goal-Creation.

Learning offers the necessary equipment for a person to use his creativity in a meaningful way. There is a dynamic, interdepen-dent relation between creativity and learning. Learning is by definition a creative process, while every form of creative expression is an important learning source.

In creative learning, creation serves both as a mean as well as a motive for learning. In other words, creative learning is the conquest-through a process of creative interaction- of knowledge and dexterities which can be used for creative purposes.

The creative character of learning in school is nowadays an object of argument among experts, politicians, teachers, parents and students. The quality of learning provided within the school environment is doubted and the educational system as we know it seems to have reached a dead end.

The creative learning theory and practice includes all the attempts towards a radical reform of the school institution based on the philosophy of making school a field of creativity and a source of euphoria for both teachers and students Aims Creative learning is aiming on the following: • To make school, especially public school, an attractive place where teachers and students would really invest their energy and their dreams.

• To connect knowledge with pleasure, so that students will learn to love learning.

• To encourage teachers to re-evaluate their part in the learning process.

• To build a new kind of teacher-student relationship • To help students explore their talents and inclinations • To develop judgment and non-conventional thinking • To develop social values encouraging communication, companionship and cooperation • To make the school community a field of creative interaction where personal and collective evolution will be equally promoted.

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Means and instruments

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To cover the distance from traditional to creative learning some new methods of teaching should be invented and applied. To make creative learning from attractive theory educational fact, teachers need to enrich their teaching resources. Technology (multimedia), play and art-especially theatre-might be proved valuable instruments towards this direction. In our opinion, the arts-music, fine arts, theatre-are not independent areas of knowledge.

They are neither “supplements” nor “subjects” to be added in the curriculum as an alibi for an education basically sterile and mechanistic. On the contrary, we strongly believe that art could serve as a moving energy, as a key for an olistic education, as the link between learning and creation. We are especially focusing on drama based on the pedagogical common place that imitation, action and role playing are the ways a child impulsively uses to communicate with its own environment and to learn from it.

More specifically: Drama, as an area of cohabitation of several different forms of creative expression, gives a child the chance to explore its talents and inclinations, to develop his or her personality As a group activity, drama encourages communication and companionship Drama may be also used as an alternative for children with learning disabilities who do not respond in the traditional teaching methods.

The challenge is to prove in practice that drama can be applied as an effective teaching method for all the subjects included in the curriculum. Not exclusively but alternatively to make the learning process flexible, multicolored and amusing.

Assumptions As an attempt to a radical educational reform, the creative learning theory and practice seeks suitable ground and adequate conditions to succeed.

The minimum assumptions to be considered are the following • Scientific planning by experts in cooperation with teachers • Financial support on behalf of the state and the European community • Teachers well qualified, talented and with a wide area of interests • A radical change in the politics concerning education • The international community ought to decide upon some important philosophical and political issues such as: • What is the ulterior motive of learning—the conformation or the deliberation of the human beings?

• In what kind of persons, in what kind of citizens we would like to trust the future of the humanity?

• What are our social visions for the age coming?

Otherwise, attempts like «creative learning» are meant to be lost in the ocean of confusion and loquacity.

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WHY CREATIVE LEARNING?

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The creative learning process as a method at the teaching of the curriculum brings back the real dimension and the real purpose of education; the one of searching and understanding knowledge in order to use this knowledge in the real context of the everyday human life. The CL offers inexhaustible variety of human situations that are imaginative (they are within the frame of imagination, “as if “ situations) in which a need is created to use knowledge provided in school. Working within a frame with content and not using itemized, isolated, repeatable exercises and activities we move away from sterile, repetitive learning towards more human, experiential situations that give life to the trapped in the books knowledge. Knowledge is closely interrelated with action and interaction. The children interact in a safe environment where knowledge is tested and at the same time they create something they are interested in. It is their creation and they take full responsibility for that.

Whatever is happening in the class is happening from them, and for them and not for the sake of their teacher or a mark.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF CREATIVE LEARNING PROCESS Creative learning method is based on 5 principles: 1) All people have an inborn characteristic: the ability to mime and the ability to play through which people test and learn (because by miming people are experimenting as well).

2) All people learn when they have the motives and when they feel that what they have to learn interests them.

3) All people and especially students learn and understand better in an active environment, full of actions and events. This means that it is not enough to teach by telling or numbering what we want them to learn. It is the experiences itself that will help them learn and experience derives from action.

4) The participants are responsible for their life and the acquirement of knowledge. The teachers become the enablers to their effort to learn, they guide and show possible ways of learning, thinking, operating.

5) Finally, CL sees the process of learning as a process for change. The emotional and intellectual change leads to maturity and therefore to knowledge.

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ARTS AND CREATIVE LEARNING

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Arts in general target the audience. The people who come to see a painting or to watch a performance.

Everything is happening, is created by the artists not only for their own satisfaction but mainly for the sake of the spectator. In an environment where creative learning is taking place, the source of expression and creativity is not the recognition by the audience but the satisfaction the participants themselves take by participating in the situation. The roles of the creators and the spectators interchange in the classroom. The creative learning uses the rules and the elements (roots) of the arts (movement, painting, dramatic conventions, music etc) but does not necessarily target to a performance for an audience. Whatever happens during a creative learning lesson happens from the children and for the children. Arts help them understand and

conceive meanings. Arts may have a more flexible form but we never forget their elements and main principles and the teacher helps the children to learn how to use these principles. It goes without saying that we can use this method of the creative learning in order to teach art itself. We take advantage of the main element of the Creative Learning which is creativity to teach art that is creation and expression.

THEATER AND LEARNING

The most important and the most immediate relationship between theater and learning is the one that the Ancient Greek people have expressed: you are being educated while being entertained. Children in a drama situation do not remain passive in front of a presentation-performance (just watching) but they are emotionally and intellectually involved and they “experience� the knowledge. Children start to recognise their personal abilities and understand themselves and their reactions better. Theatre is an experiential frame of learning, but because it includes the elements of evaluation, discussion, reflection, it also involves the intellectual part of the human. Children investigate the different drama situations that the teacher prepares for them and s/he makes sure to include the curriculum aims that s/he wants to teach.

In a drama lesson teachers and students are involved in a collective effort and search to understand and resolve the problem in the drama situation. By definition drama involves co-operation and interaction. Learning is more probable to happen if there is such a spirit of co-operation and active involvement.

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CREATIVE LEARNING AND SOCIALIZATION Forming social values and behavior (sociability, companionship, communication, tolerance, cooperation, etc) through creative learning in primary school

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One of the main purposes of school education-especially at infant and primary schools- is the child’ s socialization, its passing from the world of “me” to the world of “us” , from the protective family arms to a wider circle of interpersonal relationships, governed by rules and principles. The emotional climate of this journey is critical not only for the child’ s school progress but also for the building of its personality.

As it is commonly known-and confirmed by the expertsa child who passes the school doorstep for the first time suffers some kind of shock. The effect of this shock (intensity, duration, consequences) depends on a number of factors, wholesale divided in two groups.

The first group of factors is related to the child’ s background (character, previous experience, the type of family and community he lives in, the socio-educational level of the parents etc).

The other one includes all the assumptions concerning the school itself (environment, the emotional climate in the classroom, the teacher’ s personality etc ). For a child, however, to enter the school community is considered a major change, possibly the greatest challenge ever faced in its life.

