Comenius 3 EDUCATIONAL CHALLENGES THROUGH MEDIA AND ICT IN EUROPE WOLFSBERG,, AUSTRIIA OCTOBER,, 4 8,, 2006 COMENIUS CONTACT SEMINARS THEMATIC CONFERENCE SCHULGEMEINDEVERBAND WOLFSBERG
THE VENUE WOLFSBERG, AUSTRIA 2006 The district of Wolfsberg is doubtless one of southern Austria s most fortunate regions. Hardly anywhere else are there so many days of sun. The boundaries of the 960 km² district are virtually identical to the natural boundaries of the Lavant Valley which has always been dubbed the Paradise of Carinthia. It is surrounded by mountains and in the south by the broad riverbed of the Drau. Life in the region reflects the north-south direction of the valley. There are a wide range of schools, cultural and sports facilities and numerous visitor attractions. The conference centre (KUSS) is a state-of-the-art conference and event centre and the Lavant Valley s key venue. The KUSS is located very close to Wolfsberg town centre and is thus easy to reach. It hosts a wide variety of events such as trade shows, conferences, seminars, meetings, fashion shows, presentations, lectures, clubbing events, exhibitions, concerts, theatre, balls, discos, weddings, etc. The KUSS has the ideal facilities for all event organizers, societies, institutions, and companies to stage their events.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION THEMATIC CONFERENCE & -COMENIUS CONTACT SEMINARS OF ECOMEDIA-EUROPE - SOCRATES COMENIUS III NETWORK WOLFSBERG, AUSTRIA, 4TH 8TH OCTOBER 2006 INVITATION Dear Colleagues, The Socrates Comenius III Network EcoMedia-Europe is going to organise a Comenius Contact Seminar for Comenius 1- and Comenius 2.1 projects co-financed by the European Commission, focussed on the topic to develop new school partnerships and to establish connections between schools and different forms of educational institutions. This seminar is going to be held in Wolfsberg, Austria, between the 4 th and the 8 th of October 2006 within the framework of the Socrates action Comenius. Participants will have the opportunity to attend also a part of the 1 st Thematic Conference of EcoMedia- Euope which will be held from 6 th and the 8 th of October 2006 in Wolfsberg, Austria. The conference will focus on ICT and education with the title Educational challenges through media and ICT in Europe. It is our intention to invite teachers, directors, trainers, educational researchers and other educational staff which wants to establish new Comenius 1- or Comenius 2.1 projects within the Socrates Comenius action. Representatives from all National Socrates Agencies are also invited to accompany their country s delegations to this seminar. Organisation EcoMedia-Europe Socrates Comenius Network Schulgemeindeverband Wolfsberg Am Weiher 5 AT-9400 Wolfsberg AUSTRIA Phone: +43 (0)50536 66435 Fax: +43 (0)50536 66434 Contact Persons: Herbert Eile / Thomas Daxkobler projects@schulgemeindeverband.at http://www.ecomedia-europe.net
COMENIUS Action The overall objectives of COMENIUS are to enhance the quality and reinforce the European dimension of school education, in particular by encouraging transnational cooperation between schools, contributing to the improved professional development of staff directly involved in the school education sector, and promoting the learning of languages and intercultural awareness. COMENIUS seeks to help those learning and teaching in schools to develop a sense of belonging to a broader and outward-looking European community - a community characterised by diverse traditions, cultures and regional identities, but rooted nevertheless in a common history of European development. COMENIUS contributes to enhancing the quality and reinforcing the European dimension of school education by: promoting transnational cooperation and exchanges between schools and teacher training establishments; encouraging innovation in pedagogical methods and materials; promoting the transnational dissemination of good practice and innovation in the management of schools; developing and disseminating methods for combating educational exclusion and school failure, promoting the integration of pupils with special educational needs, and promoting equal opportunities in all sectors of education; promoting the use of information and communication technology in school education and in the training of staff working in this sector. COMENIUS contributes to promoting the learning of languages in school education in Europe by transnational measures designed to: improve the quality of the teaching of European languages as foreign languages; improve the pedagogical skills of language teachers; improve the language skills of teachers of less widely used and less taught languages; increase the diversity of foreign languages taught; motivate all teachers and learners to increase the number of foreign languages they speak and improve the standard to which they speak them. COMENIUS contributes to promoting intercultural awareness in school education in Europe by transnational activities designed to: promote enhanced awareness of different cultures; develop intercultural education initiatives for the school education sector; improve the skills of teachers in the area of intercultural education; support the fight against racism and xenophobia; improve the education of children of migrant workers, occupational travellers, Romanies and travellers. For detailed information about the different COMENIUS actions and type of projects have a look under: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/education/programmes/socrates/comenius/index_en.html
Dates 3 rd 9 th of October (optional) Duration and programme of the Comenius Contact Seminars: Please refer to the detailed programme. Shuttle Bus Services The organisation committee of the conference decided to organise a shuttle bus service from a few airports to the conference venue (Wolfsberg) to improve the quality of journey for conference participants. Shuttle Bus Services will be organised on Tuesday 3 rd October 2005 from: Vienna, Bratislava (SK), Graz and Klagenfurt (airports) to Wolfsberg Shuttle Bus Services will be organised on Thursday 5 th October 2005 from: Vienna, Bratislava (SK), Graz and Klagenfurt (airports) to Wolfsberg Shuttle Bus Services will be organised on Monday 9 th October 2005 from: Wolfsberg to the airports Vienna, Bratislava (SK), Graz and Klagenfurt If you wish to plan your journey independently, please do not hesitate to contact us for assistance.
