Capacity Building Project for Preschools: Enhancing Early Childhood Education

Project Title: CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620 This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The European Commission's support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

General information Project start: 01-10-2019 Duration: 18 month Project end: 31-03-2021 Consortium: 5 partners from 4 countries: Bulgaria, Greece, Portugal and Moldova; Lead partner: Kindergarten Prolet , Bulgaria Total budget: 56 760 EUR CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Maim project goal: Capacity building of teachers and administrators in several topics: participation in EU projects, ECEC Framework, intercultural interaction and understanding, saving and support traditions at preschool stage, social inclusion of children with special educational need and with disadvantage background - to be up to date with educational trends. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Target groups: staff of preschools; children 3-7 years old and their parents, guardians, etc.; local authorities, regional school authorities, NGOs; other stakeholders: for example local SMEs and large companies need to realise their CSR related with children education and care. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: 1/7 WP1 Project management will include administrative and financial as well as technical management elements. This will include the organisation of meetings, coordinating contractual and financial issues and technical elements, including support to implementation of the project, peer review of deliverables, as well as coordinating the monitoring and evaluation of the activities against outlined objectives. Lead organisation coordinate all partners and is responsible for implementation of the whole project. Each partner is responsible for its in-country implementation. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: 2/7 WP 2 In-country capacity building: WP 2.1 One day workshop in BG Kindergarten Prolet . Kisa Ltd will teach the staff of the kindergarten involved in the project about EU projects implementation: management, financial issues, monitoring and evaluation, dissemination. Min 7 teachers and director involved. WP 2.2 One day workshop for MD kindergartens.NGO Here and Now will teach the staff of the three involved kindergartens about EU projects implementation: management, financial issues, monitoring and evaluation, dissemination. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: 3/7 WP 3 Good practices exchange WP 3.1 Transnational exchange 4 Transnational Meetings (TM) 2-3 days duration (GR, BG, MD, PT). Each TM includes Trans. Partner meeting(WP1), peer learning workshop, educational part with experts (high level/academic, internal or external if necessary), visits and children performances. Personal meetings also help to strength collaboration and partnership relations between involved in the project organisations. The goal of this workshops is capacity building for participants by increasing their awareness and knowledge in the topics/themes, as well as direct intercultural interaction between pre-/schools staffs (especially teachers) that help them in future work with children. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: 4 peer learning workshops and educational part themes (WP 3.1): The 1st in Greece: Main topic: EU projects for kindergartens/preschools and innovative pedagogical methods and materials. Also Exchange of experience between kindergarten and schools directors will take place. The 2nd in Bulgaria: Main topic: saving and support of traditions in preschool education. KISA Ltd: presentation of last EU researches about economic efficiency of investments in human capital, focus on preschool age; tools to attract business to preschool education. The second TM will be hold in Bulgaria in April-May 2020 because of visiting local SME saving traditional rose oil production (https://www.damascena.net) The 3rd in Moldova. Main topic: saving minorities traditions at preschool education stage. The 4th in Portugal: social inclusion of children with disabilities and disadvantage background in preschool age. 4/7 CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: WP 3.2 Multiplying events Teachers took part in TMs will lead in-country multiplying sessions after each Transnational Meeting for other staff not participated directly in the Meetings to share information, knowledge, experience and impressions gained. 5/7 WP4 Development and approbation of small scale educational materials. WP 4.1. e-Collection of materials/good practices from peer learning workshops (EN full version, partly translation to other partners languages because of limited budget). It serves to project sustainability. This collection will be in open access on partners websites and social pages, as well as disseminated by each partner through its stakeholders networks. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: WP4.2. Development/design of brochure/book of thematic teaching materials Flowers/plants in folk tradition : min one fairy tale, song and poem per each country (2-3 pages per country). For example, for Bulgaria it is Bulgarian rose. Translations in each EN, BG, GR, PT, RO languages, that serves for intercultural exchange. WP4.3 Educational sessions about intercultural interaction and understanding for children of participating pre-/schools using WP 4.2 brochure. WP 5 Monitoring and evaluation. For the purpose of this WP will be created Monitoring and Evaluation Committee (MEC): 5 persons - 1 representative from each project partner organisation. 6/7 CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project activities: 7/7 WP 6 Dissemination: WP 6.1 General dissemination for large audience WP 6.2 Info sessions at the end of the project with representatives from other preschools, education directorates, municipalities representatives about the project, results and materials developed, future possibilities of collaboration. WP 6.3 Info sessions with parents about project itself, about ECEC and participation in the process, etc. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project results : Qualitative : Increasing the capacity of preschool staff that lead to general improvement of current ECEC process is the main project result. rise children involvement in saving and promotion of their own cultural heritage, strengthening intercultural understanding, that also lead to social inclusion of ethnic minorities deeper understanding by parents their role in upbringing, care and education of children reinforcement of local public rhetoric about necessity of high quality ECEC system appropriated to EU framework and recommendations close collaboration between participating organisation, improvement of partnership relations CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project results : Quantitative: 4 peer learning workshops, one per each of 4 Transnational Project Meetings; total min 25 teachers and 5 directors of preschools directly involved in transnational capacity building activities min 10 teachers and administrators per partner country involved in multiplying events WP3.2 ( total min 40 persons) total min 15 teachers and administrators involved in in-country (BG,MD) capacity building workshops WP 2 min 15 teachers, administrators, representative of local and regional school authorities per country took part in min 1 info sessions WP6.2 ( total min 60 persons) e-Collection of educational materials in topics covered during Transnational Meetings and in-country capacity building events 1/2 CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Project results : Quantitative: 2/2 brochure of thematic educational materials Flowers/plants in folk tradition : min one fairy tale, song and poem per each country (2-3 pages per country), translated in each EN, BG, GR, PT and RO languages total min 170 children directly involved in performances of culture heritage total min 420 children involved in intercultural educational sessions WP 4.3 total min 550 parents involved in dissemination info sessions WP 6.3 min 1 flyer, 1 banner and 1 poster about the project. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Impact: Impact: 1. Building of administrative capacity of partners, especially of pre-/schools, not participated before in such kind of projects. 1/2 1/2 2. Building of capacity of teachers/educators and their professional development by increasing awareness and knowledge in several topics/themes WP 3 3. Strengthening of intercultural interaction and understanding between partners. 4. Strengthening of intercultural understanding of children educated in involved pre-/schools 5. Promotion of own cultural heritage (traditions, holydays, dances, etc.) and SMEs involved in support and saving traditions. 6. Raise public awareness on ECEC, taking ECEC Framework further in current plans and activities 7. Contribution in tackling early school leaving and disadvantage by learning by other partners the successful PT school experience 8. Establishment effective partnership between project partners. CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Impact: Impact: at the local, regional, national, European and/or international levels One of most visible impacts on local and regional level raising awareness about possible participation of preschools in transnational level projects. As mentioned above this category of educational institutions is mostly inactive, does not have the necessary capacity and courage to participate in Erasmus Plus Programme. The other is raising awareness about ECEC Framework and changing trends in education at pre-primary level. At national and European level impact consist of contribution in formulation common EU vision about future of education and care in early childhood age. Intercultural exchange and promotion of own cultural heritage also are EU level impacts. Participants will gained practical experience in intercultural interaction, acknowledge with traditions in other countries and be able to perform own ones. 2/2 2/2 CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620

Thank you for attention! Questions? For contact: prolet_87@abv.bg CBP: Capacity Building for Preschools No:2019-1-BG01-KA201-062620