<< Background >>Homework is a cornerstone of the different school systems in Europe. It is not always described as such in official documents but in practice all students have to spend a sizable part of their afterschool time doing it. And yet the topic is debated with numerous studies arguing in favour or against homework, analysing if homework is effective or how much time it should take. When compiling different studies (ex: Cooper 2006), the effects seem overall positive but are associated with potential downsides such as “physical and emotional fatigue, fuel negative attitudes about learning and limit leisure time”. Different research also shows that the socio-economic status of the student and family support impact these outcomes. So, if homework has the potential to improve learning but its actual positive effect is not important enough and diminished by circumstances, what can be done? Some voices advocate for its suppression, but a more constructive way is to work on how homework is done and to improve its quality.Using abundant literature research on the topic, we can identify 5 fundamental characteristics of effective homework (Vatterott, 2010):•Purpose: Assignments are meaningful, and students must understand its purpose and importance.•Efficiency: Homework should take reasonable time and needs to involve some hard thinking.•Ownership: Students who feel connected to the content learn more and are more motivated.•Competence: Students should feel competent in completing homework and so we need to abandon the one-size-fits-all model. Homework that students cannot do without help is not good homework.•Inspiring: A well-considered and clearly designed resource and task impact positively a student motivation.The need to improve the quality of homework is even more stressed by the COVID19 as the quantity of self-study or homework has increased intensively. Among the most noted consequences of this situation were the reinforcement of inequalities in learning and the disengagement of students as assessed by analysists but also teachers, specialists, or parents. Therefore, to increase its quality, we intend to propose a new format of homework using storytelling, gamification, and game-based learning to address the 5 characteristics above. This adventure homework format will present series of tasks under the form of a story with different pathways including in-story support for struggling learners. While this will not be sustainable for 100% of homework, it will help re-engage pupils and associate the concept of homework with something positive. The level of retainment of information will also increase thanks to gamification mechanisms imbedded in the class materials, as it is proven that Gamification and Game-based-learning have a higher rate of information retainment than classical learning techniques.This adventure homework format could be suited to all school topics, but for practical reasons we will focus on one topic to provide the most accurate content possible. Therefore, we have decided to first tackle one of the key issues in European learning, the STEAM (cfr. underachievement level in PISA studies 2018), as it is one of the matters where learner’s (dis)engagement is the highest.<< Objectives >>The main objective of EduGRAAL is to boost the students’ achievement results and engagement at school, by improving the efficiency and engagement of Homework through gamification and storytelling techniques applied to homework. This objective is particularly important in the current Covid climate which forces the education system to work remotely more often than not. Teachers would be better equipped to weather the remote learning situation with these tools. As this Game-based learning or gamified learning is essentially more oriented towards learning-by-doing, it is especially useful to apply in the STEAM subjects, as those tend to be more abstract and difficult in terms of pupil engagement. The continuation of the development of key competences is of the utmost importance to the good evolution of the pupils. This project therefore aims at creating innovative and creative pedagogical tools to be used in a homework context in order to engage pupils in a homework adventure. And by doing so, we will encourage the development of basic skills as described in the priority: by promoting cross-curricular collaboration in the same adventures which is an innovative learning approach that is focusing and engaging learners in a competence-based revision, integration or assessment system. In addition to this central objective, our project will also respond to other priorities listed above:1)The usefulness and efficiency of this cornerstone of school education is heavily debated among scholars and from time to time in the public/political field. With this method, we therefore intend to provide teachers with an alternative assessment tool and method for the homework done by the students.2)An additional priority, but which will be transversal to the whole project, is to ensure the inclusivity of the method and tools developed. By presenting itself under a different, more engaging / less stressful format that will rely on a variety of skills and applications to reach the next steps of the homework adventure, the method will benefit the pupils most in need for engagement and support including the ones with learning disorders as well as most of those struggling in school for various reasons (migrant background, socio-economic difficulties, etc). In