For 130 years, quality has been our standard.

Transcription

1 For 130 years, quality has been our standard. Petrik Lajos Bilingual Vocational School of Chemistry, Environmental Protection and Information Technology, Budapest, Hungary Comenius Multilateral Partnership Training for LIFE: Leadership Initiative for Europe Welcome to Petrik Lajos Vocational School, Budapest, Hungary! To start our newsletter, we would like to introduce you our school. Our school is located 15 minutes from the city centre of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. The school was founded in 1879 as an industrial school by the state. The students who applied for the school had to have 8 years of primary school education, professional practice and an entrance examination from Hungarian literature, Geometry, Arithmetic and Geometric drawing. The state separated the different branches in The chemistry branch moved to Thököly Street in This became the school s new home. There were different courses for example dyer, textile maker and of course the laboratory assistant class. During the Second World War the school was hit by bombs 26 times. The laboratories and the roof of some classrooms were crashed. But the important equipments were saved because the teachers and students had packed them to cases and put them to a safe place. In 1954, when the school was 75 years old, it got a new name. It was called Petrik Lajos Chemical Vocational School. Lajos Petrik was the school s first chemistry teacher for 25 years and later the school s headmaster for 9 years. He studied at University of Graz where he became a professor s assistant at the department of chemical industrial technologies. When Ágoston Trefort called him home, Lajos Petrik became the school s chemical technical teacher. First the school was a technical institute but by the end of the 1960s it had slowly changed to a vocational secondary school. Now the school is a vocational secondary school with 3 departments; chemistry, environmental protection and information technology.

2 Let us tell you a few things about school life. The freshman camp, called Csibetábor in Hungarian, is held for those students, who come to the 9th grade. In September, they have a party, called Csibeavató, where they have some funny tasks to do in order to become part of the school s student community. In November the Honfoglaló is a programme where then pupils can stay in the school during the whole night and they take part in some activities and programmes. On Petrik Day in May the classes compete for points in different contests. The winning class get a day off. The most popular teacher gets an Orange Prize on this day. Traditionally, we also organize a Student Conference in the spring, where our students and students from other schools can give lectures and presentations on different subjects. Written by Teodóra Lajkó (11 th grade) and Dominik Krecska (9 th grade) The 2 nd Project Meeting of Training for LIFE in Budapest We also had the privilege to be the hosts of the 2 nd meeting of the Training for LIFE project in December During the meeting students and teachers from our partner schools around Europe visited our city and our school. The first day was Wednesday when our guests arrived and visited the school for the first time. First, everybody spoke about their experiences and the things they had already done or planned in connection with the project. After that they participated in some lessons in the school and in the afternoon we went on a sightseeing tour in Budapest. On Thursday we were on the Buda side. Our first stop was the Fisherman s Bastion. There we marvelled at the beautiful view of the city. We saw the Danube, some bridges and the amazing Pest. Later we walked to the Buda Castle. At the end of the day we met again on Vörösmarty Square at the Christmas market where we saw a lot of beautiful handmade goods and artefacts. On Friday students were on some lessons and after that we met again but in the school s gym where the teachers were

3 waiting for us with lots of funny and interesting games as part of a teambuilding activity. On Saturday we were in Aquincum where we visited the museum about the Roman Times of Pannonia Province. There we could play board games from the past. After the museum we went to a restaurant where we spent a lot of time speaking with each other and we made really good friends from all around Europe. written by Anett Hegedűs (11 th grade) STRATEGY Having a vision is the first and one of the most important steps in a creative process but before you would put things into motion, you need a strategy. You have to plan the progress carefully, taking each step, possibility and threat into consideration. Our students, along with others from different schools, took part in a camp in Zánka by Lake Balaton in the summer of In the camp, they could develop their business skills during the sessions. In the afternoon, they drew up a plan for their school. For our school, it was a plan for a Christmas Fair. Back at school in September, the Entrepreneur s Club was founded. Soma Szoták (11 th grade), one of the members of the Entrepreneur s Club writes: Since the start of this term, there s been a new after-school activity available in our school. It s called Entrepreneur s Club for a reason. We learn some key factors of being one. This includes advanced communication skills, different methods of setting realistic goals and reaching them, financial and legal knowledge, and sometimes socio-psychology basics as well. Discussions are held every two weeks, on Wednesday afternoons. I think the word cyclic describes our progress the most accurately. Firstly, I and about twelve other attendants and the teachers form a team, in which we set a new goal. This is usually a go-as-you-please kind of brainstorming. Everyone shares his or her idea about what the new project should be