Location Vienna Wolfsberg, Austria http://www.wolfsberg.at Topics and Goals To create new partnerships under the Comenius action by establishing contacts between schools, teachers, directors, teacher trainers and other educational staff of the schools and institutions represented at this seminar; on the website http://www.ecomedia-europe.net you can find also a project database with future projects regarding Comenius and education in general. To promote and to share experiences between different participating institutions To strengthen the strategic development of educational use of ICT and new media To promote an improved understanding of the impact of ICT within the learning and teaching process To promote access to improved methods and educational resources as well as to results and examples of best practices in this field To promote cross-cultural awareness and to build bridges between cultures Participating countries Open to all SOCRATES-participating countries (eligible for funding) Of course, people outside from Europe are also invited to this seminars and conference. Working languages English and to a lesser extent German (translation will be provided). The language of parallel groups and working groups will be decided later.
Conference fees: Conference fee includes: Accommodation Full board residential incl. all coffee & tea breaks and snacks All bus shuttle services Conference Proceedings (hard copy and CD format) Cultural programme on Saturday Opening night gala reception on Friday Welcome package and a lot more! Complete package: Arrival: October 3 rd 2005 Departure: October 9 th 2005 Category A ****Hotel Comenius Contact Seminars (complete package included attendance at Thematic Conference) EURO 570,00 / person Category B Hotel with good standard Comenius Contact Seminars (complete package included attendance at Thematic Conference) EURO 490 / person Single fee for Thematic Conference: (without Comenius Contact Seminars) Arrival: October 5 th 2005 Departure: October 9 th 2005 Category A ****Hotel Attendance at Thematic Conference EURO 390,00 Category B Hotel with good standard Attendance at Thematic Conference EURO 290,00 Single fee for Comenius Contact Seminars: (departure ahead of schedule) Arrival: October 3 rd 2005 Departure: October 6 th 2005 Category A ****Hotel Attendance at Comenius Contact Seminars EURO 325,00 Category B Hotel with good standard Attendance at Comenius Contact Seminars EURO 265,00 Single room supplement Category A: EURO 7,00 per night and person Single room supplement Category B: EURO 5,00 per night and person
Regular Registration: 1 st July 2006 Registration later than 1 st July 2006: + 5 % of all mentioned prices. Reductions: Group price (three or more persons from the same school / organisation): - 10 % of the total conference fee / person Workshop leaders: - 25 % of the total conference fee Students: - 25 % of the total conference fee Proof of student status must accompany registration form. All prices are quoted incl. VAT. Payment / Account Account holder: Schulgemeindeverband Wolfsberg Name of bank: Hypo Alpe-Adria-Bank Address of bank: Herrengasse 1, A-9400 Wolfsberg Account number: 5013100 Bank code: 52000 IBAN: AT08 5200 0000 0501 3100 SWIFT: KLHBAT2K Intended purpose: Conference registration fee October 2006 (please add also name(s)) How to apply and funding Please register online under http://www.ecomedia-europe.net You can also use the opportunity to send the registration form which is also published on above mentioned website, to Schulgemeindeverband Wolfsberg via post, fax, e-mail etc. For terms of funding please contact your national Socrates Agency. You have to fill in an application form for a Preparatory Visit for Socrates Comenius. You can find a list of all Socrates National Agencies at the following website: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/education/socrates/nat-est.html Preparations EUROPEAN FAIRS (projects and culinary): Participants are kindly requested to Bring information about their institution, region and country (pictures, brochures, posters etc.) Bring some typical culinary products from their region to the European fair on Wednesday.
