Overview

The project is inspired by the historical trading and cultural exchanges involving the archaeological sites:
- ancient Messini (Greece),
- Roman theatre in Verona (Italy)
- Roman ruins of Tàrraco, Tarragona (Spain)
- ancient Greek and Roman cities of Empúries (Spain)

Ten partners  which include universities, schools and archaeological sites  from these regions which share a common  Greco-Roman legacy will  develop a  wide-ranging strategic approach to addressing the common challenges they face.

They will use this legacy in order to create learning  experiences that respond to two challenges faced by each of the  regions. These are:

1. Capitalizing on the common heritage of the  Greco-Roman sites
The influence of the Greek and Roman civilizations and their colonies on the socio-economic evolution of European countries during ancient era continues to be relevant today.  The results of recent archaeological research provide some answers and open new questions, not only for the past, but also for the present and future of our culture.  Throughout history we have shared common problems such as water scarcity and management in the Mediterranean countries. Today the focus is on identifying solutions to  some of the common problems we share which will impact on the future of our citizens.

2. Creating sustainable  employment
The economic crisis in Europe has a huge impact on the national economies of each country. As an indicator, the EU-28 unemployment rate was 9.8 % in January 2015. In our three participating countries the rates are:s Greece (25.8 %),  Spain (23.4 %) and  Italy (12.9%).

cropped-logo-1.png
Using these  two inter-related challenges as a starting point, ArchaeoSchool aims to strengthen the links between the school and its local environment and deepen concepts of local and European identity, through building on the historical links between archaeological sites of  the ancient Greek and Roman era.

It will develop sustainable models for teacher professional development, the integration of career awareness into curricula, and strengthening the engagement between the school and local stakeholders. It will develop  strategies for using the local historical environment as a means of addressing the challenges of providing long term employment opportunities for young people.


MAIN OBJECTIVES

-Strengthen learners’ competences across a range of disciplines (Humanities, Culture, Language-contemporary and ancient-, Sciences, Technology and Economy) by applying entrepreneurial solutions to concrete challenges inherent in developing such a project
-Develop skills relevant for the world of work (digital literacy, active citizens, critical thinkers, problem solvers, etc.) under the umbrella of XXIst century skills through the implementation of KB theory and Virtual Cultural Heritage tools
-Identify sustainable employment possibilities and open the career orientation to young unemployed
-Enable pupils to understand the present and develop their competencies as future citizens
-Develop partnerships between school, local historical sites and social/economic partners at local level in order to develop the knowledge of learners
- Support creating sustainable methodologies for ensuring that the richness of the past contributes to the social, cultural and economic life of the future
-Raise learners' awareness of the importance of archaeological sites in order to become a part of our everyday life by giving the possibilities to citizens not only visiting them but mainly by reviving its ancient activities
-Develop concepts of active citizenship (national and European), sustainability and social coherence through engagement with the history of the sites, their place in the local environment and as markers and continuers of cultural identity.
-Increase attractiveness of local and European monuments for young people


TARGET GROUPS

The project actively engages secondary school pupils and teachers with the cultural heritage (archaeological and linguistic) of the areas surrounding all six schools involved in the project. It will use new technologies for building new content; encourage respect for diversity through the study of the languages and cultures of others; analyze the evidence of the past and develop strategies to ensure sustainability.
The project will involve mainstream and disadvantaged learners, teachers, school heads, career guidance teachers, local community leaders, unemployed youth and stakeholders in local communities.

Each partner contributes interdisciplinary expertise which builds on complementary earlier work, thus bringing an added value through their cooperation. Innovative forms of collaboration between teachers and pupils through the proposed ICT tools in each of these regions will also support the concept of the European teacher and the embedding of a European dimension in the daily practice of schools involved in the project.