First transnational project meeting

Between the 26th and the 28th of November 2018, the coordinating school Liceul Tehnologic “Mihai Eminescu” Dumbrăveni (Romania) hosted the first transnational project meeting organised within the “Hand to Hand – Together in Europe” School Exchange Partnership. The reunion brought together coordinators, members of the school management teams and other teachers from all the partner countries and focused on discussing work strategies and procedures, distributing tasks and responsibilities among the partners, planning the project activities, discussing and finalising the compulsory documents of the project, exchanging good practices for proper project implementation, as well as carrying out a comparative analysis of the partners’ educational systems.
The guests were warmly welcomed by Ms Mihaela Apetrei, headmaster of Liceul Tehnologic “Mihai Eminescu” Dumbrăveni, Ms Niculina Pintilii, the main coordinator of the partnership, Mr Dorel Galan, member of the Local Council of the village of Dumbrăveni, Ms Ionela Diana Doncean and Ms Adriana Duceac, deputy headmasters of the hosting school, as well as by pupils and teachers from the Romanian project team. After the welcoming addresses, the participants presented the schools that are involved in the project and the educational systems from the partner countries. The guests also had the opportunity to go on a tour of the hosting school and to attend educational activities, many of which were dedicated to the celebration of the Centenary of Romania’s Great Union.
The work agenda for this first transnational project meeting was extremely full. On the first day, the meeting continued with a discussion on the Action Plan for the first half of the project lifetime, detailing the monthly activities for the 2018-2019 school year and establishing deadlines for the next steps of the project. The participants also discussed the period, the topic and the common activities planned to be carried out during the short-term exchanges of groups of pupils. On the second day of the meeting, the representatives of the partner schools discussed and finalised the Plan for the Dissemination and Exploitation of Results, and also the Project Monitoring and Assessment Plan, agreeing on common strategies, procedures and tools, as well as distributing work tasks and responsibilities among the partners. On the third day of the transnational project meeting, the participants discussed financial issues regarding the project budget and exchanged good practices for proper project implementation. At the end of the meeting, the participants filled in an online feedback questionnaire, signed the necessary official papers and received the certificates of attendance.
In spite of their busy schedule, the guests found the time to become acquainted with the culture, history and traditions from the region of Bukovina by visiting the Town Hall, the kindergarten and an ethnographical collection from the village of Dumbrăveni, as well as the History Museum, the catholic church St. John Nepomuck, and the “Ștefan cel Mare” University from Suceava.
The first transnational project meeting of the project “Hand to Hand – Together in Europe” has contributed to establishing clear lines for implementing the project, the partner schools being able to build a well-organised work agenda for joint and individual activities. The opportunity for face-to-face discussions and interaction has had a positive impact on the communication and cooperation among all partners, helping them develop negotiation skills and clarifying misunderstandings. The meeting represents a strong foundation for a close collaboration and a fruitful exchange of good practices, which will bring numerous advantages to the pupils and teachers directly involved in the project, but also to the entire school and local communities.