Author: enneproject

Portugal and the ENNE cities

Post author By enneproject
Post date 2 August 2021
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Portugal may be small in size, but it certainly has a lot to see and offer thanks to its magnificent diversity of landscapes, a rich cultural heritage, delicious cuisine and unique combination of tradition and contemporaneity.

The VET schools from the Portuguese National Network are in many parts of the country, including the islands and all of these locations have fantastic things to see and are great destinations to visit.

THE NORTH

Caminha is a charming town in the north of Portugal, located at the mouth of the Minho River and the border with Spain. This region is blessed by nature and it can surprise any tourist. The region offers itineraries for those who want mountains, maritime and fluvial beaches, as well as historical and cultural attractions. Around Caminha, there are still traces of civilizations from pre and proto-historic times, such as rock carvings, dolmens and fortified settlements. There are many leisure areas, historical monuments and viewpoints to discover with beautiful landscapes.

Fafe, a rural town in the northwest of Portugal, is a short distance from the city of Guimarães. Known as the Room of Visits of Minho, Fafe is located between the rivers of Vizela and Ferro and is recognized for its gastronomy, cultural heritage and natural beauty. To the surprise of many, this city hides more than one might expect, from stone-built houses to green areas.

Guimarães is the cradle city of Portugal, where D. Afonos Henriques, first king of Portugal, was born. The historic centre, an area within the city walls, is associated to the formation and identity of the country. It was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001, based on the values of originality and authenticity with which it was restored. Even today, the city has a harmonious and preserved patrimonial set that shows in the graceful iron balconies, granite balconies and porches, manor houses, arches that connect narrow streets, floor slabs, smoothed by time, towers and cloisters. For a moment, you can imagine yourself in a medieval setting!

Less than an hour away from the city of Porto, Felgueiras has endless reasons to be visited, from its gastronomy, cultural heritage to its traditions. You can explore a bit more of the countryside of Portugal through the monuments of the Romanesque Route, the traditional embroidery, the famous” Pão de Ló de Margaride” and the green wines.

Lixa is located right next to Felgueiras and it is popularly called “Terra Verde” (Green Land). Similarly to Felgueiras, this city has a cultural and gastronomic heritage truly rich and diverse. Is an obligatory stop on this itinerary and certainly enriching and delicious!

Matosinhos, one of the largest cities in the district of Porto, has a large area bathed by the Atlantic Ocean and is a city with a great industrial development, which seeks to maintain its popular traditions at the same time. From the sea to the table, the architecture and the monuments, Matosinhos is an unavoidably delightful city.

The already famous city of Porto is a fascinating city, situated on the slopes of the Douro River. It is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its beautiful monuments and historic buildings, such as the imposing “Sé” or the “Torre dos Clérigos”. Porto is Portugal’s second largest city and has superb views of the world-famous Port Wine Cellars on the opposite bank of the river in Vila Nova de Gaia. Although largely industrialized, Porto offers a harmonious synthesis of ancient and contemporary attractions.

CENTER

Many people have never heard of it, but Espinho is a very interesting Portuguese city. It has about 8 kilometers of beach, a must for those who like surfing and beach weather, but it is also a cosmopolitan city with an interesting heritage and a booming tourist industry. Visiting Espinho is really a wonderful experience – have lunch (try fresh fish!), go for a swim or surf, relax at the beach or go for a walk and enjoy the view!

Arrifana is a Portuguese village in the municipality of Santa Maria da Feira. It is a historic and secular land, proud of its historical past. It is highly industrialized, where traditional footwear and leather goods factories prevail, but where the metalworking industry also occupies a prominent place, particularly in the manufacture of machinery for the footwear industry.

ALENTEJO

Elvas, the “Queen of the Border” is one of the hidden treasures in Alentejo. Its strategic position, near the border with Spain, contributed to its military history. It was classified by UNESCO, in 2012, as World Heritage Site for being a border and garrison city and for its many fortifications. In fact, the city houses the largest fortification in the world, has a religious heritage with about 40 churches and convents and more than 20 military buildings!

