Jaworzno, Poland: Young People's Voice

Recently young people from II LO in Jaworzno, Poland used their skills and rights directly connected with democracy and openly protested against closing their school down by the local authorities.

The whole thing has been broadly described by social and other media:

https://dziennikzachodni.pl/uczniowie-lo-2-w-jaworznie-protestowali-przeciw-reorganizacji-ich-szkoly-czy-uda-sie-im-wygrac/ar/c1-14595423

https://www.eska.pl/slaskie/uczniowie-z-jaworzna-bronia-swojej-szkoly-zorganizowali-protest-zdjecia-wideo-aa-EESR-XCrQ-hXGW.html

https://jaworzno.naszemiasto.pl/protest-przeciwko-przeniesieniu-i-likwidacji-szkol-w/ar/c1-7437919

https://www.rmf24.pl/fakty/polska/news-protest-w-obronie-liceum-przenosiny-oznaczaja-likwidacje,nId,3345338

https://www.radiopiekary.pl/2019/11/21/protest-uczniow-w-jaworznie-najglosniej-przed-ii-lo-w-miescie/

Jugendcamp Otzenhausen

Having won in the European competition six students from the participating schools took part in the seminar from 1 to 6 July. The participants were 18 pupils from Croatia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Greece and Germany. After getting to know each other students looked into current issues in the EU and suggested ways of improving the EU. Next they learned to make calligraphy and designed their own glass panels. The picture shows one of them showing the topic of migration with the message that everyone is welcome.

The group also went hiking and climbed a hill from which they could see Luxemburg. Alina, a German student taking part in the camp, was really curious before going and looking forward to meeting fellow students from around Europe. Being a native speaker of Russian she also understood a few words of Croatian and Polish. She would love to take part in such a seminar again and thinks it is a great experience to meet with such lovely people. She also improved her English skills as this was the only common language everyone had.
 

66. Europäischer Wettbewerb: YOUrope – es geht um dich!

Polish students said "goodbye" to school and started their holidays but on the last day of the schoolyear they received their diplomas and gifts funded by German European Movement. Those were given to prove their success (main prize) in the project  together with the German and Greek students.

Thank you very much for appreciation!

Results of Mock European Elections in the 3rd Geniko Lykeio of Ano Liosia

On the 8^th of May we presented our eTwinning project to another class of our school. Two of our students, Zoe Mania and Dorothea Papadopoulou, talked about our eTwinning experience and informed our classmates of the parties’ programs for Europe and of our intention to hold elections at our school.

On May 15 students cast their votes. On the whole, students found it interesting as an experience.

On May 30, 2019, the ballot box was opened. These were the results of our elections:

37 students (aged 16-17 voted)

Blank votes: 11

Invalid votes: 3

Ecological-green party: 11 (supports the European Greens)

KINAL : 7 (supports PES, Party of European Socialists)

ANEL: 2 (supports the ECR-European Conservatives and Reformists)

SYRIZA: 2 (supports Party of the European Left)

New Democracy: 1 (supports ESP, European People’s Party)

The students tried to interpret the results:

We  gave a blank or invalid vote as a way of expressing dissatisfaction with the political parties of today. We feel that their representatives have disappointed them. We feel that these political parties do not have their interests in mind.

A lot of them voted for the Greens which can be explained in the following ways:

a.       The students who had undertaken to present the Green party had done an excellent job! Their poster was great!

b.       Most of the students who read their goals and intentions agreed with their views.

c.       A growing concern for the environment and our sustainability was expressed by this vote.

We also agreed that we feel it is  too early for us to take a vote and we still feel heavily influenced by our parents and peers.

The results of our mock European election differs significantly from the result of the European elections in our country.

Mock elections in II LO in Jaworzno, Poland

 On 15th May Polish students held the mock elections. They followed the same procedures as the Polish electoral commission would. They created groups that had different tasks. First, they created descriptions of the election programs of each committee. Some of them had the job of informing their fellow students from each class about the rules of the elections. They showed them how to fill out the election cards. Two students formed an electoral commission. They were checking if everybody takes only one election card and also kept records of every person who voted. The election went on with no surprises. After making sure that every class took place in the election, the votes were counted. The results showed which committees had the biggest support among thestudents of II LO in Jaworzno.

