Fermi High School Hosts European Student Exchange for Comenius Project
The school year has just begun, but at the «E. Fermi» High School in Salò, preparations are already underway to host a delegation of teachers and students, approximately ten in total, coming from Ilmenau European High School (Germany) and Tarnow High School (Poland). The group is arriving today and will stay until Tuesday, October 9.
This initiative is part of a series of activities promoted within the framework of the Comenius Project, to which Salò has joined together with the German and Polish partners. Thanks also to financial contributions from the European Community, the three high schools will be engaged over the next three school years in a joint project.
Objectives and methods of exchange between students
The involved classes will work on a particularly interesting topic, namely European personalities relevant in cultural, historical, or civic fields. To achieve this, students from the three institutions will need to stay in contact, exchange information and materials, organize small exhibitions, and ultimately transfer their results online or publish a report.
Using foreign languages will be absolutely necessary so that students can communicate with each other, discover similarities and differences, and perceive the sense of belonging to a community with common roots, Europe.
Discussion activities and cultural visits
During these days, teachers and student representatives, both Italian and foreign, will participate together in joint planning sessions. They will discuss in class their respective habits and the peculiarities of different educational systems; historical issues will also be addressed, such as the period before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall or more recent and tragic events in the United States.
Guests will also be welcomed at the Municipal Palace by Mayor Giampiero Cipani and local officials, who are interested in promoting openness to new cultural opportunities. There will be opportunities to visit Brescia and Verona, as well as some of the most beautiful locations around Lake Garda.
The challenge of e-projecting and future exchanges
Participating in a European community program is certainly not easy: becoming «europroject managers» requires time, patience, adaptability, but above all energy and enthusiasm, especially since the school, progressing towards autonomy, is already demanding a great deal from principals and teachers.
But perhaps this openness is a challenge some teachers from «Fermi» are willing to face, because they believe it represents a great opportunity to experiment with tolerance and acceptance of diversity: a wealth waiting to be discovered.
Next year, a delegation from «Fermi» will visit Tarnow High School in Poland to identify new activities. But that is another story.
