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"To diminish the distances"
Ministry of Education, everlasting learning and Religious affair
Greece

The Problem

The School Advisor’s Office is situated in Chalkidiki (Northern-Central Greece). It is a mountain district with schools far away from each other. The weather during the winter is difficult for driving. We difficulty meet each other. So it was very important for us (School Advisor) to find out an easy way to diminish the distances and “communicate” with teachers who work in this area. Communicating means giving advices and educational software for their teaching, creating working teams for teaching matters, discussing and showing the work with pupils to the other teachers promoting the “negotiation” .of knowledge.

Solution and Key Benefits

 What is the initiative about? (the solution)
The web.02 was a good solution for us. A “blog” was created by the School Advisor (http:// e-symvoulos.blogspot.com) where the teachers of long distance schools post their thoughts, points of view, questions about the teaching subjects which the Office publish on “blog”. Also they publish interdisciplinary projects (environmental education) working with their pupils. They can discuss through the “comments” of the “blog” for teaching and learning issues. They vote about the teaching matters that post the Advisor’s Office. They publish their “e-libraries” for the pupils of other schools. They participate through “blog” in trial lessons that the Office coordinates with the participation of schools. The School Advisor posts scientific articles, useful information and links for teaching. Also, the parents of the pupils can read all these publications and be informed for the work of their schools.

Actors and Stakeholders

 Who proposed the solution, who implemented it and who were the stakeholders?
The solution proposed by the School Advisor and implemented it with the assistance of teachers of the schools of the district. The blog was created free on “Blogger”-Google

(a) Strategies

 Describe how and when the initiative was implemented by answering these questions
 a.      What were the strategies used to implement the initiative? In no more than 500 words, provide a summary of the main objectives and strategies of the initiative, how they were established and by whom.
For implementing the initiative, meetings were indented with the teachers of the schools for discussing the problem of communication with the stuff of long distance schools. Some of them adopted the idea of School Advisor for creating a blog. Some others hesitated to use technology. The School Advisor created the blog and started his function on November 2008 with the support of the teachers. During this time came to this idea more teachers but there is “enough space” to feel yet.

(b) Implementation

 b.      What were the key development and implementation steps and the chronology? No more than 500 words
November 2008. A seminar e-learning begins about “The use of the ICT in teaching” by posting on blog scientific articles, program of meetings through the “comments, instructions for working the project in class with pupils and feedback through the “comments”
A seminar “blended” e-learning about “The difficulties of Maths”
January-February 2009. The teachers published on blog their work with their pupils using the ICT in teaching and learning.
April-May 2009. 10 schools of the area participate in a trial lesson about greenhouse effect by using a simulation.
September-October 2009. The teachers vote for the subject that they want be trained (matters of the children’s behavior- intercultural education-working in a team )

(c) Overcoming Obstacles

 c.      What were the main obstacles encountered? How were they overcome? No more than 500 words
-The “fear” of technology of some teachers. The Office of School Advisor organized some training lessons to face this obstacle
-The low speed of internet of some schools. To face this the “blog” was created in a “light” platform (we think)
- The teachers hesitate to discuss through “comments”- We try the teachers to feel comfortable about this. This mean functions well especially between teachers who know each other.

(d) Use of Resources

 d.      What resources were used for the initiative and what were its key benefits? In no more than 500 words, specify what were the financial, technical and human resources’ costs associated with this initiative. Describe how resources were mobilized
The School Advisor had the capacity for creating and administrating the “blog”. Some teachers needed training in using the internet tools, but the function of blog was easy to be learned.

Sustainability and Transferability

  Is the initiative sustainable and transferable?
The initiative is sustainable in terms of financial, because demands a few financial resources, in terms of technical demands a few for administrating the blog and using the blog ( quite a few training), and in terms of human demands only the capacity in internet tools of the administrator.
The initiative can be replicated at a national level in other districts that have distant schools because contributes in communication between them and the Advisor’s Office. Even if teachers change school can easily keep in touch with the previous telling their experiences throughout the “blog”. Also it could be replicated at an international level with participants teachers and School Advisors from different countries to know different educational systems and perhaps exchange experiences trying to improve teaching and learning.

Lessons Learned

 What are the impact of your initiative and the lessons learned?
By using the “blog” the teachers find out another way to be trained (distance learning), to tell each other their experience from classroom, to discuss even if they cannot meet, to have the chance “narrate” their work and listen to the other’s. They went through the technological literacy using the internet tools.
The Scool Advisor found a way to diminish the distances between the Office and the teachers and therefore the pupils and parrents.
I feel that it was a good start, we keep trying to improve this initiative with the collaboration of teachers and parents.

Contact Information

Institution Name:   Ministry of Education, everlasting learning and Religious affair
Institution Type:   Government Agency  
Contact Person:   ATHINA KALLARA
Title:   Primary School Advisor- 3 Educational sector of Ch  
Telephone/ Fax:   2372022143 & 2394056419
Institution's / Project's Website:   2372022475
E-mail:   3ekpesschal@sch.gr  
Address:   5 Vrises-Lagadas
Postal Code:   57200
City:   Thessaloniki
State/Province:  
Country:   Greece

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