addition, a special attention will be on the positivity of the approach (by insisting less on failure and more on progress) and on the format of the content where all results will be suitable for people with learning disorders (in terms of presentation, layout, phrasing, etc)3)While we will not limit ourselves to STEAM education in this project, the STEAM subjects are most likely to be even more affected by a lack of engagement from the pupils, especially in homework. Hence, they are going to be a focal point of this project to open the way to gamified homework all across the board of academic subjects. STEAM education is an essential step to the development of our fast-paced society. In the school sector specifically, a secondary goal of this project is to increase the levels of achievement and interest in STEAM education.<< Implementation >>This project will produce several results, leading to two subsequent testing phases organised in all partner countries. To reach these tests, we will begin with the creation of the first result, by building a first batch of Homework Adventures. Once the first batch is well on its way of being created, the expert partners will begin the creation of the second result, an eLearning module about how to create Homework Adventures, by building on their experience. This eLearning module will allow the teachers and education professionals to have a step-by-step method to follow in the creation of their own Homework Adventures. This first batch will be tested in schools by both pupils and teachers and will be modified and improved as needed. The participants in these testing phases will be interviewed in order to get their impressions, good practices and experience using the material and the partners will learn from this first testing phase in order to improve the first batch and to create a more complex and efficient second batch. As the first testing phase begins, the launch of the creation of the fourth result, an implementation guide, is done. This guide will be based on the invaluable input of the field testers, as the first users of all the project results. Additional feedback on best practices will be gathered by the partners in order to help set the improvement needs and the best practices for both the second batch and the use of the results post-project development. In parallel of the first testing phase, partners will begin to build the third result as well; a Toolbox of pedagogical tools, visuals, practical sheets and templates, in order to further enrich and polish the Homework Adventures and to create building blocks for teachers when they will create their own Homework Adventures. This Toolbox will be translated by the partners in their national languages. As all results progress, a second batch, using the experience gained in the first batch and the feedback from the first testing phase will be created with both gamification experts and schools. As the second batch is being field tested in schools and by education professionals, required improvements on all results are set in place and final modifications are done. The additional feedback is also being incorporated in the Implementation guide. All results are translated in all languages of the partnership and uploaded as OER on the website and eLearning platform.<< Results >>Project partners intend to create efficient, engaging pedagogical materials and tools for teachers in order to implement an innovative gamified Homework methodology with their pupils that will boost the efficiency and engagement rate of pupils in remote work, and more specifically, in Homework. The methodology will be based on the concepts of Gamification and Game-based-learning, as well as incorporating some creative storytelling. More specifically, the outcome of the project is to boost the achievement rate of pupils in basic skills fields, especially in STEAM, by raising the efficiency and engagement rate of homework through Gamification. Practically, over the course of the project, we expect different types of impact. There will be both concrete intellectual results that will be created as well as more general results.The concrete intellectual results of the projects will be as follows:The first result will be a series of 18 ready-to-use homework adventures in different formats to get inspiration for the homework creation. This will include a short presentation that will introduce the project, how it is articulated and make a quick overview of the concepts of gamification, game-based learning and gamified homework and the different pedagogical benefits that using this technique can have on the pupils’ performance. The second result will consist in an E-learning Course on how to create your own homework adventure and how to leverage them to increase pupil learning. This e-learning course will accompany the teacher or education professional step by step in the creation and usage of their homework adventure. The third result will be a Pedagogical Toolbox containing all materials and practical sheet on specific gamification materials that the teachers may need in order to create their homework adventures. This result will contain a minimum of 100 items.The fourth result will be an Implementation guide that will help the teachers put their gamified homework into place, with its rules, frequency, delivery system, homework hand-in system, etc.These results will be created in English first, and then translated in all languages of the partnership (IT, FR, ES, HU, GR). The results on the target groups will be: •Strengthening the profile of teaching professions by enhancing the teacher’s initial education and continuous professional development through the promotion of Game-based and competence-oriented teaching and learning.