Especially for children who live in big cities, who grow up in apartments and are used to play on their own, the change is enormous. For the first time they realize that they are not “the centre of the world”, that their needs

may be in conflict with other people’ s needs, that they have obligations besides rights and that they now have to claim and earn things they used to take for granted, such as attention, admiration, praise and love. And all this in a new , unknown environment , with specific rules of functioning, with strict timetable, with demands of progress. They are expected not only to adjust in this new condition, but also to conquer knowledge and abilities, “to learn”.

The creative learning practices are meant to facilitate children’s adjustment in the school environment and to encourage their socialization in general.

Taking part in activities alike group games, children communicate with each other, share experiences, test their limits and discharge unpleasant feelings.

Children, as we all know, are much more willing to learn and respect rules in a game context rather than in a “serious” circumstance. When the kids play, they are usually honest, fair and disciplined. The group itself sees to bring back “in order” the cheating “delinquent”!

The interaction within a play context, with rules and goals, impels children to adopt various roles(leading or supporting ones) and to enlarge their perception of reality. The self-centered thinking subsides along with selfish behavior, giving space to tolerance and sociability. The mutual goals, as well as the mutual difficulties faced during the process, reduce competition and promote cooperation and companionship.

The teacher co-ordinates the “game”, guiding it tactfully towards the learning goal. He/she intervenes whenever necessary to offer outlets and motives and to ensure the coherence of the team. His/her calm, friendly and stable behavior forms the adequate emotional frame and serves as a model for the little

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ones.

In modern society, school is expected to respond not only at its traditional role but also at needs and demands covered in former times by family and neighborhood. Children ,nowdays, have neither enough time nor space to play with each other, and this deficiency affects their mental health and their social adjustment. Modern school should cover this need introducing play into the classroom, in combination with the curriculum’ s purposes.

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WHAT THE CHILDREN LEARN FROM ART AND LEARNING THROUGH CREATIVE METHODS It might be late but eventually the direction changes in European education and globally. More and more schools and school programs give opportunities to creativity in the school program and to art in general.Universities of advanced countries teach to the future teachers and educators, courses based on creativity in the classroom.The four courses with the famous name STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) became STEAM as the Art is among Εngineering and Math.

Indeed there are many skills children learn from the arts.

We make highlight to 10 of them

1. Creativity – Being able to think on your feet, approach tasks from different perspectives and think ‘outside of the box’ will distinguish your child from others. In an arts program, your child will be asked to recite a monologue in 6 different ways, create a painting that represents a memory, or compose a new rhythm to enhance a piece of music. If children have practice thinking creatively, it will come naturally to them now and in their future career.

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2. Confidence – The skills developed through theater, not only train you how to convincingly deliver a message, but also build the confidence you need to take command of the stage. Theater training gives children practice stepping out of their comfort zone and allows them to make mistakes and learn from them in rehearsal.

This process gives children the confidence to perform in front of large audiences.

3. Problem Solving – Artistic creations are born through the solving of problems. How do I turn this clay into a sculpture? How do I portray a particular emotion through dance? How will my character react in this situation? Without even realizing it kids that participate in the arts are consistently being challenged to solve problems. All this practice problem solving develops children’s skills in reasoning and understanding. This will help develop important problem-solving skills necessary for success in any career.

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4. Perseverance – When a child picks up a violin for the first time, she/he knows that playing Bach right away is not an option; however, when that child practices, learns the skills and techniques and doesn’t give up, that Bach concerto is that much closer. In an increasingly competitive world, where people are being asked to continually develop new skills, perseverance is essential to achieving success.

5. Focus – The ability to focus is a key skill developed through ensemble work. Keeping a balance between listening and contributing involves a great deal of concentration and focus. It requires each participant to not only think about their role, but how their role contributes to the big picture of what is being created. Recent research has shown that participation in the arts improves children’s abilities to concentrate and focus in other aspects of their lives.

6. Non-Verbal Communication – Through experiences in theater and dance education, children learn to breakdown the mechanics of body language. They experience different ways of moving and how those movements communicate different emotions. They are then coached in performance skills to ensure they are portraying their character effectively to the audience.

7. Receiving Constructive Feedback – Receiving constructive feedback about a performance or visual art piece is a regular part of any arts instruction. Children learn that feedback is part of learning and it is not something to be offended by or to be taken personally. It is something helpful. The goal is the improvement of skills and evaluation is incorporated at every step of the process. Each arts discipline has built in parameters to ensure that critique is a valuable experience and greatly contributes to the success of the final piece.

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8. Collaboration – Most arts disciplines are collaborative in nature. Through the arts, children practice working together, sharing responsibility, and compromising with others to accomplish a common goal.

When a child has a part to play in a music ensemble, or a theater or dance production, they begin to understand that their contribution is necessary for the success of the group. Through these experiences children gain confidence and start to learn that their contributions have value even if they don’t have the biggest role.

9. Dedication – When kids get to practice following through with artistic endeavors that result in a finished product or performance, they learn to associate dedication with a feeling of accomplishment. They practice developing healthy work habits of being on time for rehearsals and performances, respecting the contributions of others, and putting effort into the success of the final piece. In the performing arts, the reward for dedication is the warm feeling of an audience’s applause that comes rushing over you, making all your efforts worthwhile.

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10. Accountability – When children practice creating something collaboratively they get used to the idea that their actions affect other people. They learn that when they are not prepared or on-time, that other people suffer. Through the arts, children also learn that it is important to admit that you made a mistake and take responsibility for it. Because mistakes are a regular part of the process of learning in the arts, children begin to see that mistakes happen. We acknowledge them, learn from them and move on.

To play, to learn, to educate It is commonly accepted that the established teaching methods have banished creativity and creative thinking from school. The Shape is so narrow and stereotype that gives no opportunity for innovation and initiatives. Children are terrified that if they escape a little bit from the standard ‘street’, they are threatened by unknown dangers.

The daily official program in school is rigid and this phenomenon does not happen only in Greece, but in most education systems in Europe. Machine learning (rote) is prevailing and fatally, children become “information and data accumulation containers» (and not real knowledge).

Exceptions are the Scandinavian countries that try alternative education systems with clear direction to make the school program and the education systems more creative. Using subjects such as subjects of constructions and simulation, they encourage the children to cooperate, to talk, to ask, to use their hands and generally, their body. They give children the motivation so as to create a way of thinking more independent, rich and creative.

The view – widespread among teachers, parents and the state- that the “playing”, -“to play” 2 is a waste of useful time, is incorrect and with no realistic basis. The playing (the accurate word is “to play”) is a spiritual adventure for the children. “To play” raises problems and requires solutions from children, it encourages cooperation and collective effort, it requires initiatives and in this way shows talents and skills that children may have. Through playing, an abstract notion –so blurred and unknown- becomes specific and the child understands it, conquers it, because this notion takes shape and form. And with

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this, we do not mean something vague and imprecise, but certain things and objects derived from courses. Notions of physics, chemistry, mathematics, that through the eyes of a child are dry and boring, can become, through the creative process and the playing (in the sense that we defined above), exciting and fun for students. The only thing required is the teacher to find ways and give such forms in the subjects.

For example, when it comes to the English system, three magical words are spread between the teachers: In free translation, we would say AUTHENTICITY, AUTONOMY, UNCERTAINTY And we explain: AUTHENTICITY : real problems (even the theoretical problems they take realistic form) are set and solved in the right way. As a result there is motivation and interest for the solution.