And how the students voted:

Mock European Elections at the 3rd Geniko Lykeio of Ano Liosia

The Greek school mock European elections were held on May 15. After the students considered carefully the candidates, they cast their votes. The results of the mock elections will be announced soon! 

Mock elections at Kaufmannsschule II

More than 400 pupils have been called to vote in their own mock European elections at school. We took part in a project called Juniorwahl which provided us with polling booths, a ballot box and ballot papers. Before voting pupils looked at our European board where we had put up some information about the six most important parties of the 40 parties on the ballot paper.

After that they went to cast their votes. Pupils working on this project acted as the election board explaining students how to vote.

Now we are waiting for the results of the elections which we are not allowed to publish before Sunday, 26 May, 6 pm when the German election closes. So stay tuned.

Greek board on European elections

Our European Wall

The Greek students have prepared informative posters on the European political parties. They include information such as: name of the political group, logo, motto of their campaign, ideology and political position, goals and priorities, Greek party supporting them.

Have a look at our board:

POLISH STUDENTS HAVE COMPLETED THEIR WORK

Information complete

The German students have completed their information wall today. Now students can read about the programmes of the six most important political parties. Our votes will be cast on Thursday, 2 May. 

 We will share some photos of our election after the Easter holidays.

Activating students

This project aims at activating students to take part in politics. Our first step is to take part in our own elections. In Germany we are taking part in a project called Juniorwahl. We are preparing some information about the most important German parties taking part in the elections. Last week we created this display on our European board in the break hall.

 

WHAT IS DEMOCRACY...

This picture shows the origin of democracy and how it has changed during the years. Ancient Greeks were the founders of the democracy. Nowadays everyone has the chance to vote. The race doesn't matter - all people should live in democratic countries and have possibilities to change the world. (Adam Messaoudi, Poland)

Do social media kill democracy?

The students gave these answers:

I don't think that social media killl democracy, because you have the chance to say what you want. Nowdays, you can share your own opinion in the internet and nobody can judge you.You can choose if you believe or support what is on the internet. - Lena


I think without social media we can't influence people. Nowdays everyone has social media. Social media is often used to manipulate people and thats not good! - Linh


First of all, we have to say that everything has both positive and negative aspects. We do not really know, If social media kill democracy. One positive fact is that we can express our ideas. For instance, we can contribute to a debate and tell our opinion. On the other, hand, a negative fact is that, social media can brainwash us and so we consume every information it gives us making us passive citizens. - Joana and Despoina


We don't think that social media kill democracy. With the help of social media we express our own views about democracy. Furthermore, social media help people to be informed about live events. Also, people may contribute to a debate and report injustice. People now have an active participation in democracy. Last but not least, people can not only vote but also participate in making decisions. - Maria, Elena, George, Alexandros, Elias, Kostas


I believe that social media kill democracy because what they write isn't always true and it affects our opinion. Also certain political groups promote their own opinions. But social media have some advantages too. People can express their point of view by participating in social media. So that the process of voting will not just be an unimportant process but people will make and support their decisions. - Eleni, Vasiliki, Eleni


While social media doesn't directly kill democracy, careless and mindless use of them can harm our perception thus harming it. Seeing as more than often social media sites will push certain political agendas by promoting posts in favour of the political party the site supports and suppresing or even censoring others who dont like said political party or support another one that way creating a so called "hive mind". On the other hand though through social media you can spread your opinion and inform others of the actions that a politician may be taking, postive or negative. You can participate in debates with multiple people sharing your ideas and to try and inform others while having yourself informed by others at the same time. In other words yes social media can kil democracy but only if we let them.  - George, Kostis, George


I think social media kill democracy because social media spread fake news sometimes and thus influence democracy. Most of people has social media andthat is why most are adversely affected by fake news and that can change your opinion. - Larissa

A visit to the Fort of Fylis

Our visit to the Fort of Fylis was very interesting and we had a great time. We saw the Fort of Fylis and we talked about its history and about the architecture of the structure. We also learned about some great battles that had happened there.  But suddenly it started to rain and we had to leave in order  not to get wet. So our teachers took us to a place where we could wait until the rain stopped. While we were walking at the rain, we were able to understand how difficult it was for our ancient ancestors to move from one place to another on foot and in such bad weather. What impressed us the most was the fact that this building has remained untouched during the years. Despite the fact that we were unlucky and it started to rain, it was actually a very nice trip and we would like to visit this place again.  

