TOY - Trainers Online for Youth
This is a reference for Anton Toshev
The aims and objectives of this project are multifaceted and geared towards enhancing the skills and capabilities of youth workers in the realm of videomaking. The primary aim is to equip these youth workers with practical videomaking skills, thereby providing them with a powerful tool to better engage and address the challenges faced by marginalized groups. By focusing on the promotion of social inclusion and fostering dialogue through new means of communication such as digital media, the project seeks to create a more inclusive and understanding community.
One of the key objectives is to teach participants the necessary skills to create 25 educational videos that can be used to support and educate youth in their home communities. This includes comprehensive training in various aspects of videomaking, such as storyboarding, composition, framing, lighting, colors, and sound. Additionally, the project aims to develop a unified platform where participants can share digital content with other youth workers, facilitating collaboration and resource sharing.
Furthermore, the project aims to inspire participants to engage in their local communities by creating six videos on important local issues during the project's local phase. This not only enhances the participants' media literacy but also empowers them to use their newfound skills to effect positive change in their communities. The training also included discussions on affordable solutions for video editing and distribution, ensuring that the skills and techniques taught are accessible and practical for everyday use.
By working in groups to create engaging video content, participants also developed their teamwork and collaboration skills. Ultimately, the project aims to foster a supportive environment where youth workers can learn, share, and grow together, contributing to a broader culture of inclusion, understanding, and effective communication through digital media.
The project targeted youth workers aged 20-50 from Bulgaria, Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Italy, Greece and Poland.
Digital storytelling can be utilized in non-formal education in numerous ways, with films being made on any subject imaginable. When youth workers and even the youth themselves create stories, it provides them with a sense of agency and ownership. This can inspire a holistic research process, where young people learn material for their story in a natural, contextualized manner, regardless of the subject matter. The process of story writing can harness young people's creativity as they explore and narrate their own stories, using resources like libraries and the Internet to find content.
Creating digital stories also helps develop more advanced communication skills. It enables young people to better organize their ideas, ask the right questions, express their opinions and individuality more openly, and construct narratives that resonate with their community. Publishing digital stories online on platforms like YouTube or Vimeo allows young people to share their work with peers and gain valuable experience in critiquing their own and others' work. Such activities are crucial for developing emotional intelligence and social learning as well.
The learning outcomes of the project included several key skills and competencies. Youth workers learned to use video embedded with creative storytelling and poetic expression to address issues in their communities. They acquired basic filmmaking technicalities such as storyboarding, working with sound and lighting, composition, and editing. Additionally, they learned to research, develop, and execute documentary filmmaking to tackle important subject matters.
Participants also gained skills in creating instructional videos, including "how-to" and explainer videos, enabling them to use video as a communication method with youth. They learned to draw inspiration from various artists, filmmakers, poets, and musicians to better contextualize their stories. Finally, youth workers learned to work in teams to execute a creative project, utilizing strategic planning and leadership skills.
Full-time trainer, logistics, transportation and other organisation-related tasks before and during the project