Possibilities of social inclusion through ESSD

Gelly Aroni, Ph.D, EUPEA Elementary School of Intercultural Education Athens, Greece

New challenges for education in times of social change

If education is “the instrument both of the all-rounded development of the human person and of that person’s participation in social life” (UNESCO 1992:4), any major socio-political changes will inevitably stimulate discussion – sometimes heated and controversial – about the validity of the foundations and basic assumptions of education. These discussions might cover such issues as our concept of “humanity” or an “educated person” and the skills essential for preparing young people for life. Eventually, the discussion will lead to the revision or replacement of major components of the framework of education (for example educational objectives, values, attitudes and competencies) and the ways in which they are to be put into practice in teaching and learning.

The current socio-political situationSocietal changes have been underway in recent decades in Europe andWorldwide:These changes manifest themselves generally as long-term socio-politicalprocesses with great dynamic force. They include:

– the globalization of finance and the economy, of work and recreation, with itsimpact creating worldwide dependencies and uniform ways of life and lifestyles;

– rapidly increasing private and professional mobility;

– the expansion of migration, which in many countries has led to the development of new minority groups in addition to already existing ones.

These processes can create all kinds of social tensions and conflicts. The increased interconnectedness and mobility – be it for work, pleasure or for economic and political reasons– also bring ever more people in closer physical and virtual contact with the Other (people from different nations, cultures, ethnic groups and religions) and has an impact on the way we see ourselves and the way we perceive the others.

Europe is in the second year of its biggest migration crisis since World War II.

The number of asylum seekers arriving at the EU borders is unparalleled in recent times. In 2015 more than a million first-time asylum applications were submitted in EU countries. The conflict in Syria continues to be by far the biggest driver of migration. But the ongoing violence in Afghanistan and Iraq, abuses in Eritrea, as well as poverty in Kosovo, are also leading people to look for new lives elsewhere.

The role of education in current times

There is a real urgency – in many aspects of our lives – for education, which can help citizens live together in our diverse societies. For this reason we all need to develop intercultural competences. The ability to understand each other across all types of cultural barriers is a fundamental prerequisite for making our diverse democratic societies work. Practically, this means the development of core transversal attitudes, skills and knowledge by every individual in order to be able to live in and contribute to sustainable democratic societies.

Change in education comes sluggishly: the process of curricular development is one that customarily mirrors societal change. We can expect that it will take time for schools to change the content of teaching and the methods employed to teach youngsters, but that should not lead us to think that we cannot act while we anticipate substantial changes in education policy.

Creativity can be employed in finding how an educator can contribute, in a holistic way, through the content of teaching and through the pedagogical methods employed, to the development of democratic competences. The Council of Europe has identified and been working on five different areas of competences for democracy:

► diversity and empathy: refers to intercultural competences and mutual understanding;► co-operation and participation: refers to the individual and group efforts necessary for working together;► human rights and equity: refers to aspects of social justice, anti-discrimination and equal rights;► knowledge construction and epistemology: refers to the way we think about knowledge;► self and interaction: refers to awareness of self in relation to the other.

Physical education for the development of democratic competences

Physical education can provide an effective means for the development of democratic competences.Through carefully designed activities and practices sport can provide opportunities to:

meet and communicate with other people; to take different social roles; to learn particular social skills and develop attitudes (such as tolerance and respect for others); to adjust to team/collective objectives (such as cooperation and cohesion); With appropriate methodologies physical education and sport can have an important contribution to processes of personality development and psychological well-being.

Council of Europe report (Svoboda, 1994)

It is a celebration which provides the opportunity for schools to:

• Connect with other European countries • Raise the profile of physical education (PE) and sport in schools • Create fun and enjoyment through physical activity for young people • Promote health and wellbeing for lifelong learning • Empower social inclusion and develop social competence amongst students.

School day: Sport and physical education teachers are the entering door to turn the Day into a whole-school event. The toolkit makes this clear and promotes the so-called whole-school approach when it takes into account different stakeholders as:

“School life is not only what takes place in the classrooms but also non-formal learning, such as extracurricular activities and school events. The school involves all of its members, not only pupils and teachers, but also parents, school leadership, support staff and other “stakeholders” such as the local community.