ISLANDS

Ponta Delgada started out as a simple fishing village, but soon began to play the role of the main port of the island of São Miguel. Today, Ponta Delgada is a cosmopolitan, outward-looking city with an active economic and cultural life. With a history of more than five centuries and precious testimonies of the past, Ponta Delgada is a multifaceted city where tradition coexists with the present day and with the tranquillity of an Azorean life.

Funchal is unique for its diversity, from the sea to the mountains, from fruits to flowers and from embroidery to basket cars. Located in the south of Madeira Island, the city can be easily visited on foot in one or two days. Funchal is a city with a history of more than 500 years, which gives it a very engaging and charming historical context, dominated by a powerful landscape between the sea and the majestic mountains.

Bulgarian news

Bulgarian tourist attractions

Post author By enneproject
Post date 30 July 2021
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Burgas is situated on the Black Sea, in the south-eastern part of the country. It is the fourth largest city in Bulgaria and is smaller and less crowded than other big city on Bulgarian Black Sea – Varna. The climate here is temperately continental with a distinct impact from the Black Sea.

Burgas has a relaxed atmosphere with good shopping and an abundance of restaurants and outdoor cafes.The Sea Park is situated on a high shore, all of it cut by flowerbeds, trees and sculptures. Within the park, there is a casino, a small zoo and an open-air theatre.
The central beach is situated below the Sea Park, a beautiful forked staircase in verdure leads to the beach. The city has a northern beach, too, close to the Izgrev Quarter, adjacent to the salt mines.

Burgas is Bulgaria`s largest port and this is the primary focus of the city, but Bourgas is not only an important industrial centre – it has also considerable resources for tourism. The favourable geographical location and advanced transport infrastructure of Bourgass are good prerequisites for the development of tourism and trade.
The city is a starting point for visiting the seaside resorts in the area – Sunny Beach resort, the town of Nessebar, The Elenite holiday village, etc. to the north and The Dyuni holiday village, Sozopol, Kiten, Lozenets and others, to the south.

The city of Varna is located in North-East Bulgaria. It is third largest city after Sofia and Plovdiv and is called Bulgaria`s Sea Capital. The gem of the Bulgarian Black Sea is situated at the end of the big Varna Bay, with a convenient and well conserved water area a port wich in years handles up to 18 million tons of cargo. Nowadays it is the main port for both naval and commercial shipping and, adjacent as it is to the coastal resorts of Constantine and Helena (Druzhba), Riviera, Golden Sands, and Albena, it has a cosmopolitan atmosphere. Sailors on shore-leave in unfamiliar ceremonial uniforms, mingle with foreign tourists and locals as they promenade along shady boulevards, lined by dignified 19th and early 20th century buildings. The city`s peculiar sea charm is sublime and moving. Ancient, medival, renaissance and modern cultures mingle and coexist through the city.
The city is clean and green. Of the green miracles at least three are a must: the Marine Gardens which are the largest in the Balkans; Euxinograd park, the former Royal Palace; the paradise of St.Constantine.
Varna is a city of old culture, living traditions and ambitious undertakings. Some 20 per cent of its population are students in various educational institutions, four of which are higher.

German news

Exploring Leipzig – Make it Your Way

Post author By enneproject
Post date 30 July 2021
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A little while ago, we already introduced you to Leipzig as the city of trade and classical music, home of the international book fair, a major economic hub of the region, and simply a great place to live, work, and travel: The wide range of sports events, cultural activities, varieties of accommodation and restaurants as well as innovative start-ups, tradition-steeped companies and industry offer a great multitude of internship possibilities for students and apprentices. In that article you can also find a bunch of useful tips for when you first visit Leipzig and what the main attractions are. And while all those sights are truly a must-see when you come to Leipzig, there are a number of areas worth exploring that are not normally found on your regular tourist itineraries. Are you ready to get off the beaten path? As part of the Erasmus+ project ProWomen, women from Leipzig have developed travel routes that give you an all new perspective on this beautiful city! You can find the entire routes as a google map here.