AUTONOMY : Children have the opportunity to explore their own ideas and solve problems that they themselves set.

UNCERTAINTY: The problems, raised by any subject, are not treated as solved (by others) that we have to assimilate with no negotiation, but it allows questions, objections, complaints and –as a result- argumentation and discussion.

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Problems, obstacles and objections in such a procedure, are already formulated and summarized in two words: School Program. Indeed, the real tyrant is the timetable that official ministry sets. But a crevasse must be found so as to begin the fall and the demolition of this wall.

THE TEACHER’S ROLE THE NEW TEACHER-STUDENT RELATIONSHIP In the creative learning process, the nursery school teacher and the primary school teacher have adopted the basic conception that learning starts from the children and ends to the children. It is the so-called Student-Centred method that has as its basis the children themselves and not the teacher’s power. The teacher has a facilitating, supportive role in the classroom. The teacher’s - student’s relationship is based on an environment of partici-pation, mutual trust, acceptance, cooperation. The teach is no longer the powerful image in the classroom that knows everything, the authority, and becomes warm, human and ready to share the children’s questions. As a true human being the teacher shares the different human and social relationships and needs. There is strong emphasis on the creative, selfdiscovering of new knowledge. The student’s self-creativity plays an important role because at the perception level of learning all types of knowledge need the child’s activity.

THE TEACHER’S ROLE AT THE NURSERY AND PRIMARY SCHOOL According to the beliefs of this method, the basis of which is that the focus of the learning process is the child itself, the teacher’s role is changing. It is no longer descriptive, corrective, authorita-rian. We give more emphasis on the teacher’s qualities as an enabler, friend, colleague, and facilitator, as person that wants to help the students in

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their effort to learn. The teacher trusts his students enough to let them make their own choices concerning knowledge and how they would like to acquire it, in a process that concerns mainly the students themselves.

Teachers become more sensitive towards the social and emotional needs of the students, they empathize and respond positively. That does not mean that the teachers do not follow a curriculum program or that there are no rules in the learning process. On the contrary, there are rules and subjects but the students participate in the procedures of deciding these rules and the way the curriculum is going to be taught and the teacher makes sure that these rules are going to be followed. More specifically, the teacher at the nursery and primary school tries: • to support the interaction among the students themselves and between the students and the teacher • to provoke and cultivate the student’s interest in different creative ways • to urge and to give opportunities of expression and participation • to show authentic interest in what the student does • to offer chances so as the child will be able to search and acquire the knowledge and has the chance to experience a lot of things • to allow and urge the child to do things independently and in groups.

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EUROPEAN LEARNING SYSTEMS

G r e e k Educational System

The educational system in Greece is mainly characterized by its versatile character, which is ordained by the numerous laws and decrees of the Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs. Over the years, the Ministry in question has made significant changes to the education system, most of which were mandated by the wish of each government to adopt recent scientific findings and acclaimed education models of other countries in the world. Adapting state-of-the-art research in the field of education, as well as foreign education practices to meet the needs of the Greek society and labor market has resulted in a multilayered education system, which caters for all students in the country. Most students in Greece attend public schools of all levels, for which there are no tuition fees, while less than 10% of the student population enrolls in private schools.

Early childhood education/care AGE 0-4 Daycare center AGE 4-6 (one year or pre-school education is compulsory) Kindergarten Experimental Kindegartens exist Elementary education AGE 6-12 (COMPULSORY) Elementary school Experimental Elementary Schools Elementary Schools for Special Education, Elementary Schools for the Deaf do exist(SPECIAL EDUCATION)

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Secondary education AGE 12-15 (COMPULSORY) Junior High school (Evening Junior High School, Experimental Junior High School, Music Junior High School, Arts Junior High School, Multicultural Junior High School) SPECIAL EDUCATION Junior High School for students with Special Needs AGE 15-18 General High school (General Evening High School, Experimental High School, Music High School Arts High School, Multicultural High School) SPECIAL EDUCATION Special Vocational Education & Training Institutes Vocational Education Vocational High School Vocational Evening High School Vocational Training Schools 18+ University Technological Educational Institute School of Pedagogical and Technological education School of Fine Arts Hellenic Open University Lifelong Learning Lifelong Learning Centers Second Chance Adult Education School VOCATIONAL EDUCATION Vocational Training Schools Vocational Training Institutes

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Also Military Schools,Police Academy, Drama Schools, Colleges (private ones that collaborate with non-Greek EU and US Universities under licenses)

Structure of the Greek Education System Education in Greece is compulsory for all students aged 5-15 y. old” (1 year Pre-School, 6 years Elementary Edu and 3 years Junior High School, 10 years of compulsory education.

The education system is divided into Early Education and Care for children up to the age of 6; Primary Education for schoolchildren between the ages of 6 and 12, Secondary Education for teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18, Higher Education for those wishing to attend university courses, and, finally, Lifelong Learning, which caters for adult students of all ages.

Early Education and Care In Greece there are Daycare Centers which provide children up to the age of 5 with preschool education. The last stage of pre-school education is carried out in Kindergarten Schools, where young students take preparatory courses just before enrolling in primary/elementary schools.

Primary Education Primary Schools welcome children of the age of 6. Some of these schools are termed “Experimental”, as they carry out experimental education practices, and are supervised by university departments specializing in pedagogic and primary education. There are also primary schools which cater for students with physical or mental impairment, or special needs. In all three types of primary schools, students learn basic skills in a number of subjects, like Language Reading and Writing, Environmental Studies, Maths, English.

Primary Schools in Greece operate between 8am and 1pm, while the majority of those offer extra classes on Physical Education, Art and Music until 4pm.

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Secondary Education

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All students graduating from primary education must attend courses in a Junior High School (Gymnasium- age 12-15) and high school (Lyseum-Age 15-18). There are several types of Junior High Schools. A student may attend the Junior High School which is located in his neighborhood, or he/she may be admitted to an Experimental Junior High School through a lottery system. Students who have a special interest in painting, drama, dancing or music may attend a Junior High School that specializes in the field.

There are also Junior High Schools which address students from a multicultural background, as well as students with special needs. Most Junior High Schools operate from 8am to 2pm, but there are also evening schools that operate from 7pm till 10pm for students – mainly adults – who work during daytime. A variety of subjects are taught in Junior High Schools, including Modern and Ancient Greek Language, Maths, Physics, Chemistry, Geography, History, Physical Education, Religious Studies, Music and Art, while special emphasis is given to foreign language learning, as students are taught both English and another European language of their choice (students tend to choose between French and German). Students take exams in all subjects at the end of each school year.

Although upper level Secondary Education is not compulsory in Greece, most students attend High School. At this level, students may opt to attend a General High School or an Experimental High School (mainly for graduates

of Experimental Junior High Schools) or any High School specializing in music or the arts. Students coming from a different cultural/lingual backround may attend a Multicultural Elementary or High School, while there are Special Vocational Education & Training Institutes for students with special needs. Students may also pursue vocational training in Vocational High Schools, or, once they are 16, they may enroll in a Vocational Evening High School and graduate after 4 years of study. In addition, there are Vocational Training Schools; in these schools, as well as in all Vocational High Schools students attend general education courses combined with workplace courses. At the final stage of his/her studies, a student may work as an apprentice and gain valuable work experience.

High Schools offer a combination of General Education courses and Advanced Placement courses. Students who wish to pursue studies in Higher Education take Panhellenic exams in a specific number of Advanced Placement courses which fall into one of the following categories: Humanities, Science, Technology. This is considered to be a tough and highly competitive exam proc ess that students go through in order to ensure education at a higher level.

