Slovenian experience
The School we visited on our “job shadowing” programme (IV Basic uchilishte Dimcho Debelyanov in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria) has around 300 students who are divided into 14 classes from 1st to 7th grade. Primary students start their education at the age of seven. There are about 30 teachers at the school. The Bulgarian school system is known for its double-shift classes but this is not the case for our school. Classes start at 8 a.m. and end at 5 p.m. (afternoon session, in which most of the students are involved). The lessons last 40 minutes, with breaks of 10 minutes in between. Students don’t wear slippers, they wear their shoes throughout the day. There is a large playground in front of the school, and next to the school there is also a renovated gym. In addition to Bulgarian, students also learn English from the 1st grade onwards. The school is often actively involved in both national and international projects. As part of our joint Erasmus+ project, a school garden has come to life, where, in addition to ornamental plants, vegetables will be grown, which will be used for salads at lunch.
From the school hallways, which are filled with numerous vegetation, we enter the classrooms, equipped with colorful wall paintings, which give the rooms special warmth. The equipment is also mostly new, which makes the space even more pleasant. Classrooms are smaller compared to ours, students are almost crowded behind the desks, there is less maneuverable space to adjust the seating arrangement (e.g. if a student has to sit alone). The same goes for the school library, which is not that big, but has a lot of books on its shelves. At the entrance of the school there are written words on the steps, such as “knowledge, society and friendship” to emphasize the values of the school. On the staircase leading upstairs, there are also calculations written down.
Within the framework of the shadowing, we monitored the teachers who teach pupils with special needs. They are a special pedagogue, a speech therapist and a psychologist, as well as educators or companions in a special department for students with severe developmental disabilities with an English-speaking ABA-therapist (ABA-therapy is a method by which the student learns appropriate behavior and other skills). They use a variety of didactic aids, with which they develop areas of student deficiencies in an interesting and entertaining way. They encouraged two-way communication with the student all the time, which certainly influenced the activity and participation of the student. Everyone had a computer in their room, but hardly anyone used it during their work. The ABA-therapy class uses more technology, because they want to encourage students to perceive the tablet not just as a toy for playing and leisure, but also as a learning tool.
We also attended an interesting math class with a small group of talented students with the school psychologist. Through a variety of creative approaches, they strengthen their areas of logical thinking and problem solving. During this class we also saw a special kind of abacus and the transfer of calculations from the concrete level to the mental level. It was also interesting that the psychologist used this tool in teaching students with learning difficulties.
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We were positively surprised by the equipment of their classrooms and the abundance of didactic material of the special team, with which students can train in various areas. The state of all didactic material at the school indicates that students treat it with care, as it is very well preserved despite its frequent use.The classrooms of the special pedagogue and psychologist were very spacious, which allows them to approach their work in a diverse and dynamic way (e.g. the space can be used so that the activities take place in different places, and consequently the students are not static even for an hour, which affects the dynamics of the work itself).
It was a very interesting experience to observe the work in a special department. This section includes students with more severe forms of developmental disorders, and their work is carried out by an American ABA-therapist, a student who is studying special ed., a companion and a teacher. Students are 9 to 12 years old. They are grouped according to their abilities, not their age. The activities are adapted for each student individually. They learn both school skills (reading, writing, counting) and practical skills (using the toilet, how to put on shoes, eating habits). There is also a strong emphasis on “crossing the midline”, which encourages the use of non-preferential hands. Students from this group arrive at school an hour later than the others. They also have additional individual lessons outside the group with a special pedagogue and psychologist.
In individual teaching, the most common forms of work were the frontal and individual teaching. The most used teaching methods were explanation, interview, demonstration and work with text. Very similar to our school system.
We really liked the demonstration of calculation with the help of a special abacus or the transfer of this knowledge to mental arithmetic. Learning and training of this skill begins in kindergarten at the age of four, and during schooling there are 6 levels of difficulty or upgrades of its use. We were also pleasantly surprised by the abundance of multi-subject learning (e.g. chemistry and geography - making volcanoes).
We will be able to use this knowledge in our work with our students. We have found that we have used similar approaches, techniques and methods in working with students so far, but we have certainly come up with some ideas that we can implement.
We really liked the demonstration of calculation with the help of a special abacus or the transfer of this knowledge to mental arithmetic. Learning and training of this skill begins in kindergarten at the age of four, and during schooling there are 6 levels of difficulty or upgrades of its use. We were also pleasantly surprised by the abundance of multi-subject learning (e.g. chemistry and geography - making volcanoes).
We will be able to use this knowledge in our work with our students. We have found that we have used similar approaches, techniques and methods in working with students so far, but we have certainly come up with some ideas that we can implement.
During the tour, we also had a lecture on STEM education. The intersection of science, technology, engineering and mathematics is supposed to lead children to new skills through problem solving. The approach promotes children’s independence, which deepens the knowledge they acquire. They also introduced extended versions of STEAM, which includes Art, and STREAM, which includes Reading and Writing or Robotics. This interesting way of teaching was presented to us practically, during the lessons we observed (with multi-subject integration in lessons).
During the shading we also got to know the Bulgarian culture and nearby places. We visited Melnik, one of the smallest towns in the country, which maintains the status of a city mainly due to its cultural value. Today, it has less than 200 inhabitants and is also known for its unique wine. We visited Rupite, a place known for hot springs and the home and sanctuary of Baba Vanga. Our Bulgarian colleagues enriched our trip with stories of her works and prophecies. The path also took us to Bansko and Dobrinishte, where we watched the white peaks of the ski slopes in the distance.
During the shading we also got to know the Bulgarian culture and nearby places. We visited Melnik, one of the smallest towns in the country, which maintains the status of a city mainly due to its cultural value. Today, it has less than 200 inhabitants and is also known for its unique wine. We visited Rupite, a place known for hot springs and the home and sanctuary of Baba Vanga. Our Bulgarian colleagues enriched our trip with stories of her works and prophecies. The path also took us to Bansko and Dobrinishte, where we watched the white peaks of the ski slopes in the distance.