The meeting successfully achieved several major goals in this intensive week. Most importantly, the final classroom scenarios for Computer Sciences/STEM were presented for implementation by Leonidas Leventis representing our partner organisation, the SCIENTIFIC ASSOCIATION FOR THE PROMOTION OF LIFELONG LEARNING (SAPLLe).

In addition, each team updated the others on their status regarding completion of targets set prior to the meeting and plans to meet all obligations under our Erasmus+ application document on time and prior to the end of the project. The teams discussed the challenges and results of project implementation to date and shared experiences and successful implementation strategies with each other.

Due to the relatively short time frame to implement these scenarios before the project deadline it was decided to begin implementation during the meeting by creating complementary mixed teams of teachers from all of the schools in order to implement several computer sciences scenarios with classes of students of the BJHS.

Later in the week the visiting teams were given the opportunity to shadow the BJHS teaching team during classes across the curriculum and to view and discuss the bilingual classroom experience of the teachers and students of the BJHS.

Finally, discussions were held regarding planning and implementing Erasmus+ open days and dissemination events in each of the schools prior to the project deadline date of the 31st of May 2024. A meeting debrief was held to round off the week and present the participants with their certificates of participation.

In addition to the work completed during this week there were many memorable activities undertaken. These started off on Monday morning with a welcoming ceremony presented by the 40+ teachers and the almost 300 students of the BJHS, a warm dance and musical welcome presented by the students. Speeches were given and students presented each visiting participant with some handmade gifts. That afternoon there was a walking tour of Wiener Neustadt guided by some of our students. Later in the week the visiting teams were invited to the City Hall to meet with the Councilor for Education and Sport as the representing the City Council of Wiener Neustadt, Mag. Philipp Gruber. Mag. Gruber officially welcomed them to our small city and presented each team with some gifts courtesy of the City Council of Wiener Neustadt.

Of course, there was a little time for some fun and culture as well. A visit to the beautiful lakeside town of Rüst located directly on the largest lake in Austria, Neusiedlersee, was quite a highlight. And it wouldn’t be a visit to Austria without a hiking afternoon up a mountainside. A steep hike up to the Herrgottschnitzerhaus followed by traditional Austrian cuisine and a cool drink was a pleasant way to stretch the legs of our participants. Not to mention the reward of spectacular views across the Vienna Basin at the end of a strenuous hike.

Our final evening together was spent relaxing and laughing together over a meal and some unexpectedly competitive ten-pin bowling at a local entertainment centre in Wiener Neustadt. A well-earned reward for our hard-working teams.

It was another extremely successful week of cooperation, meeting challenges and exchanging experiences and ideas across three cultures and three institutions. Suffice it to say, it has been another invaluable Erasmus+ opportunity coming too quickly to a close.

in this article I want to introduce you to the most beautiful but also most irritating culture in the world, the Austrian culture.

If you think about the Austrian stereotype, I believe you imagine someone like this:

A beardy man wearing leather pants and drinking beer.

But Austria is a lot more than beer, Schnitzel and lederhosen (leather pants), we have much more to offer than this.

The Austrian language:

In Austria we speak German, but we developed our own language over time. In every federal state we speak German in a different dialect, which is even for us Austrians sometimes a bit hard to understand. But there is this one word every Austrian uses: Oida

Oida is the perfect answer to everything. Depending on how you emphasize this word, it means something different.

Different ways to use Oida:

• I’m astonished Oida.

• How dare you!  Oida!!!

• Hey you,…          Oida,…

• This can’t be happening!      Oida?!

• Such bad luck…  Oida Oida

• That’s a great surprise Oiiiiiida?

• That’s an awful surprise Oiiiiiida!

Of course, there a lot of other words, but most of them aren’t really that nice. The Viennese dialect is the most interesting dialect, but it is also the rudest one. Some words are:

• Grantig – being in a bad mood

• Schmäh – a joke

• halt dei Goschn – a not so friendly request to shut up

• Fesch – beautiful

• Hawara – a good friend/best friend

• Fetzen – a fabric or a brawl or a bad grade

• schiach – hideous

I know, these words sound a bit threating, but the Austrian language can also be cute. There are a lot of different variations of saying goodbye. You can say tschüssi, pfiat di, baba, Servus (also used to say hello), bussi tschau. Often, we say more than one, for example: pfiat di, bussi tschau.

Traditional Food:

Everyone knows the Schnitzel, but do you also know about the different kinds of Knödel (dumplings), Kaiserschmarn or Beuschel? Let me introduce you to the Austrian cuisine.