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Higher Education (Post secondary education) Greece has a high number of university graduates. Most of them attend four-year studies in University departments and in Technological University departments, as well as in the various departments of the School of Pedagogical and Technological Education, while those attending Technical University departments – specializing in fields like architecture and engineering – graduate after five years of studies. Students who wish to enroll in the School of Fine Arts take special exams, and graduate after five years of studies. Courses in Higher Education institutes in Greece take the form of either lectures or workshops, and most of the courses spread over one semester. Most university departments in Greece offer one-year or two-year postgraduate courses, as well as the opportunity to pursue a doctoral degree. Students may also enroll in the Hellenic Open University for graduate or postgraduate studies, where they pay tuition fees and where they are admitted through an annual lottery system.

Lifelong Learning

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Lifelong Learning in Greece takes place in Lifelong Learning centers which are usually supervised by Municipality services. These centers offer a variety of courses, aiming at both formal and informal education. On the other hand, Vocational Training Institutes and Vocational Train-

ing Schools often adapt their curriculum to suit the needs of their adult students and of the labor market. Finally, Second Chance Adult Education Schools cater for those students who have dropped out of school at some point in their life, but wish to continue with their studies at a later date.

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Italian Educational System

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Organisation and Structure of the Education System The education system is organised as follows: • pre-primary school (scuola dell’infanzia) for children between 3 and 6 years of age; • first cycle of education lasting 8 years, made up of: - primary education (scuola primaria), lasting 5 years, for children between 6 and 11 years of age; - lower secondary school (scuola secondaria di I grado), lasting 3 years, for children between 11 and 14 years of age; • second cycle of education offering two different pathways: -State upper secondary school (scuola secondaria di II grado), lasting 5 years for students from 14 to 19 years of age. It is offered by licei, technical institutes and vocational institutes; - three and four-year vocational training courses (IFP).

It is organised by the Regions; • higher education offered by universities, polytechnics included, institutes of the Higher Education in Art and Music system (Alta Formazione Artistica e Musicale, AFAM) and Higher Technical Institutes (Istituti Tecnici Superiori, ITS).

Education is compulsory for ten years between the ages of 6 and 16.

This covers the whole of the first cycle of education, which lasts eight years (five years of primary school and three years of lower secondary school), and the first two years of the second cycle. After completion of the

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first cycle of education, the final two years of compulsory education (from 14 to 16 years of age) can be undertaken at a State upper secondary school (liceo, technical institute or vocational institute), or on a three- or four-year vocational education and training course which is within the jurisdiction of the Regions.

7In addition, everyone has a right and a duty (diritto/dovere) to receive education and training for at least 12 years within the education system or until they have obtained a three-year vocational qualification by the age of 18. Finally, 15-year-olds can also spend the last year of compulsory education on an apprenticeship, upon a specific arrangement between the Regions, the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of Education and trade unions.

Compulsory education refers to both enrolment and attendance. It can be undertaken at either a State school or a non-State, publicly subsidised school (scuola paritaria) or even, subject to certain conditions, through home education or private schools. Regional three-year vocational training courses are offered by the relevant training agencies.

Parents or guardians are responsible for ensuring that children complete compulsory education, while the local authorities where pupils reside and the managers of the schools they attend have a responsibility for supervising their completion of compulsory education.

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Once they have reached school-leaving age, young people who do not continue with their studies receive a certificate of completion of compulsory ed-

ucation and the skills they have acquired. These skills contribute to training credits towards any professional qualification.

Access to tertiary education (university, AFAM and ITS) is solely for students who have passed the State examination at the end of upper secondary school. Nevertheless, the specific conditions for admission are decided by the Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) or individual universities and AFAM institutes.

The three-year vocational qualification and the fouryear vocational diploma, both issued on successful completion of regional vocational training courses, allow entry to regional second-level vocational training. Holders of the upper secondary education leaving certificate are also eligible for second-level vocational courses.

PRIMARY EDUCATION Primary school is compulsory, lasts for a total of five years and is attended by pupils aged between 6 and 11.

Although they are two completely different levels of education, each with its own specificities, primary school and lower secondary school make up the first cycle of education, which lasts a total of eight years.

The aim of this level in the education system is to provide pupils with basic learning and the basic tools of active citizenship. It helps pupils to understand the meaning of their own experiences.

Primary education is divided, for teaching purposes only, into the first year, linked to pre-primary school, followed by a further two periods of two years each.

Age Levels and Grouping of Pupils Primary school lasts five years and is generally for pu-

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pils aged from 6 to 11.

In primary schools, children are organised into groups called ‘classes’.

Pupils are enrolled into class according to their age. However, pupils from different classes can be grouped together for special school activities or objectives.

A class has a minimum of 15 and a maximum of 26-27 pupils.

These limits can be modified within a 10% range.

The maximum number of pupils per class is usually lowered to 20, if there are pupils with special educational needs. In schools located in small villages, usually in mountain areas or on small islands, the minimum number of pupils per class is 10.

If the population is too low for the school to form separate classes of pupils of the same age, ‘multi-classes’ are allowed. In multi-classes, pupils of different ages are grouped together to form a single class.

This practice is marginal today affecting only a very small number of pupils.

Teachers working in multi-classes have to plan and present activities that are tailored to the different age groups in their class.

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Teachers in primary schools are generalists.

The number of teachers per class varies according to the different timetable models (for details, see ‘Organisation of the School Day and Week’).

In fact, the classes adopting the weekly school timetable of 24, 27 or 30 hours usually have only one teacher, who may be supported by English

language and Catholic religious studies teachers.

Conversely, two teachers work – although not at the same time – in classes with a weekly timetable of 40 hours.

Organisation of the School Year As with pre-primary school (scuola dell’infanzia), the Ministry of Education is responsible for setting the calendar for nationwide holidays, for all school levels.

The Regions are responsible for defining the school calendar (start and end of school activities, length of breaks for national holidays, other holidays) so that it reflects 22local needs.

Every year, the Ministry publishes a summary table on its website showing all regional school calendars.

The school year starts on 1 September and ends on 31 August.

Teaching activities, including end-of-term assessments, final assessments and examinations, as well as in-service training activities are carried out between 1 September and 30 June.

There are 200 teaching days in a year. For pupil evaluation purposes, the school year can be divided into two or three terms (periods of three or four months, as decided by the Teachers’ Council of each school).

The minimum and maximum number of teaching hours is set at central level.

The teaching timetable offers the following options: • 24 hours a week; • 27 hours a week; • up to 30 hours a week, involving additional activi-

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ties to the 27-hour timetable (i.e. up to 3 extra hours per week); • 40 hours a week, including the lunchtime meal, known as ‘full-time’.

Parents can choose which timetable to enrol their children on. Schools form classes on the basis of demand, bearing in mind that 30-hour or 40-hour classes can only be formed, if the school has the necessary human resources and facilities available.

Furthermore, the minimum number of pupils per class must be met.

Organisation of the School Day and Week The District/School Council establishes the daily and weekly timetable and the distribution of teaching hours in the morning and afternoon. Lessons must be spread over no fewer than 5 days a week.

Lessons are usually held from Monday to Friday, but some schools offer a six-day week with lessons on Saturday.

Schools can autonomously adopt flexible solutions on the basis of the requirements of families, the teaching staff they have available, their facilities and services.

