As part of the “School Plastic Free Movement” project, supported by the Erasmus+ KA3 program of the European Union, the Association “Friends of Education,”, announced an award competition titled “Young Scientists Save Planet Earth” for activities aimed at helping free schools from plastic.
The national competition started on January 23, 2023, and ended on May 31, 2023. Students from first to ninth grade, along with their class and subject teachers from primary and special primary schools across the Republic of North Macedonia, were eligible to participate. The competition was aimed at research teams consisting of five students and one teacher from a single class. Seven primary schools participated in the competition, which was aimed at research teams consisting of five students and one teacher from a single class (Read more on the following link). Their project activities were evaluated by an international jury of proven educational experts involved in the “School Plastic Free Movement” project. The submitted project activities were evaluated by an international jury composed of proven educational experts from the “School Plastic Free Movement” project. The European jury, was composed of representatives from Eurpole (Italy), Friends of Education (N. Macedonia), the Regional Directorate of Education Castilla y Leon – JCYL (Spain), Panevezys Provincial Educational Centre – PRSC (Lithuania), Make it Better – MiB (Portugal), the Turkish Ministry of National Education (Turkey), and the University of Burgos (Spain), awarded schools that played a significant role in the fight against plastic pollution with a STEM set, Scientific Discovery. More about the competition on the following link.
The first prize was won by the team from Primary School “Grigor Prlichev” Ohrid: Nikola Todoroski, Jana Joncheska, Katja Zhupan, Marija Tanasoska, Teodora Tanasoska and their mentor- teacher Marina Tanasoska, with their project Digital audio picture book “The Space adventures of Robbie and Dobby” adapted for ecological and inclusive education of visually impaired students from 7 to 10 years old (available on the following link). The representatives of the first-place winning school, Primary School “Grigor Prlichev” Ohrid, presented their project at the International Conference in Verona, Italy, on April 26 and 27, 2024 and shared their ideas with the first-place winner schools from other European countries. More information about the project activities are available on the prject’s web site Eco School “Grigor Prlicev” Ohrid, Macedonia – “Not all of us can do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” St. Mother Teresa. (wordpress.com)
The event was organized by the partner coordinator of the Polo Europeo Della Conoscenza project (Italy) (https://www.europole.org) to highlight the activities of all partner organizations involved in this project. As part of the conference, an international student competition was held under the theme “YOUNG SCIENTISTS SAVE PLANET EARTH.” The winning teams from national competitions, which had been organized for research teams from primary schools in the partner countries (Italy, Turkey, Lithuania, Spain, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Portugal, and Macedonia), presented their projects. These were evaluated by an international committee of educational experts from all partner countries.
The conference also included presentations from speakers and professors from various countries who shared their experiences through panel discussions designed for teachers and students. The conference agenda can be found at the following link, and additional educational materials and teaching practices are available on the official project website: Inclusive Pedagogical Model for Gifted, Migrant, and Disabled Students – Erasmus+ Project KA3 – Support for Policy Reform 21506-EPP-1-2020-1-IT-EPPKA3-IPI-SOC-IN (schoolplasticfreemovement.org).