The leaders of the three common-unusual schools decided that they no longer wanted to stand out from the American schools. They want to be ordinary. To make it possible, more schools need to be unique, such as the Primary School in Radio Mały, the High School No. 17 in Gdynia and the Montessori Mountain School in Przyłękowo.
These schools have joined the Ashoki network as Schools with the power to change the world in 2016, and are now taking the lead. They prove that education can serve the social good, that new working methods can be used, and that formal education can respond to the challenges of the future. Some call it key competences, others of the future, Ashoka speaks about subjectivity and common good agency, and in Radów-Mały, Przyłęków and Gdynia it is a real educational experience of children and youth.
Spring of Education is based on cooperation in creating a learning society and incubating the workshop of a 21st century teacher, all of which is based on the resources of the local community. – We do not want another school to be established in Wielkopolska, such as in Radów, and in Mazowsze, such as in Gdynia. We want schools to create their own programs using our experience, tools and best practices, with our mentoring support – says Ewa Radanowicz, an educational changeover who motivated everyone to act.
The Spring of Education starts with the need to share and change not only individual schools but also a greater social impact. When the first manifestations of spring appear, everyone looks for the next ones.
In the Spring of Education, very specifically, educational leaders will support change in schools. Ewa Radanowicz, Oktawia Gorzeńska and Ewa Kaliszuk will visit each of the schools and together with the school team will determine the priority area in which the change will start.
Then, from November to March, the participating schools will have access to inspiration and advice in the form of meetings in schools, in virtual space, in the form of internships, webinars, observations.
– I am glad that the participants of the Spring of Education will be able to meet on webinars with social innovators revolutionizing education not only in Europe, but also in the world. Guests to our webinars will include Ashoka Fellow Guy Etienne, the finalist of the Global Teacher Prize, whose students create technological innovations implemented by the Haitian authorities, and Ashoka Fellow Jill Vialet, revolutionizing the fun on school playgrounds and corridors in the United States and beyond,” explains Martyna Rubinowska from Ashoka.
Meeting at the nationwide Spring of Education meeting in May 2019, each participating school will already have the experience of introducing change and its own good practice to share with others. – I have no expectations as to what will happen, I want it to result from the needs and resources of each of the schools. Some will introduce outdoor education inspired by Ewa’s actions, others will open up the school space or start using new technologies differently, drawing inspiration from us. We will see,” explains Oktawia Gorzeńska, an educator and director of High School No. 17 in Gdynia.
In order to register the school for the Spring of Education, it is enough to send an e-mail by July 15th with the name of the school, a scan of the resolution of the Teachers’ Council on joining the Spring of Education project (or a letter of intent in case of impossibility of adopting a resolution or lack of consent of the whole Republic of Poland) and 10 “most important” for you photographs telling you what kind of community you are creating, to the address of the project@. It is also necessary to fill in the form: . Only enough to fall in love with change with educational leaders.
Author: Martyna Rubinowska, Ashoka Foundation