Knödel:

It is not known where exactly the Knödel comes from, but it has been a traditional dish for hundreds of years in Austria and Germany.

As mentioned before, there are different variations of Knödel; Semmelknödel (dumplings made of breadcrumbs), Kartoffelknödel (dumplings made of potatoes), Hefeknödel (yeast dumplings) and Topfenknödel (dumplings made of curd)

The dumplings are mostly used as a side dish or as dessert if it’s sweet.

A very well-known dish with dumplings is Knödel mit Ei, which is a left-over dish made of dumplings and eggs.

Knödel mit Ei Kaiserschmarrn:

Kaiserschmarrn is actually just a cut up pancake.

The word Schmarrn was used in the 16th century in Austria and meant nonsense or it was used to describe pastry baked in a lot of fat. The farmers came up with the idea of the Kaiserschmarrn. Normally, the farmers never lacked flour, eggs, milk or lard, so to have something to eat, they combined all these ingredients together and the Kaiserschmarrn was created.

At the time when Empress Sisi ruled over Austria, her cooks wanted to do something good for their underweight empress, so they cooked her Kaiserschmarrn. She didn’t really like it, but the emperor loved it. That’s why it’s called Kaiserschmarrn – Kaiser means emperor in German.

Beuschel:

Beuschel is a dish made of the offal of farm animals, mostly from pigs and cows. Its origin lies in Vienna.

On the day of the slaughter, which was celebrated by the farmers as a feast day, the perishable offal and blood had to be processed immediately. Even though offal was a popular food, Beuschel was not appreciated.

Traditions:

Austria has got a lot of different traditions and some of them might be scary to other cultures. A tradition during the Christmastime are Perchten/Perchtenläufe.

Perchten are mystical creatures which appear during the Rauhnächte (can be translated to smoked nights). These nights are the twelve magical nights between the 25. December and 6. January.

Perchten

There are many different myths about Perchten, but my favourite one is, that these creatures live in the forest and protect the nature and wildlife. They look extremely ugly and scary, that is because they need to scare off the “evil spirits”.

Before Christmas we have the tradition that people dress up as these beings and walk around towns. They always have a rod with them, and they sometimes even slightly hit people with it.

Another tradition is Eierpecken, it is an ancient easter custom and game, which people play on Easter Monday.

Gameplay:

• two people take their easter eggs in their hands. (the eggs need to be boiled, otherwise it will be a bit of a mess)

• One person starts and hits with the tip of their easter egg the egg of the other person.

• It is the intention to break the shell of the opponent’s egg.

• The person’s egg, which breaks first loses.

Traditional Festivals:

There are a few important festivals in Austria, for example the Vienna New Year Concert and the Vienna Opera Ball.

Vienna New Year Concert: The Vienna new year concert is the most popular new year concert in the whole world. The concert is broadcast on television in 92 countries.

Every single year the Vienna Philarmonic play music manly from the vast repertoire of the family of Johann Strauß.

The first new year’s concert was on December 31, 1939, which was during one of the darkest chapters of the history due the second world war and dictatorship. The income of this concert was donated to the Socialist fund-raising campaign “Kriegswinterhilfswerk”.

This concert has become one of the most important festivals to Austria.

Vienna Opera Ball: This event is as well as the Philharmonic Ball the highlight of the Austrias Ball season. It always takes place son the last Thursday before Ash Wednesday.

The first ball was in 1935, but was suspended during the second world war, it later was revived.

There is always a special dress-code, which must be worn, the dress-code is evening dress.

In summary, we can say that the Austrian culture is weird, but also has got a lot of beautiful traditions, it is a very diverse country. There are so many different traditions, so there’s no excuse to not like the Austrian culture.

I hope this short article gave you a good overview of the Austrian culture.

Written by Ronja Fischer (4D)

INTERVIEWER:

Good morning. Can you introduce yourself in a few words, please?

LEAH:

My name is Leah. I’m fourteen years old and my native language is German, but I also speak English and I’m currently learning Spanish.

FLORA:

My name is Flora and I’m 14 years old. My native language is Hungarian and I also speak fluent German and English and I’m currently learning French.

INTERVIEWER:

Okay. And how long have you been students of the Bilingual Junior High School?

 LEAH:

Four years now.

 FLORA:

Yes.

LEAH:

It’s the end of our fourth year.

FLORA:

Yeah.

INTERVIEWER:

Okay, and do you like studying subjects using a foreign language?

LEAH:

I like it. Because I think it’s just more fun because I if you study in the language that you learned and it’s not your mother’s tongue, it’s like I feel more confident because I can say like, yeah, I’m studying and it’s not my first language but I still manage to do it and I think that’s pretty cool.

