Bronze awards for Potamos Kindergarten and Corfu Evening Vocational High School in Education Leaders Awards

Two schools from Corfu have won bronze awards in the Education Leaders Awards 2024 for their innovative educational practices. Potamos Kindergarten stood out with a short video they created about 'Count Ioannis Capodistrias from Corfu,' while the Evening Vocational High School received recognition for creating a website and promoting it on social media, emphasising technological issues and more.

Each school managed to excel in the category they submitted their candidacy for, through the inspired actions they have adopted, breaking the confines of traditional teaching, aiming for students to enrich their knowledge in a more interactive way.

Potamos Kindergarten received an award in the category 'Outreach, Educational Visits, and Experiential Learning in Public Primary Education' thanks to the video they created about the life and work of Count Ioannis Capodistrias from Corfu, the first Governor of Greece.

The purpose of the programme, through a creative and experiential approach, was to highlight significant aspects of the Governor's career, with the physical presence of the pupils from the kindergarten's second year at landmarks that were significant in his life. In this context, they made an educational visit to the Capodistrias Museum, where they toured the permanent exhibition, and gathered information about his life and work from the central Historical Library of Corfu.

All of this was put together in a short video, with the children's voices of the young pupils who unravel the story of the First Governor of Greece, using footage and photos from their visit to the historic site of Koukouritsa.

The coordinators of the project were the class teachers, Sofia Psarra, Vassiliki Kommata and Irene Petrelli. The kindergarten head Ms. Psarra told Enimerosi that the children created their own book about Ioannis Capodistrias as part of the activity, undertaking the writing and illustration.

'Kindergarten teachers are called upon to harmoniously combine theory with practice, so that the teaching designs and learning situations we organise are of high quality and meet the needs and capabilities of the kindergarten children, creating a rich and 'cognitively challenging' learning environment," said Ms. Psarra. "In this particular learning environment with the theme 'Through art and monuments, I get to know places and history,' we aimed for the pupils, inspired by a monument or residence or public building or artwork, to learn the history of their place, to research in order to gather information, interacting through interactive presentations, information exchange, and the use of information technologies."

Evening Vocational High School website

The website www.pclearn.gr, created by the students at Corfu Evening Vocational High School Information Technology departments of the second and third grades, is now online. The project's goal, with which the school participated at the last minute in this year's event, was for the students to advance their knowledge and to enrich teaching methods with new approaches. The effort paid off significantly. The school received an award in the category 'Innovation in Teaching in Public Lifelong Education' for the technological updating and interconnection of its students, earning the bronze award.

"The project began last year on the initiative of the IT teacher Sotiris Fotios and was completed this year, with the possibility of further development," school principal Petros Traianopoulos told Enimerosi. "The same students created the website and enriched it with articles and useful material. At the same time, the website's content is promoted on social media."

Adult students, aged 20 to 65 years old, attend the school. They are workers as well as pensioners who have returned to the classrooms. "Our students are enthusiastic. They are captivated by the interest when they engage with technology topics, which they previously considered difficult," said Mr. Traianopoulos. "It's a process that leads to their development and is related to practical knowledge." However, it's not the first time that Corfu Evening Vocational High School has distinguished itself in this particular event, as it managed to stand out and win a gold award five years ago.

The Awards Ceremony

The awards ceremony for the Education Leaders Awards 2024 will be held in Athens on Monday, July 1st. Through these awards, exceptional achievements and effective initiatives in every field or market are recognised and rewarded. It is noted that public sector schools and educational units can submit nominations without any financial burden.

MARIA BAZDRIYIANNI

Photos: Sofia Psarra, Petros Traianopoulos