•Increasing the levels of achievement and interest in science, technology, engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) by using Gamification and Game-based-learning with a cross-curricular approach.•Providing inclusive and engaging materials and tools for all learners, including for pupils with SLDs •Providing practical methodology to make pedagogical materials more inclusive for all learners, especially for those in need of special support in mind (e.g. children with a SLD or children from disadvantaged socio-economic background, children from a migrant background, girls) in order to develop high quality childhood education.•Raising awareness of the importance of Europe’s cultural heritage through education, lifelong learning, informal and non-formal learning. In terms of communication result, we are planning the following:•A project website•6 multiplier events with a total of 200 attendees•1000 users of the Open educational resources•700 educational institutions, professionals or groups contacted•50.000 people reached through the communication campaign•At least 10 associated partners by the end of the project

"The project has the title ""Save the Nature Save the Future""and its coordinator is Greece and partners are Portugal, Czech, Romania and Turkey. Project duration is 24 months. Totally 120 students aged 12-14 and 40 teachers will participate in LTTAs. The natural world is more than a source of beauty and admiration. It offers perfect opportunities for teaching the exciting world of STEAM and the technologies of the 21st century. Nature motivates students to learn, keeps them alert, promotes their creativity, and improves their abilities in mathematics, science, art, engineering, and technology using the five senses. The nature-based STEAM will introduce a powerful programme which will teach students a wide variety of STEAM subjects and skills in an approach influenced by nature. The cooperating with other European countries will help students to develop experience in science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics.Our objectives are to: -Enable students to incorporate knowledge into disciplines -Build opportunities for students in order to become imaginative, creative, considerable in problem solutions, analytical thinkers, interested in science and capable to collaborate with others in the 21st century -Develop new content and promote the introduction of STEAM skills into the curriculum so that teachers can teach STEAM subjects effectively. The activities we are intended to accomplish are:Gala opening project, forest events, insect hotels, solar panels, terrarium, bird feeders, 3D shapes, sundials; building towers and bridges; workshop on bird modeling aircraft; designing objects in the mud workshop; constructing simple machines from natural objects and weather stations; designing environmentally sustainable and smart homes in the mud workshop inspired by nature, solar ovens; creation of sunscreen prints, natural collages using natural objects collected leaves and musical instruments; restoration works; searching and documenting of the species data observed; design of mathematical structures using origami Maker Exhibition, eTwinning conference, STEAM Fair, business pitch and speaker activities, and the use of Audubon Bird Guide and iNaturalist applications.All schools meet once a month, perform their roles and obligations in accordance with the 24-month schedule and inform the supervisor about the results.The results are:-Students are acquiring nature-inspired STEAM skills, understanding how mathematics, arts, sciences, technology and engineering can work together, becoming involved in scientific fields, learning to think critically and finding problems' solutions.-Students understanding of STEAM issues, capability in interdisciplinary integration, awareness and abilities will be improved; STEAM-related services are strengthening, school personnel and school efficiency are expanding, curriculum incorporation of acquired knowledge and skills will be ensured, cooperation between partner schools and key stakeholders is increasing.-Teachers will learn new methods to align nature with STEAM; students will aspire to take advantage of nature, be motivated and make it a commodity. Teachers-participants will strengthen their professional skills in the European aspect. Students will learn how to link STEAM disciplines, develop problem solving, analytical thinking, questioning, innovation skills and will be interested in science issues. At European level, teachers will be able to study new approaches and strategies, they will develop a more advanced curriculum by implementing good practices into their teaching methods. The sharing of best practices in learning will be included in the partner school curriculum which teachers can use and further improve the latest knowledge and skills they gained in their classes. Students will use their knowledge and skills of the 21st century in the next educational steps and it will help them to be profoundly better. Management staff will share the results and successes of the project with new people who will come to school after years and it will enable them to learn from this experience."

