Outdoor Activities for Students' Progress and Wellbeing

The reason we applied for this project is that we found a problematic situation that affects the development of students from cognitive, social, emotional, affective, and psycho-motor points of view. Online alienation, screen addiction, low share of non-formal activities proposed at our school level, self-marginalization of children in the online context, overloading students through expository lessons and homework, lack of teachers 'skills in outdoor activities, decreased students' interest in learning and school participation activate. Through this project, we wanted to enhance their learning progress and improve their basic skills in communicating in a foreign language. We also consider that the following factors: low motivation for learning, the precarious situation of students, parents who have gone abroad, and online activities during the pandemic, contributed to the poor results obtained in the 2020-2021 school year. For example, Out of 256 primary and secondary level students, 12 students repeated the school year, 54 students obtained poor results at school, at the end of the school year there were 1787 unexcused absences, and 80% of the number of students received social aid from the state.

Our project aimed to increase the motivation for learning and school participation through outdoor activities, enabling transformation and change in the context of each organization. We proposed that students who have socio-emotional problems that affect their progress in education participate in as many outdoor learning activities as possible to bring them closer to school. We proposed that teachers reconsider their teaching strategies and use outdoor learning activities in class. We proposed that at the level of the partner schools we include such activities in the extracurricular activities calendar. The objectives of the project were: 1. Improving the socio-emotional state of 200 students of the partner schools involved in outdoor learning activities, Outdoor Education, during 01.03.2022- 01.03.2023; 2. Developing the outdoor teaching skills of the 8 teachers from the 2 partner organizations through job-shadowing activities until 01.02.2023; 3. Increasing the number of non-formal activities used in the formal education framework proposed at the school level in at least 4-5 subjects until 01.03.2023.

Transnational project activity: organized at Secondary School No. 1 from Hurdugi; Learning activity 1: organized at Şehit Ahmet Akyol Ilkokulu School; Learning activity 2: organized at Secondary School No. 1 from Hurdugi; Three local activities organized in each partner school; Creation of a good practice guide and Dissemination activity. Each activity had preparatory and follow-up activities, according to the project implementation plan, agreed upon by the partners. During the first working meeting, an interactive training course took place at the "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University in Iasi. Two workshops were held in which the teachers presented the schools they belong to, the educational offers, as well as discussions regarding the design of the best practices guide. The teachers from the two schools participated in demonstration activities both in Romania and in Turkey. The students participated in outdoor learning activities where they created poems, the magical story of our project. In the local activities, the students participated in sports activities, thematic excursions, and ecological activities.

Tangible results: 1. The practice guide with examples of outdoor activities in the subjects: Language and communication, Mathematics, Biology, and Sciences; 2. "Erasmus magic book" with poems created by students and the story "The Fairy of the Sun" - a story created by students from the two partner schools; 3. Facebook page of the project; 4. Project logo. 5. The project review with all the carried-out activities; 6. Sensory garden where students carry out outdoor learning activities. This space was donated by the local authorities to carry out our activities. Trees were planted in this space in local activity no. 1. Intangible results: -Increased motivation for learning among the students who participated directly in the activities of the project, but also among the students who could not participate, but want to participate in the next projects, as well as a positive attitude to participate in the activities organized by our school, but also by the partner school; - Contributed to development of students from a social, emotional, affective, and psycho-motor point of view; -Developed the skills of teachers who carry out outdoor learning activities; -Increased the number of diversified non-formal activities at the school level.