FURTHER INFORMATION Schulgemeindeverband Wolfsberg Herbert Eile / Thomas Daxkobler e-mail: projects@schulgemeindeverband.at Am Weiher 5, AT 9400 Wolfsberg tel. +43 (0)50536 66435 fax +43 (0)50536 66434 http://www.ecomedia-europe.net We will be delighted to give you a warm welcome in Austria and will try to organise for you an unforgettable COMENIUS Event! Yours sincerely, on behalf of the network partnership of EcoMedia-Europe, Dir. Herbert Eile Annex 1: Draft programme Annex 2: Call for workshop proposals Annex 3: Local trips Annex 4: Other offered trips
DRAFT PROGRAMME OF THE COMENIUS CONTACT SEMINARS ECOMEDIA-EUROPE - SOCRATES COMENIUS III NETWORK WOLFSBERG, AUSTRIA, 3RD 9TH OCTOBER 2006 Tuesday 3 rd October 2006 on-going: Arrival of participants at the airports (a shuttle bus service from the airports of Vienna, Bratislava (SK) Graz and Klagenfurt to the conference venue Wolfsberg is provided for free; for detailed information please refer to the invitation) 20,30 Dinner Wednesday 4 th October 2006 08,45 09,15 Registration at the conference centre in Wolfsberg 09,15 09,45 Opening of Comenius Contact Seminar by the Network Coordinator Dir. Herbert Eile Welcome programme Presentation of the Socrates Comenius III Network EcoMedia Europe (topics and contents) 9,45 10,30 Plenary session: Presentation of the Socrates Comenius action by an expert of a Socrates agency 10,30 11,00 Coffee break 11,00 12,30 Presentation of examples of best practices of on-going and finalised Comenius projects by different experts and project co-ordinators with topics on: Project idea and scheduling of topics Project application Project implementation Contents and themes of projects Project management and administrative processes Helpful advices
12,30 14,30 Lunch 14,30 15,00 Preparations for a European Project Fair 15,00 16.30 European Project Fair 16,00 18,00 Parallel group sessions Comenius 1 projects Comenius 2.1 projects 20,00 Social programme Culinary European Fair with special surprises and programme Thursday, 5 th October 2006 09,00 10,30 Continuation of Seminars with a plenary session Cross curricular ICT-issues in school education Demonstration of case studies and examples of best practices of the educational use of ICT 10,30 11,00 Coffee break 11,00 12,30 Parallel sessions: Comenius 1 Comenius 2.1 o specific guidelines o composing of project applications experiences from Comenius project co-ordinators and discussion 12,30 14,30 Lunch 14,30 17,00 Project-group sessions First steps to set up a new project Covering of concrete topics and purposes First outline of projects 17,00 19,00 Spare time 19,00 Visiting of Carinthian communities combined with typical local dinners within a social atmosphere
DRAFT PROGRAMME OF THE THEMATIC NETWORK CONFERENCE WOLFSBERG, AUSTRIA, 6 TH - 8 TH OCTOBER 2006 Friday 6 th October 2006 08,45 09,00 Registration for the Thematic Network Conference Educational challenges of ICT and media in Europe 09,00 09,30 Cultural Ceremony 09,30 09,45 Opening of Conference Address of welcome by the Federal President of the Republic Austria Dr. Heinz Fischer (enquired) 09,45 10,00 Welcome and Introduction Dir. Herbert Eile Network Co-ordinator of EcoMedia-Europe 10,00 10.15 Coffee break 10,15 12, 30 Plenary session Keynote speeches: (highly qualified international lecturers) e-learning and new media in education e-government in education open source software in education 12, 30 14,30 Lunch 14.30 15,30 Plenary Session ICT and learning Best practice examples and case studies 15,30 16,45 Parallel workshops and project group sessions: No.: three or more parallel workshops (please refer to the call for workshop proposals) Contact Seminars: group sessions or workshops 16,45 18,00 Parallel workshops No.: three or more parallel workshops Contact Seminar: group sessions or workshops 20,00 Opening Gala-Dinner accompanied with music and programme
Saturday 7 th October 2006 09,00 10,30 Plenary session with keynote speeches: Educational challenges through media and ICT (two international media experts has been enquired) Impacts, risks and opportunities of blended learning 10,30 11,00 Coffee break 11,00-12,30 Parallel workshops and project group sessions: No.: three or more parallel workshops (please refer to the call for workshop proposals) Contact Seminars: group sessions or workshops 12,30 14,00 Lunch 14,00 15,15 Parallel workshops and project group sessions: No.: three or more parallel workshops Contact Seminars: group sessions or workshops 15,15 16,30 Parallel workshops and project group sessions: No.: three or more parallel workshops Contact Seminars: group sessions or workshops 16,30 Local trips to impressive places and tasting of local specialities (for details please refer to Annex 3) Monastery St. Paul Castle Wolfsberg 19,30 Dinner in Hotels Sunday 8 th October 2006 09,00 10,30 Plenary Sessions Keynote speeches: Collaborative learning using European Videoconferencing and electronic resources Opportunities of ICT aided language learning 10,30 11,00 Coffee break 11,00 12,00 Plenary Sessions Keynote speeches: Educational platforms and Schoolnetworks