FLORA:

I like it too, and agree with you on that – that it’s more fun and also especially if you’re good at the language and it’s also cool if people tell you, “Wow…

LEAH: Yeah!

FLORA: …you’re really good!”

INTERVIEWER:

Okay, and do you find it more complex to study a subject using English instead of German?

LEAH:

No, not at all.

FLORA:

It definitely is different. Because like, if I, if I learn in German, it’s like, I have it in my native language and, but it’s not like I forget how to speak English.

LEAH:

Like, I would say, I’m on the exact same level, but sometimes, it’s like, when I study English, there’s like a switch I have to turn on and sometimes I even forget, when I for example, when I learn Spanish, my vocabularies that I write down, I sometimes, I write the German word, then the English word and then the Spanish word for, like, so I understand it better. And sometimes I forget the word for English or for German and that gets a little bit confusing sometimes, but it doesn’t happen often.

FLORA:

I mean for me, if it’s not even easier to speak in English than German or especially Hungarian, because I only speak Hungarian at home, really and German I speak with my fellow classmates and my acquaintances and friends and also English and that’s what I also like at the school that you can. It’s not weird to just start speaking English with your friends at any time because, and that’s what also makes it fun. But it does not require any more of my concentration to, you know, focus on English. But rather than it would cause my concentration to, you know, actually and then do that switch, do I know which language you currently I have to speak. And my problem sometimes is that if we have German and I’m like “Oh my God” like because sometimes I have a feeling that I’m starting to get better at English than in German and I like know a word in English, that I’m like, “What is that word in German?” That switch and that the fact that you know what, you know something in in one language but don’t know the other.

LEAH:

It just happened to me. Like, I think yesterday, I was like, writing down my vocabulary and I was like, what was the German word for living room again? And I was sitting there like “Don’t Google it! No, that would be so embarrassing!”

FLORA:

Yeah, and yeah, you don’t want to Google it, because you’re like “I know I know it.”

LEAH:

Yeah

FLORA:

Like that’s so uncool but

INTERVIEWER:

Okay, so, do you think it’s useful for the future?

LEAH:

It surely is, ’cause everyone speaks English in our world now.  At least the most people. I know a lot of older people that don’t speak English but that’s mainly because they haven’t learned it and they don’t need it anymore. But on the Internet especially it’s really nice to speak German to communicate with other people.

FLORA:

I agree. There’s definitely a lot more English in the (fret) and on social media almost everything is in English unless you’re on a particular part of the platform, where it’s like, only your mother language. So yeah. It’s so it’s very, very useful and again, with older people, they just didn’t learn it at their school, other schools back in the day. So…

LEAH:

But then again, I know a lot of older people that speak like languages, for example, I had a grandmother and she spoke French.

FLORA:

Yeah, my grandmother spoke Russian, because she grew up in Communism, and if so, that’s yeah….

LEAH:

They know like, she was like fluent in that language and it’s like they learned it. But it’s not a it’s a, it’s a worldwide language but not like English.

FLORA:

Yeah.

LEAH:

And that’s like they know a language and they learned in school, but it’s not English cuz I got time to didn’t ya?

FLORA:

At that time, it wasn’t what was important for them, but other than that, yes, it’s very useful.

INTERVIEWER:

So has studying a subject in English increased your interest in the English language?

LEAH:

It truly did. ‘Cause as I started to notice that I got better in English and that I can have conversations with people that don’t speak my first language, I started to become more interested in the language itself and I think it’s, it’s nice to speak English at a higher level. I even, I want to become at that level that I can speak academic English. Because like, I think it’s very impressive.

FLORA:

Me too. I definitely agree on that note, again, I was recently like every time I watch a show like, I personally, I get cringed at the German, the German speakers when they like, translate it and the translation, I get so cringe. So I always watch in the original language, which is most of the time English and every time I hear, like a new word and it’s like, I don’t know that yet, I Google it and I’m like, I want to use that in my next conversation with a person because it’s so cool,

LEAH:

Yeah

FLORA:

and it’s impressive and also,  people are not just, like oh well yeah she can speak English like it’s fine, she’ll she’ll be able to understand but it’s like No, she can speak it so well

LEAH:

because like, you speak English, but then again you kind of don’t and then.

FLORA:

Yeah.

LEAH:

When you talk to other people it’s like…

FLORA:

Yeah.

LEAH:

Do I speak, like… What? So like…

FLORA:

Yeah

LEAH:

Using vocabulary from people that speak English is so good. So, like, you, you get a pile of it.

FLORA:

Yeah.