Furthermore, the District/School Council can decide to redistribute the annual curricular teaching hours across different weeks of the school year, provided lessons are distributed over no fewer than five days a week.

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Out-of-school reception of pupils before or after the school timetable is a service run by the municipalities and as such is subject to demand and the financial and staff resources available to local administrations.

Teaching and Learning in Primary Education - Curriculum, Subjects, Number of Hours At primary level, the curriculum is defined through the National Guidelines for the Curriculum (Indicazioni nazionali per il curricolo) implemented from school year 2012/2013.

As mentioned in the section on pre-primary school (scuola dell’infanzia), this document replaced the National Guidelines for the Personalised Study Plans in primary schools (Indicazioni nazionali per i piani di studio personalizzati) of 2004 and the Guidelines for the Curriculum (Indicazioni per il curricolo) of 2007.

Specifically, the purpose of primary education is to enable pupils to acquire the fundamental knowledge and skills to develop basic cultural competence.

According to the new guidelines, the general aim of school is the harmonious and comprehensive development of the individual, according to the principles of the Italian Constitution and European cultural tradition, to be achieved through the promotion of knowledge, respect for individual diversity and the active involvement of students and their families.

The reference for these new guidelines is the Framework for Key Competences for Lifelong Learning set up by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union through the Recommendation of 18 December 2006.

The subjects taught during the 5 years of primary school are: Italian, English, history, geography, mathematics, science, technology, music, art, sports science (also called body, movement and sport), Catholic religious education. Catholic religious education is optional.

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After a three-year experiment starting in 2009/2010, the curriculum now also includes ‘Citizenship and Constitution’. It is not a separate subject and content is defined through teaching projects developed by each school. To pursue this objective, all schools must include this teaching in their educational offer plans.

Each subject has goals for the development of skills, which are mandatory for teachers and learning objectives which are needed to reach the goals.

The specific learning objectives for Catholic religious education are defined by Presidential Decree in agreement with the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI).

At primary level, there are no specific subject timetables.

Only English and Catholic religious education have a specific timetable: one hour of teaching for English in the first grade, two hours in the second grade, three hours in the third, fourth and fifth grades, amounting to a minimum compulsory total of 396 hours throughout primary education.

Two hours a week are allocated to either the teaching of Catholic religious education or alternative activities for those who opt not to take Catholic religious education.

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Teaching Methods and Materials Freedom in teaching is a principle set out in the Italian Constitution (art. 33).

The choice and use of teaching methods and materials must be consistent with each school’s educational offer plan (POF), which, in turn, must be consistent with the general and educational objectives of the different branches and levels of study established at national level.

While safeguarding the freedom in teaching, the National Guidelines for the Curriculum (see, ‘Curriculum, Subjects and Number of Hours’) suggest some basic methodological approaches, such as, taking advantage of pupils’ experiences and knowledge, promoting exploration and discovery activities, encouraging cooperative learning, developing awareness of one’s own learning method, carrying out in-lab learning, etc.Teachers choose textbooks & teaching tools.

Textbooks should be in digital or mixed format (mixed format means paper, paper plus digital or digital, all with integrated digital content). In all events, textbooks and teaching tools must be consistent with the curriculum and with the school’s educational offer plan. Textbooks are free for pupils and the costs are met by municipalities, in accordance with regional legislation on the right to study.

Every year, the Ministry sets the retail price of textbooks.

In addition, for specific subjects, schools can create their own digital teaching tools which students will use as textbooks.

Teachers can develop such tools in class during teaching hours and in collaboration with other class teachers and students. Schools can share and distribute their textbooks free of charge to other State schools, upon registration of the product.

Primary schools are usually provided with many teaching materials and tools. Schools are encouraged to organise laboratories or set up rooms as libraries, gymnasiums, science or music laboratories.

Primary schools generally have ICT laboratories to support teaching activities and several classrooms are also equipped with interactive whiteboards (IWB).

Every school pays for teaching materials, tools and equipment from its own financial resources. Local authorities can share the expense, in accordance with regional legislation on the right to study.

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Bulgarian Educational System

Education in Bulgaria is mainly supported by the state through the Ministry of Education and Science. School education is compulsory for children from seven to sixteen years of age.

The Bulgarian educational system falls within the continental European tradition. The main types of secondary schools are: general educational, vocational, language schools and foreign schools. Private schools are also being established and they are beginning to compete successfully with state schools.

There are fifty-one higher educational institutions in Bulgaria offering degrees at undergraduate and graduate levels. The academic year for most Bulgarian universities begins around October 1 and consists of fall and spring semesters. The academic year covers up to 30 weeks. Classes usually meet once a week for 75 minutes or for two 45-minute periods with a 15-minute break in between.

• Structure Structure of the Educational System of Bulgaria Useful table can be found here: http://www.fulbright.bg/en/educational-services/educational-services-for-visiting-us-schools/educational-system-ofbulgaria/#prettyPhoto • Grading System Main Grading System Used by Education Institutions in Bulgaria o All academic courses receive grades of 2-6 according to the following standards: @ 6 (A) – Excellent (91.5 -100%) @ 5 (B) – Very Good (80.5 – 91.4%) @ 4 (C) – Good (70.5 – 80.4%) @ 3 (D) – Sufficient (59.5 – 70.4%) @ 2 (F) – Poor (0 – 59.4%) @ 6.0 (US 4.0) is the highest possible GPA @ Pass/fail level: 3.5

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@ @

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Lowest on scale: 2 To convert GPA from the Bulgarian 6.0 system to the American 4.0 system, subtract two points from the Bulgarian system. For example, a 6.0 in the Bulgarian system is a 4.0 in the American system. @ As a matter of policy, the Bulgarian education institutions do not rank or rate their students. @ The Bulgarian counselors and teachers do their best to distinguish applicants in recommendations, and you should not hesitate to contact them if you have questions. @ Languages of Study Languages of Study @ The official language of instruction is Bulgarian. @ At the school level, the general curriculum provides opportunities for ethnic minority children to study their mother tongue. @ In specialized language schools and in the profileoriented schools, instruction takes place in English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Armenian, Hebrew, Russian, and other languages. @ At university level, instruction takes place in English at the American University in Bulgaria, and in German, French and English in some programs in technical universities. @ Primary and Secondary Education Primary and Secondary Education: General @ Authority: The Ministry of Education and Science Web site in Bulgarian: www.minedu.government.bg The Ministry of Education and Science creates and applies national education policy, and also plans and organizes the development of education by putting together long-term programs and operational projects. @ Education in Bulgaria is compulsory from the ages of 7 to 16. Children complete their compulsory education in upper secondary schools.

@ @

Structure Basic education (Grades 1-8) in Bulgaria comprises primary school (grades 1-4) and pre-secondary school (grades 5-8). @ The Upper Secondary level lasts for either 4 or 5 years following the receipt of a Basic Education Completion Certificate. Upper Secondary education is provided in three types of schools: comprehensive (general) secondary schools, profile-oriented schools and vocationaltechnical schools. @ Admission Criteria @ Basic (primary and pre-secondary) education is free, except in private schools. @ Students can enter the profile-oriented schools upon completion of grades 7 or 8 after passing entry examinations, according to the profile of the school (mother tongue/literature, mathematics, humanities etc.). @ Curriculum is unified for all schools. It includes subjects such as Literature (Bulgarian, English, French, German), Mathematics, Foreign Languages, History, Geography, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Psychology, Ethics and Law, Philosophy, Music, Arts, Vocational Training, and Physical Education. There are no course levels, i.e. A.P., or Honor Courses in the Bulgarian Educational System. However, in the last two years of study, students are required to take advanced courses in two or three subjects. @ School Year The school year is divided into two terms: the first is from Mid-September to the end of January, and the second – from the beginning of February to the end of June. At the end of each term students receive term grades in each subject, and at the end of the school year they get final grades in the subjects.