4 about. Next, we discuss key things, such as financial and legal background, and set milestones. During the discussions, we keep finding out every fine detail needed to reach our goals. During the creative process, we learn many new things, not in the conventional read books and take notes way, but by experience, which many of us, students prefer. After we have arranged everything, the occasion is held. Finally we use an afternoon to summarize our work and relax. This is the end of our cycle and then we can go and plan another project. We have worked on two projects so far. The first was World Café where students could meet and talk with people who have started their own business, and Christmas Fair on which, as the name suggests, people (students and parents) could buy Christmas related goods or take part in several programs. Both events were successful, all of the Christmas Fair s income will be used to renovate the school s sports grounds. In conclusion, I m pleased to have such a useful after-school activity in my school and I surely know I will take advantage of all this knowledge gathered in my future life. The first big challenge of the Entrepreneur s Club was the Christmas Fair in December Ádám Kánai (10 th grade) interviewed one of the organisers of the event: We held the Advent Market and Family day (the Christmas Fair) at our school on 14th December, The students were waiting for this day with loads of excitement and preparation. Neither the students nor the relatives were bored. Among the programs one could find for example gingerbread making, chemist show, archery, outdoor games, beauty contest and baking competition. Every class had their own stand to sell their products, which the parents could buy for coupons supporting the school. I have interviewed Anikó Kulcsár, who was one of organisers of the programme and events. - How did you come up with the idea of the Christmas Market? - First of all the idea was not to organise a Christmas Market, but we wanted to have a family day. This was

5 our first thought. At the Entrepreneur s Club the idea of connecting the two events together came up so the idea was born. - If I am right, you have collected money for charity. - Yes, the event was announced as a charity event supporting the Petrik Foundation. The whole thing happened using a coupon system. This means, that whoever took part in the market could buy a coupon to make their donation. The students sat down in the Entrepreneur s Club where they had this idea. The Entrepreneur s Club cannot function as a business, which means that they cannot collect money, but they can collect donations. That is why when each parent arrived to the market signed a donation form and got the same amount in coupons, which they could spend at the students stand. - What will you use the donation for? - The idea was to collect the money for the renovation of the school's sports grounds. This was the first event like this. According to a new law in Hungary, students must have a P.E. lesson every day, which is a big challenge for us. At the moment we don't know, where students will have their P.E. lessons in the future because the school gyms are not big enough. We were thinking of changing the sports grounds concrete cover to rubber and cover it as a tent. This way we can hold gym classes outdoors even during the winter and in the summertime you can just take the tent down. This is the dream at the moment. We have sent letters to companies asking for donations, as well. - How much money did you collect during the market? - We managed to collect about 200 thousand Hungarian forints (around 650 Euros), but we have around 100 thousand Hungarian forints profit on it, because the rest was spent on the costs of the students. Let s be honest this money is only a drop in the sea, if you look at how much we need to achieve our goal. However, we felt we have won because an initiation like this could be successful. - How do you think this event went? - I was pleasantly surprised. Compared to how sceptical some of the students were, it was a big success. Obviously there were mistakes, but overall we can say it was a success. - Will you plan events like this in the future? - Absolutely. DISCLAIMER: This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. You have received this because you registered on our website or have previously indicated an interest in Comenius Multilateral Partnership "Training for LIFE: Leadership Initiative For Europe" LLP Link no RO1-COM Produced in Hungary by "Petrik Lajos Bilingual Vocational School of Chemistry, Environmental Protection and Information Technology 2014