Once again, with Erasmus+ , setting out on a new adventure… This time, in Andaluzia…
New places, sun, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean,….. for the first time on the Andalusian shore…. New places but old friends and partners, joyful to meet again.
We had the opportunity to meet the students and teachers of the IES Las Salinas High School of San Fernando, Spain through an eTwinning project carried out by Ms. Georgeta Matei, teacher of chemistry in our school, in 2023-2024. Subsequently, Ms. Matei facilitated the first steps in planning a future cooperation in the Erasmus+ projects, and the rest….. was the start of a wonderful partnership
In May 2024 Mrs Eva Luque, Vice Principal of IES Las Salinas and coordinator of the Erasmus+ program landed for the very first time in Romania, spending a whole week in our little town on the banks of the Arges River. This visit laid the foundation of the partnership between our schools and opened the way for the mobilities that were to take place in the period 2024-2025.
And so it happened that between November 10th and November 16th, 2024, ”Dimitrie Bolintineanu” Technological High School hosted 12 students and 4 teachers from the Spanish high school, who were participating in a group mobility and respectively, a job shadowing mobility.
The Erasmus+ project of the Spanish High School, a KA121 in School Education, entitled ”Heritage of La Isla and European Heritage” aimed to offer the students the opportunity to learn about and appreciate the historical heritage of Europe, to become aware of the importance of sharing cultural experiences and the democracy values of the EU, as well as of role as European citizen.
The activities carried out during the course of five days was rich and diverse, including visits to tourist and historical sites, workshops on the topic of sustainability (paper recycling, crafting products from recycled paper, the Issue Tree, debates on the 2030 Agenda), job shadowing, a cultural show performed by the students of LTDB, cultural and good practice exchanges, dissemination of Erasmus+ projects and various other extracurricular activities entailing working in mixed teams.
Six months later, namely on an early Sunday morning of March 30th, 2025, 12 students from our school boarded a flight to the beautiful region of Andaluzsa. With them, 2 accompanying teachers and 4 teachers participants in a job shadowing mobility.
After landing in Seville, a coach took us on a one and a half hour trip to our final destination. It was a chance to admire the landscape, the little towns and villages spread along the way with their specific coastal architectural style. It was our first contact with Andalusia.
Upon our arrival, a beautiful surprise…. under the pouring warmth of the afternoon sun, a group of teenagers welcomed us with smiles,. waving the Spanish flag, anxious for the coach to park so that they could greet their long-awaited friends.
During the week spent in Romania, friendships had been born and promises had been made to meet again. The Erasmus+ program and the mobility in Spain made it possible for these promises to be kept.
The entire schedule of the six-day mobility had a powerful impact on the participants, each activity being relevant and significant for the topic of the project – STEM approach in teaching and learning and the role of STEM subjects in today’s technological world. It was an opportunity for the participating students to see through first-hand experiences, how the different subjects that form STEM blend and merge, outlining a professional profile that is very likely to create the premises for a successful career.
Welcome
On Monday, at school, the entire group relaxed and cheered up by the pleasant weather, was ready for the start of the activities. There was a sense of anticipation and excitement in the air. We were all looking forward to this adventure and were certain that great discoveries lay ahead. In the Assembly Hall, with a big smile and a warm welcome, we were greeted by by Ms Eva Luque, Vice Principal. She introduced us to the region, shared with us information about the community of San Fernando and about the school and taught us about the rules of the three Ls:
School Tour
The hosting school consisted of several buildings with an infrastructure of over 40 years old. But in spite of this, the facilities were impressive. The carpentry, welding and mechanical workshops were equipped with industrial machinery that allowed the practical activities to be carried out in an space resembling a real industrial environment and enabling students to become familiar with the requisites of a production site.
Students’ works covered the walls of the corridors and classrooms, making the entire space cheerful and playful while at the same time, displaying values and demonstrating that learning was going on everywhere.
Ice Breaking
The first activities combined exercise, games and competitive spirit, contributing to the „melting” of the shyness and awkwardness, inherent to first contacts, and allowing friendship and team spirit to ease their way between the students.
