Project meeting in Málaga, 24-27/04/2019

The Spanish organisation AMEFE invited all partners for a final meeting in Málaga. We enjoyed fruitful discussions on the draft educational material, took time for a detailed feedback on the overall project and worked on the final report. The results are published on the frontpage and “What we produce”.

Workshop in Lódz, 04-09/11/2018

The university Akademia Humanistyczno-Ekonomiczna w Łodzi hosted our second learning teaching and training activities. It was again dedicated to an exchange of good practices among adult educators. We applied approaches to reach in particular so-called disadvantaged learners. For example, the group of 20 participants got to know body mapping and experienced hand mapping as a way to include the whole personality of learners with his/her own history, feelings, perceptions, needs, and wishes. We got sensitised to the Polish history and the diversity of Lódz. The concept of herstory – ‘making women’s voices heard’ – was put in practice when the group were informed about ‘forgotten’ women by a walk through the Jewish cementary of Lódz.

Facilitated by the Spanish partner, the group discussed the Spanish Civil War and the Franco dictatorship through different ‘thought hats‘. This is a method to make various aspects of an issue visible, e.g. emotional, ‘objective’ (regarding information), critical and creative ones. It fosters mutual understanding, thus a ‘civilised’ debate of controversial and sensitive topics. And it has shown how much history shapes the present, is still alive.

The Finnish partners stepped back to the civil war after 1918 and told about attempts to truth and reconciliation following the example of South Africa. Another art-based approach than hand mapping was storytelling referring to objects.

The participants also gained impression about the culturell richness of Andalusia. The exercise was quite simple, but raised a lot of questions. By using images of the different cultures (Jewish, Muslim, Christian), should be explained who introduced what is pictured in Andalucia.

The training activities also encompassed methodological reflections. In a more theoretical sense by making the difference between paradigm, theory, method and technic. In a more practical sense by exchanging what method might be useful to apply in educators own working context.

Project meeting in Helsinki, 29-31/08/2018

The two-days encounter was dedicated to work on the project’s outcomes, e.g. the teaching material (part I). We also had an intense exchange on the interviews which each partner organisation has held with at least five citizens/learners from their surroundings. Moreover, project partners got a detailed introduction in the context and work of the Helinä Rautavaara Museum and moved on in terms of the project’s management.

Workshop in Marseille, 08-12/05/2018

The association Hors Pistes in Marseille hosted the first project’s Learning, Teaching and Training Activities. Educational workers from a museum in Finland, a private university in Poland and NGOs in Spain, Germany and France exchanged on different methods of historical-political education.

The Finish partners applied within the whole group the way they work with museums’ objects to reach and include in particular migrant’s interest in (Finish) history.

Facilitated by the French partner, the participants then focused on producing a documentary. Due to the time constraint the main activities lay around the sound production. In small groups learned the educators producing an audio postcard and to make, record and document street interviews.

The German partner introduced into free theatre work as a method to reach so-called disadvantaged adult learners. The partipants applied image theater (frozen image, statue theatre) as well as newspaper theatre. Two sessions were dedicated to explore Soziodrama. Participants were requested to represent a European country and to choose a convenient place in the room whilst balancing the relationship to the other „countries“. The „country representatives“ were then interviewed by the facilitator. Rapidly, all experienced the current challenges: Brexit, economic and social imbalances, right-wing movements/parties, etc. Visions of a future Europe were then developed in small groups. One „speaker“ per group took over a free chosen role and explained how a „good life in a good Europe“ could put in practice.

“I really got out of the comfort zone. It was comfortable.” This was the summary and feedback of one Finish participant referring to these rich days.

For a more detailed description of the methods see the according page.

Kick-off meeting in Berlin, 01-02/02/2018

weltgewandt. invited representatives from the partner organisations in Helsinki/FIN, Lódz/PL, Málaga/SP and Marseille/FR to hold the kick-off meeting in Berlin from 1st to 2nd February 2018. The first meeting was dedicated to get to know each personally and get more detailed introduced in each partner’s organisation profile. We planned all project’s activities and the production of its results. Moreover, the participants also took time to discuss aspects of the public remembering of the Franco dictatorship in Spain and the current conflict in Catalonia.