•Programmatically speaking, a whole school approach can refer to the potential inclusion of all members of a school community

“…The more the school as a whole is involved in the organizing process, the more successful and progressive the event would be and the better a good atmosphere could be created. It is related with the contribution of the stakeholders outside of school (involving parents is very important), which indicates many collaborating opportunities with the school”.

A whole school approach serves as a prerequisite for the empowerment of social inclusion and development of social competence amongst students

When talking about social inclusion, one can distinguish between two basic target perspectives:

1. Inclusion into sport Inclusion into sport focuses primarily on the introduction of under-represented, vulnerable groups to sport and the facilitation of thecapacity to act within sport. This mainly concerns: - Sport for people with disabilities – Gender equality in and through sports – Inclusion of migrants and other disadvantaged groups in and through sports

2. Inclusion through sportAthletic processes that empower individuals by allowing them to gain experience and acquire skills, which they can apply to other socialcontexts, such as schools, workplaces and communities, etc.

The annex of the toolkit

Planning -creating activities and equipment - stations, venues

Give children specific criteria and guidelines for these in order to fulfill the inclusion requirement. Develop their awareness and sensitization of:

1. the diversity in the student population in terms of age, gender, religion, culture, physical skills, preferences, abilities and disabilities.

It is important that sport and physical activities are carried out in a manner that makes all participants feel comfortable and secure. Being physically active comes naturally to some people, but to others it may be linked with variousnegative feelings. For example, a person with poor hand-eye coordination may not be comfortable with games involving throwing and catching a ball. A person who is not physically fit may not feel good about exercising with others who are. A person who was harassed in school during gym classes may be scared to participate.

2. the diversity of sport physical activities:

The terms ‘sport’ and ‘physical activity’ have different meanings in various contexts. The word ‘sport’ often makes us think of games such as football, basketball or tennis. It is usually associated with competition, tournaments and rules. However for ESSD we can use a broader, internationally accepted concept of sport as a starting point: Sport encompasses a wide range of human motives for being physically active. Competition is one motivation, but being physically healthy, forming relationships, having a sense of belonging, feeling joy, relaxing, taking a break from everyday worries, having an adventure and being challenged are equally valid reasons for being physically active.

Examples of activities may include:

1. Adapted international sport games3. Local sport and traditional games4. Multicultural games 5. Group movement games or cooperative games6. Dance

Cooperative games

Preparation-promoting the event

-setting the stations taking into consideration accessibility to all and of any religious or culturally related regulations with respect to girls/women or migrant groups.

1. Was there representation of all students in ESSD (whether it is in planning, preparation etc.)2. Were specific sport pedagogic concepts and methods used in the preparation of ESSD which promoted social inclusion? 3. Were there possibilities for students to improve and practice social and personal skills (e.g. self-esteem, language and communication skills) during the ESSD?

- preparing for the evaluation and communication tasks including, also, specific criteria - both quantitative and qualitative - for inclusion. For example:

Implementing -taking part in the event Opening and Closing ceremonies are included as they provide a great opportunity for the different talents and groups of the school

- taking photos, making videos that are representative of the inclusion issue meaning that they include elements of all the participating groups, possible adaptation and additions in order to meet the requirements for it.

Evaluating and Monitoring- helping to create questionnaires - taking part in conducting researches about the event - taking part in creating follow-up feedbacks

Communication

-creating reports, articles, photos, videos about the event

- introducing the younger students the organizational know-how of such events

The mentioned tasks are for mainly older pupils, because these tasks indicate responsibility, critical thinking and communication skills. But the younger generation will always have the more adequate way of using social media.

So we can rely on them on documenting the event, creating articles, updating the FB page, or post follow-ups in twitter. Special attention can be placed here also to both quantity and quality of the accounts as they should be representative of the effort to integrate the issue of social inclusion.

Physical activity and social recreational sport provide value by themselves for each of us taking part. But utilizing the situations and settings of sport and physical activity for learning and social processes adds a valuable dimension– in fact, it adds both value and values.

Thank you