The Science Fair
The Spanish students prepared an interesting Science Fair for their Romanian mates. It was another way to illustrate that learning sciences such as chemistry or biology can become more attractive by experimenting, researching and discovering.
Visit to Navantia Shipyard
A landmark of this mobility was the visit to the Navantia Shipyard. The 12 Romanian teenagers who are students of STEM subjects, had the opportunity to visit the Training Center of Navantia, one of the major shipyards in the world, and to see first hand an example of sustainable technology.
Navantia is not just a spearhead in its field, having state-of-the-art technologies in ship building, an innovating company in all its aspects, and being, for our students, a relevant illustration of how STEM subjects apply in the professional world; it is also a leading model in promoting sustainability, which characterizes its entire technological process: Zero Waste, Clean Energy, Eco Design and respect for sea biodiversity. All these form its strategy of sustainable development.
Navantia implements an ESG Sustainability Strategy (environment, social and governance) which is a fundamental part of our roadmap for the future. It was defined in line with the Sustainable Development Goals in the 2030 Agenda and (…) is a part of Navantia’s new resolution: “Building a safe, sustainable future through technological excellence and industrial cooperation”, aligning the company with our production and social environments.
„Maritimo Zaporito” Vocational Training Center
Centro Integrado de Formacion Profesional Maritimo Zaporito, which our students visited on a cloudy March morning demonstrated that being sustainable in education means doing away with the prejudices connected to the status of being a vocational student and providing a high quality professional training that meets to the point the demands of the labor market. The four areas of training:
- navigation
- aquaculture
- utilitarian diving
- ship engine operator
ensures the labor force not just in the region of Andaluzia but also in the entire Spain – an equation from which everybody benefits: the student, the school, the labor market and, ultimately, Spain’s economy.
The Royal Navy Observatory
A landmark in the life of San Fernando, the Royal Naval Observatory is Spain’s „clock”. It sets the time for the entire country, a witness over time of a very interesting history in the study of the skies, and a place where you can see unique artefacts.
It was a chance to discover how time was measured in the past
and how it is measured now, in the 21st century.
And guess what… we were given the privilege of finding out a secret which mankind will get to learn about in 2030: a new way of measuring the second. This secret is well concealed in a room that seems to have descended from a Sci-Fi movie.
The library building impresses with its majestic architecture while inside, you are welcomed by grand portraits of important navy personalities and walls holding thousands of precious books. Some of the most important volumes date back to the dawn of the astrophysics and man’s first attempts to decipher the skies and the laws of physics.
Inclusion
The Romanian students were given the chance to learn about another dimension of sustainability – social sustainability, based on fundamental principles and values such as inclusion and diversity. The examples of good practices offered by IES Las Salinas with its special class for students with special needs, the way in which these students received support and assistance, the way in which differentiated teaching was applied in their case, as well as the way they were integrated in all the school’s extracurricular activities and projects represented a model of enduring education, socially sustainable because it is only in this way that these young people will get the chance they need to develop and to overcome to the greatest extent possible the limitations imposed by their special needs.
Classes
Classes were interesting for our Romanian students because they were able to share their knowledge and at the same time learn from their Spanish peers, thus collaborating, exploring, discovering together the beauty and value of sciences.
Team building
The Erasmus+ program is important for both schools, it plays a crucial part in both educational systems, and allows for the creation of these beautiful intercultural and friendship bonds.On the fifth day of the mobility students worked in mixed teams and created posters to illustrate what Erasmus+ means to them.
Diploma Presentation
This fifth day of mobility concluded with a ceremony in which participation diplomas were handed to the participants. It was a ceremony marked by nostalgia because a wonderful adventure was coming to an end. It was time to say good-bye to the school that had been our home for five days.
Cadiz. Sharing Food Means Sharing Culture
The last day of the mobility was spent together with our Spanish friends in a fairytale city, with good food, great history, nice beaches and people as kind and warm as the sunshine flooding over the Atlantic Ocean .
Saying Good-bye!
