Topic: School Mediation and Inclusion-Equity Skills

Day 1

The meeting was attended by 10 partner teachers, 25 partner students, 5 Maltese teachers and 5 Maltese students.

The visit started with the welcoming speech of the school Principal, Mrs Rosanne Garroni. What followed was a tour around the school premises, a few ice-breaking activities and a teachers’ presentation about Malta, the country and life.

The 2nd day was devoted to workshops regarding the topic of the meeting – “School Mediation and inclusion-equity skills” – by experts on mediation for both teachers and students.

On the 4th day, students introduced their schools and presented their own experiences solving conflicts and working on peer-to-peer mediation. Videos, role plays and PPT presentations were shared to all. Then students worked in international groups.

Another important event was the contest for the project’s best logo. Students voted and the winning logo was made by a Portuguese student who was attending the mobility.

As for cultural events, the group visited Silema, Valleta as well as the isle of Gozo.

Teachers evaluated the meeting and disseminated it via Twinspace.

Day 2

On the second day of activity the morning was dedicated to deepening the main topic of the project: the mediation of conflicts.The students, supported by the teachers, participated in workshops and reflected on possible reactions in real conflict contexts and discussed potential solutions.Once the group work was over, an interesting reflection on the different aspects that converge in the idea of the mediation of conflicts was carried on.

Day 3

On the third day a trip was organised to Gozo, the second largest of the Maltese islands (after the island of Malta) in the Mediterranean Sea, also known as the “Island of the Three Hills” for its numerous conical knolls, which resemble extinct volcanoes.

Gozo is not only hillier but also greener than the island of Malta. Its principal town, Victoria, also called Rabat, stands near the middle of the island on one of a cluster of steep hills in an intensively cultivated area.

Considered to be more fertile than Malta, Gozo depends heavily on agriculture, producing fruit, vegetables, grapes, and dairy products. Fishing is also important, and there is a cottage lace industry, but tourism is fast becoming the most important economic activity.

Gozo is held to be the island of Ogygia, in Greek legend, where the sea nymph Calypso entertained Odysseus.

https://www.britannica.com/place/Gozo

Day 4

On the fourth day in the morning the students from Greece and Italy-Bari role played a conflict mediated by peers whereas the Polish team showed two videos they made about the topic.

This activity gave rise to a debate among the students of the entire audience.

Afterwards workshop activities were carried out. Divided by nation and guided by five questions provided by the Greek delegation, the students reflected on the mediation skills acquired during the mobility.

After that, the students were divided into six groups with a representative for each nationality, and they discussed what the next steps to enrich the project could be, especially in view of the meeting in Portugal.

In the afternoon the groups and the teachers were split into two groups. Some of the teachers participated in the afternoon recreational activities organised for the students whereas a delegate for each nation participated in a discussion about the Maltese experience and the possible plans for the future.

Day 5

As planned the delegations visited Haġar Qim Temples.

The temple of Ħaġar Qim stands on a hilltop overlooking the sea and the islet of Filfa, not more than 2km south-west of the village of Qrendi. At the bottom of the hill, only 500m away, one finds the remarkable temples of Mnajdra. Both sites are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

First excavated in 1839, the remains suggest a date between 3800 – 2200 BC.

The site consists of a central building and the remains of at least two more structures. The large forecourt and the monumental facade of the central structure follow the pattern typical of Maltese Prehistoric Temples. Along the external wall, one may find some of the largest megaliths used in the building of these structures, such as a 5.2m high stone and a huge megalith estimated to weigh close to 20 tonnes.

The building itself is made up of a series of C-shaped rooms, known as apses. Walking through the main entrance, one finds a central paved space with an apse on each side.

One of the prehistoric chambers at Ħaġar Qim holds an elliptical hole which is hewn out in alignment with the Summer Solstice sunrise. At sunrise, on the first day of summer, the sun’s rays pass through this hole and illuminate a stone slab inside the chamber.
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More information at: https://heritagemalta.org/hagar-qim-temples/