What is Spring Day for Europe about?
Spring Day for Europe, to be held from 22 March to 30 June 2010, aims to raise awareness of the European Union and its policies, while encouraging dialogue between pupils, teachers and EU policymakers on their vision of Europe and its future. The innovations brought about by the Lisbon Treaty give a great opportunity to inform young citizens about the European Institutions’ role and impact on their daily lives. Within this framework, Spring Day for Europe offers resources that help develop European dimension in school curriculums by encouraging young people to tackle European issues in an interactive way. At the same time it gives the EU policymakers opportunity to get feedback from pupils and teachers.
What are the themes for 2010?
In the 2010 edition of Spring Day for Europe the main ambition is to engage school communities in discussions, debates and activities related to European citizenship and fundamental rights, both of which are pertinent to the European Year of Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. Students’ attention will also be drawn to important European issues such as social and economic cohesion, environmental issues and cultural diversity.
What has Spring Day on offer for schools?
From 22 March to 30 June 2010, schools are invited to organise within the framework of Spring Day for Europe events that bring about discussions, debates or meetings with local, national and European figures. Schools are free to choose various forms of the events: an information session followed by a discussion, a meeting with a person involved in European affairs, a debate within the school, an online exchange of views between pupils from schools in different regions or countries, a lesson using the tools provided on Spring Day website etc. All the events should give the pupils a unique opportunity to learn more about European integration. Registered schools organising a Spring Day event will receive a special kit with supporting material. In addition, schools can participate in competitions and games, including online chats on EU institutions and European values. It is worth mentioning that the tools put at the disposal of teachers have been elaborated by pedagogical experts. At the end of Spring Day for Europe, participating schools will receive a certificate signed by top-level EU decision makers.
Who is invited to visit a school?
Individuals with sound knowledge of European affairs, e.g. Members of the European and National Parliament, regional and local representatives, university experts and lecturers, young people who have taken part in the Erasmus programme or other Community programmes are all invited to share their experience with schools and act as Europe ambassadors, in the Spring Day for Europe project. The Spring Day for Europe website offers an online match-making system that connects schools to potential visitors, facilitating the arrangement of the schools visits across Europe. The interested visitor should register on the Spring Day for Europe website.
What schools can take part and how to sign up?
Spring Day for Europe is targeted at European primary and secondary schools (general, vocational or technical education). Various activities, competitions and resources are divided into age groups to make it easy to use. Teachers should register their school on the Spring Day for Europe website by entering their email address and specifying the details of the event they plan to organise. If a Member of the European Parliament is wished for a visit, the school is asked to avoid periods when the European Parliament is in session.
More information
Download the flyer!
European Schoolnet (EUN) provides practical support related to the project and has developed activities, tools, services and networks to accompany and animate the Spring Day campaign.
For further information and registration for the initiative, please consult the website at:
Contact person:
Sofia Aslanidou, School visits Manager
EUN Partnership AISBL
Rue de Trèves 61 B-1040 Brussels
Tel: +32 (0)2 790 75 75
Fax: +32 (0)2 790 75 85
European Commission DG responsible for supporting the project:
DG Communication
Eva Sobova, (0032) 22 96 58 95
One Response
Stay in touch with the conversation, subscribe to the RSS feed for comments on this post.
Continuing the Discussion