Description
The main objectives and the expected results are to increase and improve professional skills through professional training and education, and, as a result, raise the professional competence of participants, which will be reflected in their work with students. Teachers will gain expertise in a relatively new interdisciplinary field of nature conservation and related activities. They will establish new business relationships with companies and professionals abroad with a view to future cooperation. The partners, Biotechnical centre Naklo from Slovenia, Hjeltnes gartnarskule from Norway and Landbunadarhaskoli Islands from Iceland, will pay special attention to Transnational Placements and Exchanges for educational staff in school, and professional staff in vocational education and training. Both receiving partners will prepare a programme for the mobility of Slovene teachers and assist the project applicants in practical matters, such as accommodation, travel, cultural programme and so on. The partners will also contribute to the general dissemination of the project.
Summary of project results
Nature conservation is an interdisciplinary area where knowledge of biology, chemistry, geography, sociology, agronomy and other sciences intertwine. Since this is a relatively new programme, now in its fifth year at the centre, it is very important that teachers of professional modules experience examples of good practice from other countries. Teachers got ideas for the implementation of the practical part of the professional modules –examples from Norway and Iceland used to teach the following selected subjects. To gain new experiences, knowledge, attitudes, case studies, the use of renewable energy, organic farming, cycling in the park, learning along the way, to learn about their way of life, green roofs, permaculture, beekeeping, the impact of fjords on agriculture, to learn about good technical practices which are transferable into our environment. The objective has been fully met and exceeded since we were also presented information about cooperation between processors, the methods of searching for market niches and inventive ways to sell products. Outputs: website posts; 3 public hearings; presentations on activities carried out in the sciences, agriculture activities, social activities; education experience for planning the professional modules for the next school year; obtaining new information about the fruit processing, marketing products and learning about new ideas for the development and deployment of new products; an article on knowledge transfer. The donor partners achieved the transfer of knowledge between teachers, the students, presentations, articles, new contacts, and the transfer of knowledge in planning the professional modules for the new school year.
Summary of bilateral results
In Norway, conservationists learned about the specific use of natural resources and features in the field of tourism management in nature, both inside and outside of protected areas, and the methods for teaching natural science alongside nature protection at the secondary level of education. The food nutrition teachers learned about examples of good technological practices, which could be transferred into our environment. Examples of good manufacturing practice - fruit processing are teachers including in their teaching: local production and processing, waste management, new products, higher quality. Landbúnaðarháskóli Íslands is an educational and research institution in the field of agriculture and environmental sciences. Its main educational focus is on the preservation of the natural environment, the sustainable use of agricultural land, cultivation farm animals, traditional agriculture, horticulture, forestry, landscape management, rural development and sustainable development in general. In Iceland, the learners focus on organic, i.e. sustainable agriculture, the management of protected areas and the management of renewable energy sources. The objectives were fully met and exceeded. The teachers were brought up to speed with many examples of good practice through the professional modules run in the fields of nature protection, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, sustainable tourism and sustainable life. The foreign language teacher, or teacher of general subjects, in addition to getting to know the nature of the profession, which is the basis for the foreign language teaching profession, learned about the methods of teaching foreign languages and corresponding general subjects. Working in administration institutions, he learned about the work of his colleagues abroad and transferred examples of good practice into his work, which was carried out during the mobility, and established contacts for long-term cooperation between the two institutions. This is also one of the important objectives in learning about the culture of Norwegians and Icelanders. Forging links between professionals and teachers in the field of nature conservation, as well as employers and employees in this area.