The first in-person international mobility event under the two-year-long Erasmus+ Leadership Empowerment and Development for Inclusive Education in Europe (LEAD-IN) project took place from October 15 to October 17. It was organised by Teach for Poland and saw members from the four consortium partners visit five educational institutions across Warsaw. In addition to facilitating an exchange of good practices, a construction of new ideas, and a conversation over shared struggles, the meeting, according to participants, reiterated the notion that the community is striving together and for the sake of ensuring the well-being of all students.
One of the key considerations in determining which establishment to introduce visitors to, according to Kornelia Grabowska, Co-founder and Chief of Programs & Impact at Teach for Poland, was the extent of diverse backgrounds present in the institutions line up.
“We wanted these places to be different. We wanted them to present not only schools, but school life, ” Grabowska shared. In reference to LEAD-IN’s inclusivity mission, she pointed out that “each had to have something about the students being different there because of something that is not in their control. Maybe their struggle is due to mental health, nationality, disability, etc.”
Thus, participants visited five educational institutions: a sociotherapy centre, a counselling centre, and three schools that offer different approaches to modern inclusive education. Each visit was made by a group of eight-to-ten participants, which consisted of pairs of representatives from each consortium country. After the visit, the parttakers had allotted time to engage in discussion among their country’s delegation and with each member of the community.
“I was very impressed with how the centre’s values were embedded in everything they do,” Gergana Efremova, LEAD-IN national project manager for Bulgaria, commented on the Youth Sociotherapy Centre No. 1 ‘SOS’ she visited.
She had been taken aback by the centre’s principal, her clarity on the goals she wants to achieve, and her commitment to them in terms of the centre’s day-to-day operations and the gathering of a devoted team of educators, who could further her mission.
“Association with these values, which had arisen as a result of student and parent feedback over the years, was the first and foremost criteria for hiring personnel,” Efremova commented. “Everything else was secondary because if the teacher shares these values, their motivation and the centre’s principles would be enough for them to acquire the additionally-needed skills.”
The educational team also left an impression on Rebecca Mair, principal at Dr Bruno Kreisky Volksschule in Vienna, who visited Szkoła Podstawowa, a “friendly school” in the outskirts of Warsaw.
“Classes were consistently co-taught, and several psychologists as well as social workers were part of the staff—resources we can only dream of in Austria,” Mair said, commenting on the methods the school used to engage with students from socially and economically challenging backgrounds, such as classes that focus on safety, an individual approach, and the emphasis on the emotional development of students.
The support resources available at Polish institutions were also noted by Daan Steenackers, head of Financial Partnerships and Project Coordinator at Teach for Belgium.
“It was astonishing how well the schools in Poland seemed to work together with psychological or pedagogical support systems. In Belgium, you can use some external organisations, but they’re not fixed at the school.”
Steenackers also praised Szkoła Podstawowa nr 402, the school he attended, for its educational atmosphere, saying that “if you need to go to the toilet, you need to eat something, you need a moment for yourself, [you can] go ahead.”
The calmness among faculty and students at this institution, even during breaks or lunch, was also noted by Tsvetan Metodiev, a Bulgarian primary school teacher at 90. General Jose de San Martin High School in Sofia. What impressed him the most, however, was that parent involvement in the educational process of their children stayed at the door.
“[Parents] simply contribute positively to the community’s development—which involves bazaars, workshops, fundraisings, [volunteering]—but they place their trust, perhaps to a greater extent, in teachers; they trust the institution more,” Metodiev elaborated.
Parents’ involvement in the wellbeing of students is key, however, for other Polish educational establishments. According to Vasiliya Svileva, an expert at the Municipality of Burgas, Bulgaria, such is the case for Specjalistyczna Poradnia OPTA, where the counselling centre is first introduced to parents and then becomes privy to their children’s needs.
“We actually got to experience how the centre works with parents and students by being involved in an art-therapy session, during which we could ask staff questions, much like their regular visitors would,” Svileva shared.
In the course of discussing their experiences, community members came to realise that the problems they faced on the daily were relevant border-wide.
“All have to manage the integration of immigrant children, battle the segregation of children of different ethnic backgrounds, and handle the variety of educational capabilities among big classes,” Svileva commented. “Helping children with special educational needs, too,” Metodiev contributed.
In light of these issues, Efremova underscored the importance of approaching such challenges following the strategies shared by the Polish team: with an attitude of embracing in mind.
“This approach prioritizes inclusion, preserving the identity of the people you are including, rather than assimilating them into your own culture,” Efremova explained.
Reflecting on the different tools for inclusivity available, Svileva came to recognise a difference in agency among the Bulgarian and foreign delegations.
“The sentiment I recall noticing among my colleagues from abroad is that decisions are made on the spot within the organization itself. Whereas the sentiment among colleagues in our delegation was that we wait for decisions to come down from higher up,” she commented.
Regardless of differences in government involvement, LEAD-IN network members share that they are charged with hope by this meeting and the notion that they are not alone in their efforts to ensure unilateral student wellbeing.
“The strong sense of purpose among all participants [left a lasting impression on me]: their determination to take responsibility, to advance school development, and to create sustainable impact through concrete actions,” Rebecca Mair said.
Sharing in the overall enthusiasm of the international educational crew, Efremova highlighted the importance of these meetings not only for a heightened sense of belonging and collective effort, but for the schools and students these efforts aim to reach too.
“It is very clear that school leaders need support, regardless of whether they are new to the role or more experienced, and regardless of which country they live in, since the world is changing rapidly, which dynamically changes the conditions in which education takes place and the children who engage with it,” she reiterated.
