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Description
According to our ‘Young Poles’ attitudes to the EU’ study, individuals aged 16-25 have little knowledge on the functioning of the European Union and do not feel strongly attached to it. This results from low level of EU education in schools – only dry facts are discussed, and practical or useful information is left out. We believe that the lack of knowledge can trigger radicalisation or increase proneness to manipulation of facts, which is why proper European education of youths is so vital. We will address this problem by organising workshops for existing European Club activists that will raise their competencies in organising grassroots activities, strengthen their motivation to continue working, and will inspire them with ideas for new projects. We will also organise for them nationwide meetings as an opportunity to exchange experience. Then club activists along with youths will organise events for local communities to discuss the place of Poland in the EU. Together with club representatives we will prepare educational materials and agendas to organise such meetings in the future. We will run an educational campaign in social media on the initiatives and functioning of the EU. We will also create a map of European Clubs in Poland and will publish it on our website along with information on their activity and contact details. In our activities we will be supported by our partner – the Professor Bronisław Geremek Centrum Foundation, which has vast experience in running EU-related workshops for pupils and teachers. The Foundation team will support us with the recruitment, will run some training sessions and will prepare educational materials.
Summary of project results
The project was a response to the unsatisfactory level of European education in Poland. There was a lack of platforms that would effectively engage young people in European affairs and give them the opportunity to actively participate in society. School European Clubs were not very active and needed support and tools to become more dynamic learning environments. There was also a lack of adequate teacher preparation and support materials to effectively run European Clubs and teach about the European Union - access to up-to-date materials and training that would enable them to improve their knowledge of the European Union and their teaching methods.
The project focused on conducting workshops for teachers and youth workers to prepare them to run the clubs and expand their activities. We also organised 2 national meetings for participants to exchange their experiences. Once trained, the clubs themselves organised various local activities (e.g. picnics, debates, workshops) to promote European values. The project also created a set of educational materials. As a result of the project, 14 new clubs were formed and the activities of 19 existing clubs were professionalised, 40 local leaders were prepared to run European Clubs. We also conducted an educational campaign in social media about the activities and functioning of the European Union. We also created a map of European Clubs in Poland, which we made available on our website with information about their activities and contacts. At the end, we organised a meeting to sum up the project.
From the evaluation questionnaires we know that through the training, the participants gained new motivation for their activities and were able to learn new methods of working with young people in the clubs. For the local community, the project was an opportunity to get involved in actions promoting European values and to integrate with other local institutions. As a result, the project contributed to an increased interest in European issues among young people and a strengthening of European education in Polish schools.