INTERVIEWER:

Okay. Do you think that using English in other subjects like Geography or History has allowed you to improve your English?

LEAH:

Kinda, because like for example, Geography they have a bunch of different vocabularies but then again in our English lessons, we do a lot of different topics. We had a history the other day so like about important people from the past so we also get that vocabulary from our English lessons but it’s and it’s a nice practice and you still learn some words that you haven’t learned in English

INTERVIEWER:

So there’s a lot of cross-curriculum stuff in your English lessons?

LEAH:

Yeah, so it’s not just learning English, but it’s like we got a topic and we learn about that and I think it’s so cool.

FLORA:

I also agree on that too. And also in the future, if you’re going to be in a foreign country and somebody, because you just move there and that’s where you live now and you speak English with a person and they want to talk about, for example, something that happened in history like a period or something, then you will be able to talk about without having to think like Yeah the “kalte Krieg”, what is that? like you, you know, it and then you can just talk about it, smoothly with no problems at all, understanding it.

LEAH:

Absolutely.

FLORA:

Because even though you could be able to speak English, if you don’t know what for example, something like, that happened in history is called in a different language then it’s a bit hard…

LEAH:

‘Cause there’s like the basic English to have a conversation. And then there’s like knowing the words from specific topics, if you take a, for example, an English class online or with an app, you will never learn for example, about the Cold War or something…

FLORA:

Yeah.

LEAH:

As you just said. You will never get to know these vocabularies

FLORA:

Because this is almost as if you were in a country where the pupils study English and that’s their, you know, because they also learn the other subjects in English.

LEAH:

Yeah.

FLORA:

So that’s, I like that very much.

LEAH:

Yes.

INTERVIEWER:

Okay. Do you think that studying a subject in English requires more attention and concentration during classroom lessons when compared to lessons in German?

LEAH:

I don’t think so. As we said before, there’s a little switch that we have to turn on, kind of.

But I would say, for me, personally, my English and my German is on the same level, almost and I was in primary school and that primary school was also bilingual, so I learned from a very young age, that there’s the German word and then there’s the English word and for me, that’s kind of the same, and I don’t really have to think about, what does that mean in German? Or I have to, I have to have the picture in my mind to it’s, it just kind of works for me. And so there’s not a problem at all, I’d say, except for the switching part.

FLORA:

Yeah, for me the same, as I’ve mentioned. Again. Sometimes you know, you’ve just got to be like, okay, I’m speaking English now, I’m speaking German now and for me as well. Even when I lived in Hungary in kindergarten, we already had native little, so teachers who spoke English with you, or read English story books. So, I also pretty much grew up with the language, it’s one that comes to me a lot more naturally too, than German sometimes.

INTERVIEWER:

So, what would you say are the pros and cons of the way we teach and study in our school?

LEAH:

I think a big pro is that we learn English on a very good like basis and it’s not like I know some schools that like just have English lessons like one or two times a week and because we’re a bilingual school we have almost every lesson. There is a tiny bit of English if not the whole lesson is in English and so we learn it faster. And I think that’s good because then you can talk to other people in English and you learn it. As I said, you learn it faster because we do so much English. So there’s not really the process of years of years to learn.

FLORA:

I agree. It’s, I feel like it the way we do it here again, as you said that, he could do almost every subject in in both languages. So it’s a lot more efficient. And, yeah, I feel like you just you, you can just if you speak it more then also, when you listen to it more often, it gets easier and easier. And also after you finish the school, like, if you go to high school afterwards, you’ll be ahead of them like it so far ahead of them, and you won’t have to spend, as much time, you know, preparing for like some type of test. The only thing that I feel like is a is a con again, is if you speak many languages then it’s a bit hard to, you know, know which way you’re speaking and Also and we don’t do as much grammar. I feel like hear it. We just focus on, you know, we can speak and we can write because our tests are like there’s a

listening and reading and writing and in other schools and in high school, I’ve noticed that like my friends who are in high school now they have like in their test to have like a different section for grammar. And of course I if you ask me what past simple is of, you know, something, I don’t know. But if there’s something more complex or something, then I just have to be like, wait, what is that again? So that’s I feel like that’s the only part that’s missing a bit because that’s what we’ll need that. But but none in the speaking process like not in a foreign country you won’t need that. Nobody’s going to ask you the present perfect tense of something, but you know in future schools…

LEAH:

Another contra is that I have a friend and she was in that school that we are now and she is now in a higher school in the first year and she writes like like 5, like the worst grade that you can have because like her English is too good. She’s so far ahead in that class that the teacher is literally mad at her. And now she gets like bad grades so maybe we’re just too good, maybe that’s the contra!