ContextA sedentary lifestyle, poor or unhealthy eating habits, and lack of physical exercise among schoolchildren represent a troubling problem that arose mainly because of the fact that in recent years the technology lead children into the home. This, doubled by the fact that parents are now too busy to pay attention to their children's eating habits, has increased the number of obesity cases among children. In addition to causing several physical disabilities, technology addictions and affecting them psychologically, being overweight increases the risk of a person developing various illnesses and has a negative psychological impact.Objectives-To decrease the number of consumers of fast food in the target group by at least 50% after the 2 project years.- To raise the awareness of at least 70% of participants about the principles of healthy eating;-To increase physical activity to a minimum of 1 hour per day for 60% of students in the TG;-to improve communication skills, interpersonal skills and self-confidence in a European environment of at least 65% of participants-To exchange ideas and practices with other European schools in order for teachers to produce one brochure for students and parents and one brochure for schools.-To develop the knowledge about the diversity of European sports and cultures of at least 70% participants.The project addresses three target groups – the first one is that of students aged 10-14, students with weight problems as well as regular students (the reason for the choice of this age range is that at these ages, students start developing long-term behaviors, so it is a critical age for the development of the future adults). They will be in the middle of all activities, both carried out at transnational level, in exchanges, and locally. The second group is that of parents – we will inform them about the project development and involve them in the local activities so as to raise their awareness about the importance of healthy diet for their children’s development. We want parents to join our activities, to observe their children in interaction, to see how happy they are and to support them to continue this way of living at home, to involve their children in outdoor activities . Thirdly, teachers who will participate in exchanges will be able to exchange experiences, to explore the similarities, differences, identify good practices and spread them on in their own schools. They will learn from their peers and become resources for their colleagues to ensure the sustainability of the project results.Direct participants (from sending institutions):C1 – 12 teachers and 4 student counsellorsC2-C5 – 20 students and 8 teachersFrom host institutionsC1 – 5 teachers and 1 students counsellorC2-C5 – 120 students, 30 teachers, 100 parentsActivitiesC1 – Lack of physical exercise and obesity – current trends in Europe (Nov. 2019, TR)C2- The topic of C2 is Obesity – causes and effects on the short, medium and long term (Mar 2020, IT)C3 - You are what you eat - How to have a balanced diet (Oct 2020, GR)C4 - Sports and physical activities to combat sedentarism and obesity tendencies (Mar 2021, RO)C5 - Hiking and outdoor activities (May 2021, PT)Results1.Initial survey report and final survey report2.Collections of materials produced after each LTTA – Causes and effects of obesity, Rules of healthy eating, Sports activities in different European countries, Outdoor activities that can be organized by the school and by parents.3. Students’ journals4.Brochure for parents and students about healthy diet and pastime dynamic activities5.Brochure for schools with a shortlist of all the activities that can be performed by schools dealing with the same issues6.4 exchange reports in which we present the results of each exchange and measure the impact on students7.5 newsletters8.Impact study at the end of the project.The impact of the project is to raise awareness about healthy living and healthy and balanced diet for students and parents in our schools. They will learn about the causes and effects of being overweight, will acquire ways to combat the tendency towards physical inactivity, be more enthusiastic about spending their free time outdoors and using it to exercise in a playful way. In short, students are expected to significantly change / improve their current unhealthy eating and living habits. In addition, through direct participation in exchanges, students become more motivated, committed, more culturally aware and improve their communication, interpersonal and language skills. We expect them to develop a greater sense of tolerance and mutual respect.In addition, participating teachers become more motivated, involved and develop on a personal level. They become more prepared and better equipped to deal with the problem locally. Through the exchange of best practices with their European peers, they are expected to also develop professional practice.

"Our aim is to stimulate communication among students within the schools and to strengthen the sense of community by working with our hands to create joint products and actions. In doing so, both immigrant and disadvantaged and impaired students should be able to identify more easily with the school community. In all schools we want to work with local extracurricular partners and share our experiences with European partner schools, thus opening our schools to the outside world, both locally and in Europe. We want to create an awareness of sustainability and the environment among the next generation. Pupils should experience that they can help shape their future and make a difference. The most important result of this cooperation is a garden at the respective location, in which ideally communication is continued. An exchange with the teachers of the partner schools should take place across national borders so that joint activities can be planned and learning concepts for the Garden of Diversity can be developed. First experiences start with researching and presenting edible plants, examining environmental conditions and joint activities with gardeners and youth centres from the communities. In theory, the pupils will get to know the concept of ""Edible Cities"".The creation of these gardens should give the pupils at the respective locations the opportunity to examine their own consumption behaviour with regard to food. By processing the products of their own gardens, within the schools and with partner schools, opportunities for exchange will be created. Through the exchange on the topic