12,00 12,30 Evaluation of conference and adoption of a resolution 12, 30 End of Thematic Network Conference 12,30 14,00 Lunch 14,00 19,00 Cultural programme (not obligatory) - Graz - Castle Hochosterwitz with Minimundus - Slovenj Gradec (SI) - Piber For detailed information please refer to Annex 4. 20,00 Farewell evening, these opportunities are available for you: Traditional evening on the mountains in a mountain hut with rustic dinner and music Beer tasting at a local brewery and dinner Dinner, sport evening, later on discotheque Monday 9 th October 2006 Breakfast Transport to the Airports (a shuttle bus service from Wolfsberg to the airports of Graz, Vienna and Bratislava is provided) Sightseeing tour in Vienna combined with a visit of castle Schönbrunn (not obligatory, for details please refer to Annex 4) Homeward journey
CALL FOR WORKSHOP PROPOSALS Workshops will be about 1,5 hours long and should be designed to achieve a high level of audience participation. For this reason, team facilitation and interdisciplinary approaches are encouraged. At the end you can find topics of our interest but if you have another interesting idea do not hesitate to submit the proposal. Topics may range from theory to issues related to application of concepts and tools presented in keynote and plenary sessions (e.g. international and cross cultural issues; display and application of tools; curriculum design; evaluation). The workshop proposal must be in MS Word format and include title of session names of moderators workshop objectives methods a brief (250 350 words) outline optimum number of participants space requirements and special equipment needed This call is for workshop proposals examining the theoretical and practical applications of media and ICT in education at all levels. All proposals and papers will be peer reviewed by members of the EcoMedia-Europe Network. If you wish to present at the Thematic Conference and have your paper published in the Conference Proceedings, submit your proposal to Thomas Daxkboler at daxkobler@schulgemeindeverband.at by March 20 th, 2005 Proposals should be in MS Word and include title, purpose/objective section, and a 250-300 word summary. Please include name, position and institution and contact information (mail, phone, fax and e-mail). Each proposal will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee. Notification on whether the proposal has been accepted or not will be sent by April 10 th, 2006 Completed papers must be submitted by May 20 th, 2006 and will be peer reviewed by the Programme Committee of EcoMedia-Europe. Comments will be forwarded to the authors, and final manuscripts, with editorial changes, must be received by July 1 st, 2006. Workshops presented at the conference will be published in the proceedings under the title: Media and Information & Communication Technologies in Education. Papers received after the deadline will not be included in the proceedings. Papers must not exceed 1800 words or 6 pages (including abstract, references, tables, figures and diagrams). Papers exceeding the stated limits will be returned to the authors for revision.
TOPICS OF INTEREST European and international collaboration in ICT supported learning: achievements of the European Union educational use of videoconferencing community building as means of promoting e-learning virtual learning environments in everyday school life fostering e-twinning and virtual communities as an new educational component multimedia applications and virtual reality introducing digital learning objects into my subject out-of-classroom practices by means of ICT peer to peer networking in educational use wireless technology - mobilisation of learning open source in education training teachers and/or headteachers in e-learning developing media didactics life long learning in the media society introducing international dimension in schools bringing cross-curricular ICT issues into curriculum implementing ICT strategies into everyday school life trends and practice of integrating new media and ICT applications in education safety of the Internet in respect of schools collaborative learning projects in the Internet virtual and geographic mobility of learners computer-aided language learning cost-effectiveness of ICT applications new challenges through e-government in school organisation programmes and projects collaborative project methods in school subjects or in schools virtual and geographic learner meetings If you have another idea do not hesitate to submit the proposal. Workshop presenters will get a reduction of conference to an extent of 25 %.