FLORA:

I’ve heard the same stuff about like my, you know, I had a friend who again, went to the same school and now she’s in the in a different high school, and they have English and she writes fours and like a lot of like and it’s it’s insane because she always tells me that it annoys her so much that you can literally speak better English than their English teacher. And they sometimes like, they don’t know, the words or, they don’t understand what they mean, like if they write text, and she doesn’t spell it correctly and she probably like puts it in Google because she doesn’t know it herself, and it doesn’t come up, she’ll just cross that out and like, that’s not a word. And that is that… that’s I feel like it’s not a con in this school in particular.

LEAH:

No no,

FLORA:

It’s just in general

LEAH:

it’s not a con, the school is good, it’s like, because I know a lot of schools that don’t have any native teachers at all, or just one or two and we have so many

FLORA:

That’s true.

LEAH:

and yeah, and it’s also it’s very good that we have so many native speakers, because then we can learn English from someone that doesn’t speak German that good.

FLORA:

Yeah

LEAH:

So, like that helped me a lot as well.

FLORA:

Pronunciation as well, if you just hear it, it’ll come naturally

LEAH:

Exactly. So yeah, some schools just don’t put English…

FLORA:

As, like, as, they put, don’t put it as, like we put it first and this…

LEAH:

And they’re just like, whatever, and I think that’s why…

FLORA:

Throw it in there because it’s a must.

INTERVIEWER:

Okay, thank you very much for your time.

A Brief History and People

Finland’s history is a tale of resilience and adaptation. Swedish rule, which began in the 13th century, has left a lasting impact on Finnish language and culture. Even today, the Swedish language is the second official language in Finland. In the early 19th century, Sweden lost Finland to Russian rule, after which Finland was declared an autonomous state within the Russian Empire. Finally, in December 1917 Finland became independent. Finland has fought in two wars during its independence. After the Second World War, Finland developed rapidly towards a welfare state mainly with its metal and forest industries. The golden 80’s and the depression of the 90’s are an important part of modern Finnishness. At the turn of the millennium, Finland’s currency changed from marks to euros. The welfare state of 21st-century Finland is proud of itself and looks brightly into the future.

With a population of around 5.5 million, Finnish people are known for their resilience, humility, and love for nature. Finns have a strong sense of community and a deep connection to their vast forests and lakes. The concept of “sisu” embodies their spirit with a unique blend of determination, courage, and endurance. Many Finns seem quiet and shy to foreigners, and they only speak when they have something to say. Small talking isn’t really a thing in Finland and being quiet is not considered to be a bad thing. This might seem rude to someone not used to it. Finns are loyal and punctual. If something is planned, a Finn will be on time; it is considered rude to go to a meeting late. Finns appreciate the Finnish social system, and they are willing to pay lots of taxes to fund it. Finland is also known for equality. In our country, men and women are treated the same way at working places, school, health care etc.

Food and Sports

Finnish cuisine reflects the nation’s agricultural heritage and reliance on seasonal ingredients. Most of Finnish food is very healthy. Food contains less fat and sugar and more vitamins and grain. Fast food culture is less significant than in many other countries, as we only have a handful of big fast-food chains. Finnish people eat a lot of potatoes and drink a lot of milk. Our school food is nutritious and free for all students.  Most common foods are macaroni casserole, smashed potatoes and meatballs, as well as sautéed reindeer. Most common snacks are salt licorice, Karl Fazer’s milk chocolate, blueberry pie and mämmi.

Sports holds a special place in Finnish hearts. Ice hockey is a national obsession, and Finland has produced many NHL stars and is consistently successful in international tournaments. Additionally, in winter sports like cross-country skiing and ski jumping Finnish athletes have earned numerous Olympic medals. Most Finns like to follow professional sports, but a daily life of a Finnish person doesn’t necessarily involve a lot of sports.

Literature, Art and Design

Finland has a rich literary tradition, with authors such as Aleksis Kivi, Eino Leino, and Väinö Linna contributing significantly to its cultural legacy. Perhaps Finland’s most famous literary figure is Tove Jansson, creator of the beloved Moomin series. Finnish literature often draws inspiration from the country’s nature and its complex history.

Finnish design is known for its simplicity, functionality and timeless elegance. The works of Alvar Aalto, Armi Ratia, and Marimekko have gained international acclaim. The Finnish capital, Helsinki, is home to various museums and galleries, including the Ateneum Art Museum and the Design Museum, where you can see and admire the nation’s artists’ work.