of ""edible plants"", the pupils get to know each other and thus discover regional differences and similarities, initially on a culinary level. The pupils become aware of and understand the diversity of Europe through the preparation and follow-up work, but especially through the mutual visits.During the stays, regional peculiarities and similarities are explored. Future questions play a role in each activity:In Spain, action-oriented teaching concepts with a focus on horticulture are on the programme, in Germany the focus is on sustainable, innovative urban greening,in Estonia, the focus will be on recycling, and in Greece, groups of pupils will learn about the advantages and disadvantages of modern food production by learning about traditional food production.Networking skills will be trained and strengthened at different levels. On the one hand, cooperation and communication within the school's internal teams of teachers and staff must be strengthened. Through the planned co-responsibility and co-determination on the part of the pupils, an increased communication across classes and groups is to be achieved, which promotes integration within the school. The project implies cross-curricular work, which should also be included in the school's own curriculum by the respective subject group leaders. In addition, local and regional contacts with local administration, but especially with youth work institutions, are to be intensified. Furthermore, the aim is to use this project as a strategic instrument for the further development of intercultural competences, for integration within the student body and for the internationalisation of the schools. The exchange of experience with parallel European schools should lead to long-term relationships and encourage colleagues and pupils to take part in other European projects.In the Gardens of Diversity, the focus is on edible plants from the pupils' original culture, thus symbolising diversity as an enrichment in a ""Garden of Diversity of Cultures in Europe"".Such a meeting place for exchange will be created at the same time at the partner schools in Greece, Estonia and Spain in their surroundings. With the metaphor of rootedness we want to make the European dimension of a Europe of diversity with common values visible and tangible. A ""Garden of Diversity of Cultures in Europe"" makes the abstract tangible with all senses and at the same time offers space for shared experiences and communication. This applies to both the regional and the European dimension."

"The project ""Our hands and minds to become an active and responsible tourist looking forward to promoting our own regions in the future"" aims at:-promoting ecological and cultural awareness, increasing metodological competence of teachers involved in the project;-supporting new participating and intercultural approach towards heritage and supporting social initiatives which consider international dialogue of students from the early stage of life;-make teachers and students aware of European heritage of regions;-exchange of good practices including social link, critical thinking and teens involvement.School involved into the project are from : Greece, Romania, Latvia, Turkey, Poland. The location of schools help achieve intercultural and intenational dialogue of nations.Students involved in the project come from different social background needing great support. There are about 10 students involved from each partner school including students with less learning chances. Description of activities:-learning new skills of communication using ICT by using various communicative methods;-getting to know places in Europe of the world heritage; becoming more aware of caring for it in the future by empirical methods;-learning new strategies to achieve some goals;-paying attention on ecological, touristic, cultural aspects of regions environment by observation and measurable methods;-learning critical thinking towards project aspects by communicative methods-getting to know how to make attractive professional films; Methods used while carrying out the project: active learning methods,communicative and empirical methods, project method, debates, discussions, SWOT,Short description of the results:The results are going to be material and non-material. -lesson plans in each partner language considering ecological and cultural aspects of the project;-introducing new methods to pedagogical work;-analysis reports of questionnaries, interviews etc.involving the increase of awareness cultural heritage of regions in Europe;-increasing language competence among teachers and students;-increasing group cooperating competence, self-confidemce among students;-increasing experience of leading multicultural projects;-increasing awareness of the influence of implementation project results among locals;-quality of schools improvements;-increasing of cooperation between local societies and schools;-learning abilities of using ICT tools among teachers and students.We are going to share good practices experience with other sectors: local ecological organizations, local and regional heriatge associations, other schools in regions. The results of project will be provided to local governments by ICT. After having completed the project all teachers will implement observing good practices into their daily pedagogical work by: organizing ecological, tourist, sports school activities and events, supporting students self-involvement. Teachers will create new attitudes towards cultural European heritage in schools by putting innovative lesson plans into practice. They will also gain new experience to become leaders or partners in eTwinning projects.Each school is going to use project results and to implement activities after having completed the project.Fast social and cultural changes in Europe make teachers develop their teaching skills all the time. They still ought to learn new innovative methods and tools to provide their schools with new and practical and effective methodological and pedagogical skills not to forget about our European cultural heritage at the same time. Participating in the project will make other school teachers aware of posiibilities of eTwinning programme. The annual eTwinning events are going to be held in each pertner school after completing the project. As a result, an increase of language of communication and logistic competence will be noticed among teachers and students, which is going to be a background to lead other multucultural project in the future."