ΡΑΛΛΕΙΟ ΓΕΝΙΚΟ ΛΥΚΕΙΟ ΘΗΛΕΩΝ ΠΕΙΡΑΙΑ - FINLAND, 20/4/2015- 3/5/2015: Job shadowing of the Principal and the EFL Teacher of Gymnasiet Grankulla Samskola, Kuaniainen/Grankulla

In the framework of the European Program ERASMUS+ KA1 2014-1-EL01-KA101-00007 ?Improving the School?, the Principal of Ralleio Lykeio Dr Dimitris Kalaitzidis and the EFL Teacher Katerina Christodoulou went to Helsinki, Finland from 20/4/2015 to 3/5/2015 in order to job shadow their counterparts, the principal of Gymnasiet Grankulla Samskola, Mr Niklas Walstrom, and the EFL Teacher Ms Sarah Mattila, who is also responsible for the international relations of the school.

Gymnasiet Grankulla Samskola is a senior high school of 300 bilingual students whose first mother tongue is Swedish. It is considered one of the best Swedish schools in the wider area of Helsinki and the core values of the school are responsibility, respect, tolerance, equality, cooperation and awareness.

Apart from job shadowing their counterparts, the Greek principal and teacher visited other schools and held a meeting with the Director of Education and Culture of the Municipality of Kauniainen-Grankulla, Ms Heidi Backman. The Principal Dr Kalaitzidis had a meeting with Ms Gru Blom of the Finnish Board of Education about the educational reform of 2015-2016 and particularly about the innovative educational approach of phenomenon based learning. The approach started and was experimentally implemented in Kasavuoren Koulu, a high school in the Municipality of Kauniainen-Grankulla, which Dr Kalaitzidis and Ms Christodoulou visited in order to meet with the vice principal Ms Leina-Maija Niemi who had taken initiative in the creation and experimental implementation of the approach 10 years ago.

In addition, Dr Kalaitzidis and Ms Christodoulou visited Gymnasiet Larkan, a Finnish senior high school in Huopalahti, Helsinki where they were guided by the principal Mr Magnus Westerlund and two students. They also had the opportunity to attend a lesson within the framework of the experimental implementation of the phenomenon based learning approach in the? Human rights? axis and to discuss about the planned reform with Mr Westerlund.

Dr Kalaitzidis and Ms Christodoulou would like to thank personally Mr Niklas Walstrom and Ms Sarah Mattila for making this educational visit meaningful and productive.