Conclusion

Finland’s culture is a mosaic of influences, from its early roots in Sami and Finno-Ugric traditions to the enduring impact of Swedish and Russian rule. The Finnish people’s connection to nature, their delicious cuisine, world-known design, and love in sports make this nation a captivating and vibrant part of the global cultural tapestry. Whether exploring the quiet beauty of the Finnish countryside or experiencing the busy streets of Helsinki, one cannot help but be enchanted by the unique allure of Finland’s culture.

Working together seemed to flow seamlessly yet again. The main task of the week was to get a grasp of the three scenarios related to maths and physics, and to implement some of them. This was done in close cooperation between the respective subjects’ teachers and the native English speakers. Honing the details and matching the difficulty level to the level of our students was crucial for the implementation. (kuva työskentelystä)

Meanwhile, the other teachers were starting to plan templates for other subjects and the implementation of other scenarios. It was interesting to hear about the experiences already made with implementing the humanistic scenarios, which seem very well thought out and readily applicable with our Finnish students as well. Hearing the Austrian middle school pupils talk about their experiences with C.L.I.L. was quite something, and it reinforced the conception that bilingual teaching and learning has great merit to it.

On Thursday, two teams applied the scenarios in Mathematics. Teachers found it challenging but also inspiring to go through the two scenarios by using other language. Students found it also interesting to learn both mathematical structures and some new terminology in English at the same time. Overall experience was encouraging and C.L.I.L. methology appears to be a working way of learning.

As for the cultural experiences, on Monday we visited the birthplace and home of Jean Sibelius, the national composer. It was the first visit there for the two of our hosting teachers as well, which underlines the significance of transnational friendships: to get to know something in your own culture better, it must be brought into contact with other cultures. We all learned a great deal about Sibelius, not least because of the excellently delivered guided tour in English.

The cultural main event was, however, on Tuesday. Heli and her family had prepared a fantastic supply of food and drinks to bring us through the ultimate Finnish experience: cottage life with smoke sauna and jumping into the chilly lake (which for us Finns was almost summerly warm with its +15 degrees Celsius). Smoke sauna is not something even Finns get to experience very often, not least because of the simple fact that it takes about seven hours to prepare it for the optimal mixture of heat and smokiness. The happy faces after sauna and swimming as well as grilled sausages and pancakes were all we needed to know that this was indeed a great success.

On Wednesday we visited Tampere, the second biggest city in Finland and a constantly developing hub well known for its industrial past and black sausage. Again, bringing international friends to cultural sites taught us all many new interesting things! Sad to say that the quality of football is somewhat lacking, but luckily a group of sports enthusiasts returned to Tampere the next day to watch ice hockey, where we boast quite a decent level. As for sports, Thursday offered some of us a beautiful weather for kayaking in the vicinity of the Häme Castle.

All good things must come to an end. Friday was goodbye day, and the start of a new teaching period for us. All in all, the week was a great mixture of work, culture and sports – alongside friends whom we hope to keep in touch with, and of course we will meet again in Wiener Neustadt in April!

They say Bad English is the most commonly spoken language in the world nowadays, and there is certainly a large grain of truth in the statement that you can get yourself understood with English almost anywhere, no matter how bad it is. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be improving your English, does it?

In Finland, it is very common for upper secondary school students to be working beside their studies, be it in cafés, restaurants, or supermarkets. The need to speak English in customer service is self-evident. Also, the secondary school is, of course, a necessary step towards higher education. And in higher education, Bad English will no longer do – Finnish universities require students to read and more often now also to write in English. In order to acquire sufficient English skills, we need to practice them in secondary education. It is hard to imagine a better tool for that than CLIL!

At the beginning of May 2024, over 450 students from Hämeenlinna’s upper secondary schools gathered for three days at the Hämeenlinna University of Applied Sciences (HAMK, Hämeenlinnan Ammattikorkeakoulu) to participate in something we call “LukioDiili”, “High School Deal” in English. The aim is to acquaint the students with higher education, and in this case especially the ways in which business is being taught at the HAMK. Although the teaching itself was not done in English, and CLIL was not specifically applied, many of the cases the students were given required the use of English in different ways: searching for information, branding, commercializing the product for non-Finnish-speaking users etc.

One integral task of upper secondary education is to provide students with the necessary skills to enter higher education. Our experiences with CLIL as well as the LukioDiili have opened up the understanding of how to integrate a foreign language into everyday teaching of our subjects. As for now, our steps are only baby steps, but as baby steps often are, they are necessary for the road ahead.