Offered trips on Saturday 9 th October 2006 (local) Trip to castle Wolfsberg combined with tasting of typical local drinking specialities! Trip to monastery St. Paul, the treasure chamber of Carinthia combined with tasting of typical local drinking specialities! All local trips are included within the conference registration fee!
OFFERED TRIPS ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 8TH, 2006 Graz World Heritage and Cultural Capital. Graz has many faces: Renaissance residence and student city. Romantic arcaded courtyards, bustling squares, medieval alleys, southern charm. A panorama of old and new. From the clocktower with its unusual hands to the island made of glass and steel. From the emperor's mausoleum to the "Kunsthaus" the "friendly alien". Have a sensuous experience of a captivating city. Castle Hochosterwitz with Minimundus Two very famous Austrian places. Castle Hochosterwitz is one of the famoust and oldest castles in Austria with a long history. MINIMUNDUS considers itself to be in the business of "edutainment", thus placing equal emphasis on education and entertainment. Where else in Austria can you find out so much valuable information about architectural styles, cultures and other countries on one site - not just using classical media such as catalogues, but also, in keeping with the times, with the help of 3D "walks" through the interiors of models, audio guides and original sound documentation, or, increasingly, background music typical for a particular country. Many moving models, such as the space shuttle which blasts off every hour, are part of the entertainment package, as the mascot, Globi, who is there to welcome visitors. Slovenj Gradec Come to Austria and visit also Slovenia! The city Slovenj Gradec is only 60 km far away from Wolfsberg and offers you a special and unique cultural programme. You will surely enjoy your visit in this UNESCO Peace Messenger City!
Piber Piber lies nestled in the idyllic hilly landscape in western Styria. Here, the Piber Federal Stud puts the knowledge and experience in breeding and special techniques for raising and training its Lipizzan horses it has gained in over four centuries into breeding horses that possess the unique qualities that have made them world famous at Vienna's Spanish Riding School. The visit could offer for you: Enjoy the stud farm's presentations, as well as various other special events Experience first hand how they work with young horses Visit the international dressage tournaments Guided tours give you a glimpse behind the scenes of everyday life at the stud OFFERED TRIP ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 2006 Vienna Sightseeing tour and visit of castle Schönbrunn On Monday, when travelling to the airport we can organise for you a guided sightseeing tour through the historic Vienna and a guided visit at castle Schönbrunn at Austria s capital city Vienna!
Impressions of Vienna. You can book these offers for an extra fee: Trip Extra Fee Graz EURO 30,00 Castle Hochosterwitz with Minimundus EURO 30,00 Slovenj Gradec EURO 25,00 Piber EURO 25,00 Vienna Sightseeing tour only: Complete package: EURO 15,00 EURO 30,00
This conference is organised with the support of the European Community in the framework of the Socrates Programme. The content of this conference does not necessarily reflect the view of the European Community, nor does it involve any responsibility on the part of the European Community. ECOMEDIA-EUROPE 225916-CP-1-2005-1-AT-COMENIUS-C3 A Comenius III European Educational Network The main thematic area of the network is the strategic development of ITC and media based education in the field of Comenius. Furthermore the network works on three different but well complemented sub-themes linked to SOCRATES COMENIUS: ICT Basics (Videoconferencing, communication- presentation technology, ICT based language learning, ICT intercultural society) Media (Media literacy, Life long learning in the media society, Virtual Communities, Media research) ICT Prospects (e-learning, e-government in school organisation, SchoolNets, e-twinning) The network is designed in order to include 23 institutions from 19 different European countries as formal network partners but moreover EcoMedia has 40 qualified network members. Aims and objectives of the network: Collection and editing of knowledge Exchange and transfer of experience Taylor cut transfer of knowledge Networking Measures to achieve objectives: 3 Thematic Conferences and Contact Seminars 2 international workshops for educational key decision makers 2 national workshops 3 thematic working groups Launch of a virtual knowledge and communication base via Internet 3 printed brochures Edition of a CD-ROM Research activities Comparative studies (SWOT analyses) Set up of dissemination strategy with European dimension http://www.ecomedia-europe.net