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@ Completion Document: Name in Bulgarian: Диплома за средно/средно специално образование English translation: Diploma of Secondary/Secondary Specialized Education @ Higher Education Higher Education LEGAL FRAMEWORK DOCUMENTS @ Law on National Education, published, State Gazette N86/18.10.1991, last modified and supplemented, State Gazette N40/14.05.2004 @ Higher Education Act (1995) passed in December 1996, amended and supplemented in 1999 and 2002 to strengthen the legal context for higher education. The legislation recognized the private sector and new disciplinary areas.

It also set guidelines to bring standards in line with the rest of Europe (e.g. in line with the Lisbon, Bologna and Sorbonne declarations) @ Government Ordinance on the State Classifier of the Fields of Study and Subject Fields (2002) @ Government Ordinance on the State Requirements for the Degree Qualifications of Bachelor, Master and Specialist (in specific professional field) (2002) @ Government Ordinance on the State Requirements for the Content of the Documents Issued by Higher Education Institutions (1997) MAIN COORDINATING BODIES AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL @ The National Assembly – Makes the final decision about establishment, transformation and closing of higher education institutions, as well as branches and departments where there are provisions for study programs of the regulated professions. @ The Council of Ministers – Makes the final decision about establishment, transformation and closing of departments, institutes, branches and colleges at the public univer-

sities. @ The Ministry of Education and Science @ Controls whether higher education institutions respect the law and in the cases of legal infringement addresses the National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency with proposals to revoke accreditation status. @ Carries out the procedures for the recognition of foreign credentials. @ Decisions on recognition are made by a commission established by the ministry. The Bulgarian ENIC/ NARIC supports the activities of the commission on the recognition of higher-education study periods and qualifications. @ Keeps a record of all accredited institutions and their programs/courses of study in a State Registry of Accredited Institutions and Programs. @ The National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency (NEAA) is the only national statutory body for evaluation and accreditation in higher education. @ The Agency recognizes the degree-awarding powers of higher education institutions. @ Organizes also a follow-up procedure at institutional and program levels. @ Aims at post-accreditation monitoring and control of the capability of an institution to assure quality and standards, as well as whether the institution properly addresses the issues and follows recommendations set in the evaluation report. @ The National Information Center for Academic Recognition and Mobility (ENIC/NARIC) was established in 1994 within the International Relations Department of the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science. @ The members of the staff work in close cooperation with the Legislation Commissions, which are expert bodies of the Ministry of Education and Science entrusted

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with recognition of foreign credentials. @ The Center is responsible for the certification of all national qualifications destined for external evaluation by foreign institutions.

Types of Higher Education Institutions @ Total of 51 accredited higher education institutions See State Register of the Accredited Higher Schools in Bulgaria: @ Four types of higher education institutions: @ Higher Education College (non-university higher education institution) @ University @ Specialized Higher Education Institution Equivalent to Universities /Technical University @ Academy @ Private and Public Institutions (37 public and 14 private institutions) Admission @ The requirements for enrollment, depending on the type of higher schools and the particular specialty, comprise written competitive exams (one or more), tests (varying in volume and structure in the different higher schools), and a diploma of completed secondary education. @ The autonomy of higher education institutions allows them to define for themselves the requirements for enrollment every year. This enables them to organize admission in some specialties only on the basis of a diploma (a Diploma of secondary education) or by combining enrollment by diploma with a test or with exams. @ The procedure for application in each specialty is determined on an annual basis and made public in the reference manual of the higher school.

Degree Structure (per 1995 law): @ “Specialist in…” Degree

@ Colleges, which are generally incorporated into the structure of universities, offer relatively short, vocationally oriented programs (usually three years in length) leading to the award of “Specialist in…” degree. @ Holders of this qualification are eligible for bachelorlevel studies or for entry into the labor market. @ First or Bachelor’s Degree @ Four-to-five years of study is required at this level leading to the Bachelor’s degree. @ The curricula at the bachelor level provide for basic comprehensive training, thus facilitating direct access to the labor market.

About 2/3 of graduated bachelors continue in master programs. @ Second or Master’s Degree @ Requires one-to-two years of additional study after the bachelor’s degree, and leads to a Master’s degree. @ The new Master’s degree is currently offered in parallel with the traditional, integrated master’s-level degree known as the Diploma of Higher Education.

Both qualifications possess the same academic value. @ Only universities and specialized higher education schools offer a master’s degree of one year, building on a bachelor program of four to five years. There are still some long, integrated master’s programs of five-to-six years in subject areas such as architecture. @ Third or Ph.D. Degree @ Requires a minimum of three years of study after the master’s or four years of study after the bachelor’s, and leads to the Doctoral degree. @ Doctoral programs are essentially research programs. @ Graduates are awarded a Doctor’s degree upon successful defense of their doctoral thesis.

European Standards in Bulgarian Higher Education

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@

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The 2003 draft of the Higher Education Act foresees the adoption of ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) by all higher education institutions.

In Bulgaria, ECTS mainly facilitates academic harmonization and student mobility and functions less as a tool for assessment.

European Diploma Supplement Since 2005 all graduates automatically receive the Diploma Supplement in both Bulgarian and English. The format corresponds fully to that recommended by UNESCO and the Council of Europe.

The Diploma Supplement was developed to provide students with a document that will be attached to a higher education diploma and to improve international recognition of academic and professional qualifications (diplomas, degrees, certificates etc).

The supplement provides a description of the nature, level, context, content and status of the studies a student pursued and successfully completed.

Official Higher Education Documentation Diploma “Specialist in…” + Diploma Supplement (official transcript of the academic program listing subjects and grades; invalid without the diploma) Bachelor’s Diploma + Bachelor’s Diploma Supplement (official transcript of Bachelor’s degree program listing subjects and grades, invalid without the diploma) Master’s Diploma + Master’s Diploma Supplement (official transcript of Master’s degree program listing subjects and grades; invalid without the diploma) European Diploma Supplement Certificate of Professional Qualification Certificate of Professional Specialization in Medicine or Dentistry Doctor of Sciences Recognition of Studies and Qualifications Studies pursued in home country

NEAA (The National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency) at the Council of Ministers evaluates universities and colleges and accredits their programs.

The Ministry of Education and Science is responsible for the certification of all national qualifications destined for external evaluation by foreign institutions.

Studies pursued in foreign countries Bulgarian ENIC/NARIC (National Information Center for Academic Recognition and Mobility) at the Ministry of Education and Science deals with recognition of foreign credentials.

Verification of Accreditation NEAA (The National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency) Internet: http://www.neaa.government.bg/index.php/en/ Verification of Academic Credentials Ministry of Education and Science Department: European Integration and Bilateral Cooperation Section: Certification of National Education Qualifications Internet: www.minedu.government.bg Verification of European Diploma Supplement

This document is a cortesy of Fullbright Bulgarian American Commission for Educational Exchange.