After the warm welcome of the 11 partners by our Headmaster of Mr. Aristides Mylonas and the coordinator Ms. Eleni Alexiou (PE06), the content and objectives of the C.L.I.L. program were presented. Emphasis was placed on the main pillars of the program, such as the need to acquire communication skills in English for teaching and access to other sources of professional knowledge, the adoption of modern teaching approaches, the exchange of good teaching practices and the adoption of effective classroom management strategies and new ways of planning lessons with the ultimate goal of making the foreign language more attractive.

Furthermore, the teachers were informed about the Greek education system by students of the school, but also about the digital activities (digital radio, digital newspaper, robotics) of the 6th GEL and were given a tour of the building facilities.

During the program, they watched teaching scenarios in the computer lab , by a representative of SAPPLE, in three different humanities courses, Philosophy, History and Religion. During this mobility, teachers of the pedagogic team presented and taught Physics, Ancient and Latin, came into contact with other teaching practices and had the opportunity to get to know different models of education, compare practices and programs and see a different one from their own educational system.

Our partners had also the opportunity to visit, admire and learn important information aboutthe Matsopoulos Mill, the Kursum mosque and the Mausoleum of Osman Shah, the thematic museum of Tsitsani with the twin Ottoman baths and the Fortress with the emblematic Clock Tower. Then, they wandered in Varousi with its cobbled narrow streets, the many Byzantine churches and the rare architecture of the houses with the loggias, the long eaves and the bright colors as well as the old greengrocers. They walked along the banks of the Litheus and talked with Asclepius and Trikki, crossed the central bridge and Asclepius. This was followed by a visit to the City Hall of the city, where the press representative of the Municipality, Mr. Athanasios Michalakis, presented in the municipal council chamber applications of the smart city of Trikala, which aim to facilitate the daily life of the citizen and had the possibility to see the driverless bus up close. Finally, they were introduced to traditional dances, tasted traditional Greek cuisine and were delighted by Greek hospitality.

Of course there were some excursions as well. An excursion was made to Ioannina and the ancient theater of Dodoni. They visited Meteora, the huge vertical rocks at the top of which there is the second monastic complex in Greeceand they also admired the stone bridge with the impressive waterfall in Paleokarya.

After a dialogue between the partners, the next transnational meeting in Finland was determined and the implementation of the obligations of each partner was agreed.

It was a unique experience for communication, exchange of opinions and experiences, development of cooperation and friendship relations.

THOMAS GIOUVRIS – EVANGELIA KARATASIOU

The city’s story :

Trikala is a city in northwestern Thessaly, Greece, and the capital of the Trikala regional unit. The city straddles the Lithaios river, which is a tributary of Pineios. The city is near Meteora and also near the mountain range of south Pindus, where there are many destinations (i.e. Pyli’s stone bridge, Elati, Pertouli, Palaiokarya’s stone bridge and waterfall, Pertouli Ski Center etc.). Trikala is a lively Greek city with picturesque monuments and old neighborhoods with traditional architecture.

The mill of Elves

It was built in 1884 by Agathoklis brothers after Thessaly was liberated from Ottoman rule and was united with Greece. It was the first roller mill of Greece, the largest of the Balkan region and the first pasta factory of Greece. Nowadays the Matsopoulos Mill is mostly known as “The Mill of the Elves”. And this because of the famous Christmas arrangement that transforms it into a major attraction visited by thousands of city inhabitants and visitors from all over the country.

The central bridge

The Central Bridge connects the main square of the city (Iroon Politechniou) with the pedestrian street of Asklipios. The bridge was built in 1886 by a French engineer and is made out of metal. From the bridge, you can see the green shores of Lithaios River and the statue of Asklepios.

The old town of trikala “Varousi”

The neighborhoods of Varousi and Manavika are two of the most famous places in the old city. Varousi,  hosts many churches, built very close to each other that date from the era of the Byzantine empire and later. Manavika is the other traditional neighborhood of the old city, including the brothels as well as the meat and vegetable market. Nowadays in Manavika, there is a large number of small tavernas, restaurants and cafeterias.

Clock Tower

The city’s trademark was built in 1936 on the spot of an older Ottoman clock tower. You want to visit it for its panoramic view. The castle lies on a hill at the northeastern side of the city, and was first built, according to Procopius of Caesarea, by Emperor Justinian  on the ruins of the acropolis of the ancient city of Trikke.

Tsitsani Museum

One is the “Protection and Emergence in the Old Prison Building of Trikala”, which is carried out by the Department of Antiquities of Trikala, while the second subproject concerns the “Repatriation of the old building of the old prison of Trikala – Research Center Vasilis Tsitsanis” Trike.Upon completion of the project, the building turns into an archaeological site with an architectural and historical structure on the ground floor and an area with references to the local composers and songwriters on the upper floor. The two exhibitions will operate separately, but both will contribute to the development of the local area and the tourism of the city.

