TOY - Trainers Online for Youth
This is a reference for Oleksandra Bakun
This training course has emerged from the need for new methods and approaches in
the work of youth workers, especially the youth workers working with migrants and
refugees in Europe in the recent period, need new methods, the art has the ability to
collect them in a common denominator regardless of their past, regardless of their
background. The project will provide youth workers with innovative and artistic
methods that they can use in their work. This training program is based on formal and
non-formal education with a participatory self-directed learning approach.
Objectives:
To help youth workers make informed choices and make decisions about their lives
by making them aware of themselves. During the training, an artistic tool called
Labyrinth Theater will be used to help them do this;
To teach youth workers how to use the labyrinthine theater tool in youth work; -
show youth workers how to deal with them in a moment when they feel weak and
uncomfortable;
To understand how young people's perceptions of themselves affect their
behavior;
To enable young people to make an easy transition from the learning processes
during their education to their daily lives;
Ensure that youth workers reflect their own learning processes using the key
competences included in Youthpass;
To enable yıoung people to discover the Erasmus + Program and actions as a
capacity building tool.
Participating countries:
Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malta, Romania Turkey
Number of participants: 34
When searching for participants, we followed the following profile:
4 participants per country, gender balanced;
- 18+;
- Youth workers, youth leaders, activists on European level involved in everyday work with young people;
- Interested in topic of human rights and diversity;
- ready to take active role in initiating, supporting, implementing activities using digital tools and ICT for combating discrimination and hate speech and promoting equal respect;
- motivated to develop their personal and professional competencies in international environment (to improve their skills in communication, teamwork, problem-solving,
presentation, facilitation and conflict management);
willing to participate actively and share knowledge, expertise and positive energy with the other participants.
All of the methods used were NFE methods. For example, with the topic of Erasmus+ program, we have used "Treasure hunt" and "train with 3 stations" method, where the participants first put them in the order based of their perceived knowledge of Erasmus+ program, were put in 4 teams, and each team had "envelopes" with three different tasks that they needed to solve and then present to the other teams.
We have used lots of self-exploratory methods and small group discussions; for example, for the intercultural learning we have used Abigail's tale, and for self-discovery the River of Life and Ikigai flower, each of the connections the participants needed to discuss in small groups.
We have also used a lot of trust exercises (blindfolded walking with a partner, Tree in a forest), preparing them for the final part of the TC: building a sensory labyrinth in two groups, where each participant could experience both creating a Labyrinth, thinking it through, giving the other the experience to perceive it, and walking through a different labytinth.
The participants assessed their learning every day based on the 8 competences of Youthpass individually and shared their feelings, emotions and assessed how the day went in reflection groups.
We have made three kinds of assessment on the last day of the project: circle of sharing, online evaluation forms, and visual - comparing the fears, hopes and expectations they put during the first day of the project and the last day.
All of the feedback about the quality of the project was positive.
Here is a video one of the Maltese participants made about the TC and overall their time in Istanbul:
https://www.facebook.com/100009625629934/videos/2439153849748779/?hc_location=ufi
I worked as the only trainer full time in this porject.
I have construsted the program, was responsible for implementation and also took care of the emotional and physical well-being of the participants.