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Tu r k i s h Educational System

Turkey is located between Western Asia and South-eastern Europe. In Turkey, education is regulated by a national system which was formed as per the Ataturk Reforms after the Turkish War of Independence. The Ministry of National education is responsible for school level education in Turkey- pre-primary, primary and secondary education. The higher education system of Turkey is managed and supervised by the Council of higher education (CoHE).

Education Profile of Turkey The National education system of Turkey comprises formal and non-formal education.

• Formal education encompasses pre-primary, primary, secondary and higher education. Primary and secondary education in Turkey is funded by the state. Education in public schools for children aged 6 to 18 is free of charge.

• Non-formal education is for young adults who could not attend schools or could not complete their studies.

Compulsory Education Compulsory education in Turkey lasts 12 years.

Formal Education Primary and secondary education in Turkey is represented “4+4+4” system, where the first level of primary education lasts for 4 years, followed by second level primary education for 4 years, and secondary education for 4 years.

Levels of Turkish Formal Education System Pre-primary Education Pre-primary education in Turkey is optional and is offered by the kindergartens, nurseries, day-care centres and other child-care institutions. Children aged 3 to 6 may attend this pre-primary schools. In Turkey, there are private as well as state preschools.

Primary Education (In Turkish: İlkokul)

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Primary education in Turkey is for children aged 6 to 14. This educational level is mandatory to attend and is divided into two levels: • Level 1: First School (İlkokul 1. Kademe): The duration of this level is 4 years and covers grades 1 to 4.

• Level 2: The duration of this level is 4 years and covers grades 5 to 8.

Subjects: At grades 1 to 3, there are 4 core subjects: Mathematics, Turkish, foreign language, and life sciences (Hayat Bilgisi).

At grade 4, instead of life sciences; science and social studies is taught.

Secondary Education Secondary education in Turkey is optional and is for children aged 15 to 17/18. The duration of secondary education is 4 years.

This education is offered by high schools (Lise). The government is responsible for these schools and education in these schools is free of charge.

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Secondary education in Turkey comprises of general, vocational and technical education. This educational level prepares students for higher education or a vocation.

• General secondary education: Children aged 15 to 17 may go for general secondary education. This secondary educational level consists of high schools, Anatolia fine arts high schools, high schools of foreign language teaching, Anatolian High Schools, science high schools, and Anatolia teacher training high schools.

• Vocational and technical secondary education: This secondary educational level prepares students for a particular profession, or for higher education. This secondary educational level consists of technical educational schools for boys, religious education schools, technical educational schools for girls, health education schools, trade and tourism schools, special education schools, multi-program high schools, and private education

schools.

Examination: At the end of secondary education, students are required to sit for a high school finishing exam. Students who pass this examination are allowed to sit for the University Entrance Exam. Students who pass the university exam are eligible to apply for higher education institution in Turkey.

Higher Education The higher education council (YOK) administers the higher education system in Turkey. Public higher education institutions receive finance from the state. Students who have completed secondary education and passed the university entrance exam are eligible for higher education.

Higher education institutions in Turkey are mainly of two types- state and private/foundation universities. Universities offer undergraduate as well as graduate study programmes.

Following are the units in the Turkish higher education institutions: • Institutes • Faculties • Higher education schools • Conservatories • Application and research centers • Vocational higher education schools The degree structure of Turkish higher education adheres to the Bologna process. Turkish universities provide following qualifications: • Associate’s degree: Vocational high schools in Turkey offer associate degree.

• Bachelor’s degree: The duration of this degree is 4 to 6 years, depending upon the field of study. Generally, this degree programme lasts for 4 years. The technical institutions provide an engineering diploma after 4 years of full-time study.

For studies in architecture, veterinary medicine and dentistry, it lasts for 5 years; while medicine studies require 6 years of study

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and lead to the qualification of Medicine Doctor (MD).

• Master’s degree: This degree requires 2 years of fulltime study.

• Doctorate or PhD degree: This degree requires 2 to 4 years of study and students who have completed master’s degree programme are eligible for this level. At the end of the PhD programme, students need to submit a doctoral thesis.

• A proficiency in art degree is the equivalent of a doctorate in fine arts, and a specialist degree is equivalent to a doctorate in medical science.

To know in detail about the education system of Turkey, read the post “Turkey Education Overview”.

Standardized Test Higher Education Examination-Undergraduate Placement Examination (Yuksekoğretime Gecis Sınavı-Lisans Yerleştirme Sınavı, or YGS-LYS), or Student Selection and Placement System (Oğrenci Secme ve Yerleştirme Sistemi, or OSYS)

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is a standardized test required for admittance into higher education institution in Turkey. The examination is managed and oragnized by OSYM (“Olcme, Secme ve Yerleştirme Merkezi”).

Private Schools in Turkey Private schools in Turkey are classified into 4 categories: • Private Turkish schools: These schools are established by corporate bodies of Turkish citizenship. These schools provide public education courses at pre-primary, primary and secondary levels.

• Private schools for minorities: These schools are formed by Jewish, Greek and Armenian minorities; and provide education at pre-primary, primary and secondary educational levels to the minority class pupils who are having turkish citizenship.

• Private foreign schools: These are schools are formed during the Ottoman Empire by Austrian, French, Italian, American and German individuals under the conditions of the Lausanne Treaty. Turkish children attend this school.

• Private international educational institutions: These educational institutions are established according to the provisions in the Law no. 625 (article 5).

Non-Formal Education Non-formal education in Turkey is administered by the Ministry of National Education (MEB). This form of education is provided by a network of training centers available in Turkey. The non-formal education provides knowledge and skills to the individual from different professions; help pupils who couldn’t complete their education to study further and complete their studies, teach health lifestyle and balanced nutrition; and also provide reading and writing skills.

This form of education also encompasses distance higher education which is provided at the Open Education Faculty of Anadolu University. The duration of the course of study is 2 to 4 years.

Admission Requirements Students must complete their secondary education in order to gain admittance into the Turkish higher education. Students are admitted into the universities on the basis of the entrance exam results. The exam is conducted and managed by the student selection and placement centre (OSYM).

To know in detail about the admission requirements and procedure, click here.

International Students Admission requisite: International pupils must have finished their secondary education in a secondary/high school which is equal to a Turkish lycee. International students are eligible to enter in Turkish universities by exam results of ALES and SAT.

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Turkish Language Test: The test is provided by the “Language Studies Center of Ankara University (TOMER)”. Candidates who have completed their secondary school education in Turkey or who have obtained their BA/BS or MA/MS degree in a University teaching in Turkish are exempted from appearing for Turkish language test.

Following Turkish language test scores are accepted: • TELC- The European Language Certificate • Distance Turkish Test (UTS) • Turkish Proficiency Exam (TYS) Student Visa: International students must apply for a student visa at their nearest Turkish embassy/consulate in order to enter Turkey.

For a Turkish student visa, students must submit the following documents along with the students visa application form: • An acceptance letter from a Turkish higher education institution • A valid passport and a passport photo • A processing fee To know in detail about the student visa procedure, read the post “Student Visa for Turkey”.

Exchange Programmes: International university pupils are given the opportunity to spend 1 or 2 semesters in Turkish universities by participating in the Erasmus or Mevlana exchange programmes.

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Cost of Study and Living The cost of study and living in Turkey is as follows: Tuition Fees: Public higher education institutions charge low fees, while the private higher education institutions charge high fees. The fees vary depending upon the level

and study programme.