Osman Sah

The mosque of Osman Sah or Kursum Tzami, is located just some meters away from the Tsitsanis Museum. It is a unique monument as it is the only mosque of Trikala and has been declared a World Heritage monument by UNESCO. Kursum Tzami is open for visitors and hosts events appropriate for the building, such as art installations and speeches.

Lastly, In Trikala (and in general in the Prefecture of Trikala) there are producers of agricultural products that offer high quality and enjoy great recognition both inside the country and abroad. The well-known village sausages of Trikala, dairy products (such as kasheri and feta) and halva are just some of the local delicacies worth buying from the city market. Also famous are the local vegetables and fruits (such as tomatoes, watermelons and melons), as well as the various types of wine and tsipouro.

XRISTINA GIANNOULAKOU

Interview  Ms Julia 

Pupil 1:

Good morning. Can you introduce yourself in a few words, please?

Teacher:

Good morning. Yes, of course. My name is Julia Dallner and my subjects are English and Crafts. I have been a teacher for 17 years now. I also have native speaker lessons, as my mum is from England and my brother and I, we have been brought up bilingually.

Pupil 2:

How. And when did you become involved in CLIL?

 Teacher:

Well actually, when I started teaching at the Bilingual Junior High School. And then of course, when my mom talked English to us.

 Pupil 1:

What are the main problems and challenges for teachers working in content and language integration?

 Teacher:

It is sometimes difficult to find appropriate material. As our students are willing and eager to learn a second foreign language, their motivation is really high.

 Pupil 2:

Are there any CLIL school books for your subjects in Austria?

 Teacher:

There are some books, especially for Biology or Geography, but more, of course, are always welcome. We mainly prepare our own worksheets or we try to find appropriate material on the Internet.

 Pupil 1:

What would you say are the most positive aspects of teaching through English?

 Teacher:

Well, the pupils do not only gather or learn specific words, phrases in different subjects, but they also profit from colloquial talks during the breaks and the lessons and this is, in my opinion, often very necessary to be able to speak a foreign language, in our working world and our students definitely profit from our school profile.

 Pupil 2:

What do the parents of your pupils say about their children learning in English? Have you received any feedback from them recently?

 Teacher:

Our parents are very satisfied with what we are doing and we often get positive feedback, as our pupils have hardly any troubles in further schools.

 Pupil 1:

Did your own children attend CLIL classes?

 Teacher:

My son does not attend school yet, but I try to talk a lot of English to him, so let’s see what the future brings.

 Pupil 2:

What do you see as the future for CLIL in Austria? Do you think it will expand?

 Teacher:

I do hope so, that it expands. I think it is a great possibility for children to learn a second language and to broaden their horizon, also for different cultures and traditions.

Pupil 1: Thank you.

Pupil 2: Thank you.

Teacher: You’re welcome, bye.

The creator of CLIL is David Marsh. Through CLIL you integrate at the same time the learning of content and the learning of a foreign language, which is usually the English language. However, it could be taught in any foreign language as long as it is not the native language of the learners. Although most people think that CLIL is only about teaching an academic subject such as physics, chemistry, biology, etc. CLIL can also be about learning any other subject with any content, regardless of whether you revolve around academic issues. That is, CLIL can be used even in the field of entertainment such as fashion, gastronomy and cinema.

Generally

CLIL is a method in which parts of a course or lessons are taught through a foreign language with the aim of not only learning course content but also learning a foreign language at the same time.

Moreover

The famous, widespread and successful CLIL program is directly related to the correct cooperation and communication between foreign language teachers and content teachers. In particular, each teacher is an expert in his field. Therefore, it is imperative that the two teachers share the corresponding principles and information that they have at their disposal. This way a more constructive cooperation is achieved and consequently the best possible results.

The content teacher

The teacher who deals with the content teaches a lesson, e.g. chemistry. However, the CLIL approach technique is highly specialized due to its particularity as a pedagogical method. That is, the content teacher is not an expert in language acquisition or pedagogy. Consequently, you require the content teacher to either have some training or simply be able to use the native language of the learners as well as English, a technique known as multilingualism. In addition, the support of the foreign language teacher will be necessary.

The language teacher

The language teacher has to be responsible for teaching English (or any other language). Of course, the CLIL pedagogy supports that the content teacher must list in advance the relevant vocabulary as well as the functional language of the course. accordingly (literature or physics, for example emphasizing critical thinking and ability which either pre-exists or needs to be developed.

XRISTINA ANASTASOPOULOU