Did you know, for example that Leipzig has extensive waterways that would make it (almost) possible to canoe all the way to Hamburg?! Even if that is not you ambition, the rivers and canals in the city make for great views and nature observation, especially in the summer! Depending on which way you swing your paddle, you will see the historic industrial style buildings from the 19^th century that Leipzig is famous for or be surrounded by the unique nature of the flood-plain forest. If you are lucky, you might even be able to see kingfishers! Leipzig’s waterways give you lots of possibilities to paddle and row, for beginners and pros alike. Your exact route will depend on where you rent your boat and how fit you are, but certainly you can stop and visit one of the many lovely cafés and Biergardens along the way to get some rest. Note that especially on days with nice weather it might be a good idea to call ahead at the boat rentals and check if boats are available. You can also check if guided tours are offered for additional information.

Did you know that many famous women have left their trace around Leipzig? You can follow the footsteps and achievements of composer Clara Schumann, poet Lene Voigt, and politicians Louise Otto-Peters and Clara Zetkin through another route of the ProWomen project. This route circles the city center counter-clockwise, so all spots are also close to other interesting sights and will take you to the most famous parts of the city. You can walk large parts of the way or ride your bike (especially in the parks). Most of the route is wheelchair friendly and easily reached by public transportation. This route is perfect if you want to spend about half a day exploring and do not want to venture too far from the city center. Except for the Schumann-Haus, you are also independent of opening hours.

This tour will take you to some of the best known urban green spaces of Leipzig: The city dedicated an award-winning park to Lene Voigt in the neighborhood of Reudnitz which in recent years has become very popular especially with young people. Leipzig’s biggest and most famous park is named after Clara Zetkin. Here you find the historic race track, a concert stage, as well as the Sachsenbrücke (Saxony Bridge) which is one of the most popular places to hang out in the city. And finally, the memorial of Louise Otto Peters is located in the Rosental park. Not only is it the location of the Gewandhaus orchestra’s annual free open air concert but from here you can observe the giraffes and zebras from the neighboring zoo!

And when you have explored every nook and cranny of the city center, venture North for a little bit of nature and Old-world grandeur around the castle in Lützschena! The route combines cultural, historic, and natural heritage. It is located in the north-west of Leipzig and can be done either by foot or by bike. Not many tourists venture north of the city center, and most people know the area mainly for the airport and the hubs of DHL, Porsche, and Amazon. However, as this route shows, there is much to explore!

For the best way to explore, rent a bike and ride from the city center along the Luppe dam to the first stop! Once you enter the park at the University’s sport campus, you can ride undisturbed by car traffic. Your first stop will be lake Auensee, which It came into being through the mining of gravel for the main station. A short bike ride from the lake you will find the castle of Lützschena and its adjacent park. Today’s castle was built in 1864, however, the first documented mention of a manor in this place dates back to the 13th century. Today, the castle is in private ownership, yet the park is open to the public and visitors can explore the beautiful landscape.

From the park, you have direct access to the Leipzig floodplain forest, which is a registered landscape conservation area that serves an important function of flood control for the cities of Leipzig and Schkeuditz. On your route, you will follow the Neue Luppe, an artificial canal of 13km which belongs to the local river system. The Luppeaue has been a nature reserve since 1993. If you want to know more about this unique eco-system, visit the Auwaldstation: This information center gives you great insight and there is no entrance fee either!

Detailed routes from all partner countries will be published by the ProWomen project around September 2021. Check the Facebook account or the website for news!

English News

From Belgium: ‘Learning Without Borders’

Post author By enneproject
Post date 6 July 2021
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Caring Authentic Progressive Education, with this project, gives 6 chemistry students the opportunity to do an internship abroad.

They work together with partners in Istanbul, where two students do an internship in a company linked to the school, and Lleida, Spain where students do internships in chemical companies nearby. The preparation is done through an eTwinning project with the partners. Participation in the Erasmus+ program fits in the continuous improvement of the internationalization policy within our educational project.

English News

Experiences to resist

At the end of this school year, which has been strongly characterised by the difficulties linked to the situation we are all experiencing, we can nevertheless highlight some positive aspects.

