YOUropean: ¿Qué es Europa para ti?

The main objectives of the YOUropean project were the following: - Contributing to the dissemination of the opportunities offered by the European Union in the framework of adult education; - Fost...

The main objectives of the YOUropean project were the following: - Contributing to the dissemination of the opportunities offered by the European Union in the framework of adult education; - Fostering commitment to European values among teachers and learners; - Strenghtening the feeling of belonging to the EU and the positive vision of the Union. The final objective was to create a good practice guide that could be useful for other European organizations and serve as a starting point for future actions of the project partners. The compilation of good practices and activities that can be replicated in other contexts and situations, and their dissemination, is an appropriate tool to raise awareness of the actions funded by the EU in general and by the Erasmus+ program in particular. Knowing what the EU does is the first necessary step in order to strengthen the feeling of adhesion and the positive perception of the Union among citizens. In addition, all participating organizations have been able to exchange experiences and learn about how adult education works in other European contexts and with different target groups. This has become essential for the development of strategies in the participanting organizations.

The project has been based on the exchange of experiences among the participating organizations. Four study visits have been carried out (one to each country participating in the consortium), in which it has been possible to get to know in depth the work of each host organization and to visit numerous entities active in the promotion of European values in the field of adult education. During these study visits, it has been possible to learn about multiple types of activities aimed at different social groups (youth, unemployment, women, senior citizens...), different ways of working and different perceptions regarding relevant social issues in the context of the EU. In each study visit, the partners also had the opportunity to discuss different ways of promoting European values and opportunities, adopt agreements on the next steps of the project (at management level, economic monitoring, communication of activities, etc.) and explore possible future avenues of collaboration. The project has been very enriching for the participating organizations, which have been able to observe first-hand how adult education works in different contexts and situations.

In addition to the study visits carried out, the results of the project have been materialized in a guide of good practices, in which three examples from each country have been included (those that the partners have considered most remarkable for their role in the dissemination of EU values, for social innovation in the field of adult education or for being significant examples of the opportunities offered by the European Union to adult education students). It should be noted that the project partners have not only visited or met the entities/activities that appear in the guide, but it was decided to choose the three most representative of each country so that the guide would be agile and practical, and not too exhaustive. In addition to the guide, which is available online in 5 languages (Spanish, Italian, Polish, Turkish and English), the partners agreed to design and distribute a school calendar among the collaborating entities, a calendar that includes the essential elements of each good practice or activity and sends a QR to the complete good practice guide. With this dissemination tool, we intended to reach more effectively the teachers and students of the entities participating and/or collaborating in the project.