Living Expenses: The costs of living in Turkey vary depending on the lifestyle, location and the services. International students can expect to pay between 400-500 USD a month, inclusive of accommodation, transportation, food and other necessary utilities.

Scholarships In Turkey, there are many scholarships provided to Turkish as well as international students. The Ministry of Education provides state scholarships and government scholarships to students.

Health Insurance Turkey has a well-established and maintained healthcare system. All higher education institutions in Turkey provide a free health care facility at their medical centres.

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Swedish Educational System

•A goal steered system with a high degree of local responsibility.

•The Swedish Parliament and the Government draw up the overall national goals regarding -the Education Act -the curricula -the school ordinance, the upper secondary school ordinance, and the adult education ordinance -the syllabuses for compulsory school -the syllabuses for subjects that are common for all programmes at the upper secondary school -the diploma goals for the upper secondary school.

National Agencies •The Swedish National Agency for Education (NAE) •The Swedish Schools Inspectorate Regular supervision of all schools, may make use of sanctions.

Quality audits – special matter or problem area.

Applications and licences for independent education providers The Child and School Student Representative (BEO).

•The National Agency for Special Needs Education Support to special schools, run special needs schools.

Tasks of the NAE •Steering documents We set the frames and guidelines on how the education is to be carried out.

•National school development We support the development of preschools and schools with the aim of achieving greater goal attainment.

•Evaluation We evaluate activities through in-depth studies and analyses.

•Follow-up We follow-up school activities, how they are carried out, and how results can be improved.

•Teacher certification

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We make decisions on the certification of preschool teachers and teachers.

The NAE’s steering instruments •The National Agency for Education draws up and decides on: -syllabuses for the compulsory school, the compulsory school for learning disabilities, the Sami school and the special school -subject syllabuses for the upper secondary school -knowledge requirements for all school forms -Regulations -general guidelines.

•Education providers have primary responsibility for distributing resources and organising activities so that pupils attain the national goals.

•Based on this, each preschool, school and leisure-time centre chooses the working approaches most appropriate for them. The work is followed up by means of systematic quality assessment.

Education providers The main responsibility lies with the municipalities and the organizers of independent schools and schools.

•no county-level governance •290 municipalities •approx. 600 independent providers •”voucher system” financed on tax funds – no fees •obliged to follow the Education Act - Equal terms for all education providers and schools •considerable differences in capacity •national and local requirements.

Preschool •A school form for children aged 1-5 years.

•Voluntary, general preschool from the age of 3, or from the age of 1 if this is needed because of parents’ work or studies or the child’s own needs.

•Should ”stimulate the child’s development and learning, and

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also provide a secure care environment.”

Preschool class •Voluntary school form, free of charge for children aged six.

•Covers a minimum of 525 hours per school year.

•Should ”stimulate pupils’ development and learning and prepare them for further education.”

•Combines the working approaches and methods of the preschool and school.

Compulsory school education •Compulsory school attendance starts when the child reaches the age of seven.

•Compulsory school attendance is the norm in compulsory school.

•Compulsory schools are run by municipal or private education providers.

Alternatives to the compulsory school •The compulsory school for pupils with learning disabilities, sometimes together with the training school, has its own curriculum and syllabuses, for years 1 - 9 with the option of an additional year.

•The special school (state), 5 regional schools - hearing, 3 national schools, years 1 – 10.

•The Sami school (state), years 1-6.

7 international schools, 3 national boarding schools, special youth homes and Swedish schools abroad sure-time centres •Supplements the school for pupils aged between 6-13 years.

•Should ”stimulate pupils’ development and also provide them with meaningful recreational activities.”

•”… to the extent needed with regard to parents’ work or studies, or the pupil’s own need.”

The upper secondary school All pupils who have completed compulsory schooling are offered upper secondary education by their home municipality.

The right to start an upper secondary education applies to students up to the age of 20.

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Free of charge and voluntary.

Admission requirements Vocational programmes Pass grades in •Swedish or Swedish as a second language •English •Mathematics •Five other compulsory school subjects.

Higher education preparatory programmes Pass grades in •Swedish or Swedish as a second language •English •Mathematics •Eight other compulsory school subjects.

Education in upper secondary school

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Vocational programmes/ Apprenticeship education •Child and Recreation •Building and Construction •Electricity and Energy •Vehicle and Transport •Business and Administration •Handicraft •Hotel and Tourism •Industrial technology •Natural Resource Use •Restaurant Management and Food •HVAC and Property Management •Health and Social Care.

Higher education preparatory programmes •Business Management and Economics •Arts

•Humanities •Natural Science •Social Science •Technology.

Introductory programmes -Preparatory education -Programme oriented individual options -Vocational introduction -Individual alternative -Language introduction.

Nationally determined differences -Special variants -Education with nationwide admission with its own diploma goals -Cutting-edge education -Professional dance education -Sports education.

Diploma goals Alternatives to the upper secondary school •Upper secondary school for learning disabilities •International schools •National boarding schools •IB education •Distance education at upper secondary level in Torsås •Special institutions (state) •(Swedish schools abroad).

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Municipal adult education Basic adult education from the age of 20.

•Upper secondary municipal adult education from the age of 20 or completion of a national programs or equivalent education.

•Special education for adults.

•Swedish tuition for immigrants (SFI).

Students from vocational programs have the right to attain basic eligibility for higher education.

Pupil assessment

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•Formative assessment; development dialogue; written development plan: national tests.

•Compulsory school: End of semester reports, year 6-9, pilot scheme year 4 (2017).

•Literacy and numeracy from year 1 (New).

•Upper secondary: Completed course, diploma project, final diploma.

•No final exams.

Grading scale In the compulsory school for learning disabilities, grades are only awarded if the pupil, or the pupil’s guardian requests this.

F or a (–) dash are not used in the compulsory school for learning disabilities.

Equality of education •The voucher system – government funds following the choice of school.

•The same expectations on all education providers at local level, regardless of their circumstances.

•Responsible authorities do not evaluate their schools on an equal basis.

The teachers •Teaching is not an attractive choice of career.

•There is no central wage formation.

•Teacher appraisal is underdeveloped.

•Teachers do not have support staff.

Long-term conditions •The municipalisation reform and school choice system have contributed to increase school segregation.

Municipalities can lose their mandate every fourth year, and might not have any knowledge about schools and education.

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How Sweden differs from other countries

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Equality of education •The voucher system – government funds following the choice of school.

•The same expectations on all education providers at local level, regardless of their circumstances.

•Responsible authorities do not evaluate their schools on an equal basis.

The teachers •Teaching is not an attractive choice of career.

•There is no central wage formation.

•Teacher appraisal is underdeveloped.

•Teachers do not have support staff.

Long-term conditions •The municipalisation reform and school choice system have contributed to increase school segregation.

Municipalities can lose their mandate every fourth year, and might not have any knowledge about schools and education.

Teacher Training Education •Preschool programme •Compulsory teacher programme •Subject teacher programme •Vocational teacher programme •UKÄ, the Swedish Higher Education Authority •Huge lack of teachers •Alternative ways, boosts.

Top priority challenges •Newly arrived pupils Including all newly arrived pupils into ordinary education as soon as possible.

•Educational equity All schools must be developed into good schools.

•The teachers Ensure supply of competent teachers. Provide prerequisites for improved quality of teaching.

•Long-term conditions Consistency and support for continued implementation of reforms and local development.

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