A novelty with respect to last year was the experimentation of workshops in presence during the period of confinement: workshops in ceramics, drawing and painting, music, photography, cinema, motor skills, English, civic education, computer science and robotics for BES pupils. This was an initiative which, through the methodology of Cooperative Learning and practical activities, enabled our children not to lose their sense of belonging to the school community, thus counteracting the isolation imposed by the pandemic.
Moreover, some of the activities that could not be carried out in person were replaced by online events. One of the most significant and engaging events was the international Virtual Debate, in which pupils from our school met American, Japanese, French, Spanish and German students to discuss ‘Youth Activism’.

Another initiative that kept pupils and teachers in touch and enriched the Institute’s cultural offer was the ‘Parole e Bit’ event: a series of weekly online meetings on various topics (History, Physics, Art, Tourism…).
In spite of the resources deployed, distance has severely penalised the laboratories and Erasmus mobilities that characterise our Technical Institute. In order to “resist” the heavy situation, teachers and students continued to work online: physical mobilities were replaced by remote meetings and activities on the e-twinning platform were strengthened, both by increasing the number of e-twinning projects and by using the platform to support the various ongoing European projects.
The traditional Europe Day, which our school, as a European Parliament Ambassador School, has been organising for a few years now, also took place online. With the help of our students, guided by teachers, school technicians and external experts, a special day was organised with 19 schools in the network and speeches by experts and personalities from the European Union.
To conclude this brief review, it can be said that more and better could certainly be done, but the effort of the whole school community to lighten the burden of distance and find opportunities even in this difficult time must also be stressed.

English News

Summer in “dental-cad”

The Pertini Institute of Afragola in the province of Naples continues to persevere in its MISSION, setting itself the goal of ensuring that its students achieve educational success, even more so during this difficult period in history.

For this reason, using part of the resources provided by the State to implement the “School Plan for Summer 2021” and those of the Institute Fund, thanks to the passion and tenacity of its teachers, has given rise to a new project for the Professional Institute of Social and Health Care articulation dental technician. This project, called DENTAL-CAD and intended for classes III and IV, is aimed at developing the students’ digital skills as well as methodologies and laboratory activities.

The project aims to promote the development of disciplinary skills but also, and above all, of relational skills, which have been particularly affected by the restrictive measures to which schools have had to adhere as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, by means of specific measures to be carried out entirely in the dental technician’s laboratory at the NS Institute, including the purchase of consumables and equipment suitable for carrying out these activities. Its aim is in fact to give students laboratory experiences that can strengthen and increase the skills they have already acquired and bridge the training gap related to distance learning.

The students work in small heterogeneous groups in cooperative-learning and tutoring mode through the realisation of reality tasks to be carried out by means of both digital and analogue practical exercises closely interconnected.

Laptops, scanner and 3D printer and the CAD software Meshmixer are used for digital activities. The project aims at the modelling of the upper posterior teeth and the design and wax modelling of an upper and lower skeletal structure.

English News

eTwinning project developed by Agrupamento de Escolas de Arrifana

Post author By enneproject
Post date 6 July 2021
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This school year, the Agrupamento de Escolas de Arrifana developed an eTwinning project, in the scope of the English class, with the students from the 11th year of the Vocational Course in Youth Technician.

In general, the involvement in eTwinning projects aims to promote a more appealing and stimulating teaching. By participating in these projects, students develop communication, linguistic, social (meet new people, communicating in writing, speaking in online meetings), digital (ability to handle technologies) skills, develop their knowledge about their own culture as well as other cultures, and their self-knowledge. The main goal is to develop a spirit of cooperation, interpersonal relationships, responsibility, critical thinking, creativity, among others.

The project J.O.C.A (Just One Click Away) was developed by 7 countries, Portugal, Turkey, Poland, Spain, Romania, Czech Republic and Croatia, and involved 18 teachers and 165 students. The main objective of this project was to broaden students’ knowledge, mainly of those who live in more rural areas, about the world around them – cultural and historical places, museums, monasteries, among others -, not only in their own country but also around the world, using different digital tools and virtual trips. Thus, with just one click, students were able to visit places that otherwise would not be possible. Students learned facts about the places they have studied/visited and prepared presentations for the online meetings among the various partners. It is worth mentioning that this project has as identification logo, created by a student of our team. The class participated enthusiastically in the project, which started in October 2020 and ended in May 2021.

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English News

How to create blended learning in VET?

Post author By enneproject
Post date 6 July 2021
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Blended learning is not only up and coming since the outbreak of Covid-19. Blended learning is a mixture of presence and online learning and has many advantages for students and teachers. But how can you transform your lessons into a blended learning style?

The Erasmus+ project BlendedVET (Blended Learning Creations in VET Trainings) wants to support VET teachers with this transformation of existing training into blended learning or with the creation of blended learning trainings. To achieve this, we will develop different products between 2020 and 2022.

These products will be:

A Collection and research of blended learning best practices and methods
A Learning package for blended learning curricular creation
A Blended learning training program model
A Learning platform

Behind BlendedVET is a European partnership of organisations from France, Italy, Lithuania, Norway and for Germany the ENNE partner Wisamar. Accordingly, all materials produced will be available in the respective languages as well as English.
Check the project’s website to get the latest information: https://blendedvet.eu/

English News

ENNE Blended training course on Erasmus KA2 project proposals writing

Post author By enneproject
Post date 8 June 2021
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The Blended course on Erasmus KA1 and KA2 project proposals writing is the second capacity building activity – after the MOOC on Quality mobility – offered to the members of the National Excellence VET Network and it is addressed to VET staff interested in applying for KA2 Erasmus projects funding to improve the educational experience of VET learners.

The goal of the course is to provide guidance for successful Erasmus project proposals submission in the field of VET and it will be based on an intensive online preparatory phase and actual proposal writing.

The course will be hands-on and practical: participants will have the opportunity to finish the course with a developed proposal, almost ready to be submitted to their respective funding Agencies. Participants will acquire theoretical knowledge, and they will carry out practical work, gaining valuable experience in project proposals preparation. TOPICS ADDRESSED by the participants:

Most of the received project ideas focus on the issue of sustainability and often make explicit the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their connection with their project idea. In addition, many projects focused on social inclusion and the importance of providing quality and accessible pathways through Vocational education and Training for all. In this sense, many projects are aimed at strengthening the spectrum and quality of VET offers, in particular by fostering multidisciplinary work and transnational networks.

List of topics that emerged during the course are focused on:

Social Inclusion
Agriculture and Innovation
Sustainability (Tourism, Food, Agriculture…)
Marketing
Digital Competences (Communication, Graphic and Cultural Heritage) and Digitalisation
Multidisciplinarity (both in Sustainability, VET and Work-based learning)
Quality in VET
SDG framework

The proposals received are 28 and they are from: Belgium (N° 5), Bulgaria (N°1), Germany (N°3), Italy (N°8) and Portugal (N°11).

Below there is the graph illustrating the percentages.

The overall duration of the course is 70 hours and it will be concluded with a face-to-face workshop in Foligno – it is scheduled for the last week of September 2021.

English News

From Germany Ecological sustainability in project management

Post author By enneproject
Post date 31 May 2021
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How green is the management of your project? What do you consider when you organise training sessions or events? What kind of marketing and dissemination materials do you use for your project? How do you travel for a project?

The Think Twice! project, implemented under the Erasmus+ programme, want to encourage you to think twice about your day-to-day activities in managing (not only) European funded projects and the impact they might have on the environment.

The outputs will be:

Curated Treasury of good practice in ecologically sustainable project management. The Treasury will inspire you to find solutions within your own organisation and provide you with enough information for you to make conscious decisions.
Stress Test of current practice leading to a personalised Learning Pathway. Based on the contents of the Treasury, an interactive Stress Test “How green is the management of my project?” will be developed to test the ecological sustainability of your own project management.

There are 8 organizations from Europe in the partnership of Think Twice!, coordinated by Wisamar Bildungsgesellschaft gGmbH. At their first meeting, the partners agreed that much of their current practice in project management could be improved and made more environmentally friendly and sustainable.

So stay tuned and Think Twice! with https://thinktwice.management/