Eleni Palioudaki

Eleni Pappa

Vasiliki Pantou     

It was a cloudy day and the sky was about to burst open. We began our trip to the fort of Fylis. When we arrived there after a few minutes it began to rain. Due to the fact that the rain was very strong and the air was strong also, too, we decided to leave the fort and find a place that we could protect ourselves from the bad weather conditions. We walked in the rain for 2,5 kilometers and we found a abandoned shop. We suddenly realized that we are at the spring that provided with water the fort. As for the fort, it was a well-designed fort for the period that was designed. It is located at a unique position as it can check the commercial roads. The fort also was everyday ready for an attack or a siege thanks to the water tanks that it had.   

Belsis Kostas

 Paliouras Ilias   

It was a wonderful day with sun. Suddenly   it started raining. However, we had lots of fun. We learned about the history of the castle of Filis. We sat on the rocks and we had the chance to see the perspectives of our ancestors. Moreover, we understood how they felt during the bad weather conditions. Also, we felt like we were back in the past. Besides that, since it rained   we got wet and returned to our homes. The most outstanding thing was the nature and the view from the fort of Fylis to our region.

Elena Nikolia

Maria Mavraki

Alexandros Lazaridis

George Nikolias

Our field trip to the Fort of Fylis

  On January 31 we went on a “lovely” school trip to the famous Fort of Fylis. At first , everything was absolutely perfect. To begin our experience , we took the bus and after that, we reached our destination. Then , we saw the Fort. Even though it was in a bad condition because of the big earthquake that happened years ago, it was a lovely sight to see and the view was just breathtaking. Also, we sat down and read information about the Fort that our classmates prepared for us. Suddenly, it started raining and we had to find a safe place in order to be protected from the rain.  Unfortunately, we had to walk about 2km into the rain to find the closest shelter till the bus came,  resulting in us getting soaked. The funny-strangest thing about our adventure is that, after a couple of minutes it stopped raining and everything was sunny. The thing that impressed us about the trip to the Fort of Fylis, was the beautiful scenery and the history that was hiding behind such a small fort. Other than the sudden downpour,  it was a good trip…

Joanna, Despoina and Pantelis

Our visit to the fort of Fylis was quite eventful. The trip was cut short by the sudden rain. After that we had to walk a kilometer or two in the rain to find refuge under an old abandoned building. But what did impress us during the trip was the altitude and the location of the fort. It’s rather hard to get there on foot and we can only imagine how much harder it’d be without the big roads that we have opened. Its location is incredibly strategic as it close to the city of Athens, the port of Pireus and the city of Thebes. Its altitude makes it easy for people to spot any incoming armies and since it’s close to the city the messenger can quickly notify of the incoming invaders. Overall, it was a fun trip just because of the weather conditions we experienced alone.

George Mantzoufas
George Xofakis
Kostis Macheras

The Pillars of Democracy in Ancient Athens

The Greek students studied the roots of democracy in Ancient Athens.They learnt that the term democracy comes from demos, "common people" and kratos which meant "strength". What did democracy mean in those times? How was it all organised? What was the importance of politics for Athenian citizens? Watch their presentations to find out how democracy worked in the 5th century BC. 

Personalities of Greek Democracy

Social Stratification in Ancient Athens

Political Institutions

Fort of Fylis

The Athenian Citizen

Social bots

Students looked into social bots and what they do. Here is the presentation:


This how students reacted:

Thank you for informing  us about social bots. We watched your video and presentation and we understood what social bots are. We had never heard of social bots before and we were surprised to hear about what they can do. We didn't know how they worked and we are amazed that they are in the same social media that we use. - Dorothea

Social bots are robots programmed to do a certain task.We knew about them before. Social bots usually give a like to other people posts, they make fake accounts and follow other profiles (politicians e.t.c). Also,they write texts that can manipulate your decisions. Furthermore,they intergrate in our society and try to act like normal people...however they are not. As a result,they can be very dangerous since they take advantage of and influence our actions but sometimes they can be very usefull. -  Despoina, Iwanna, Pantelhs

We haven't heard about social bots. We are impressed about the fact that bots are in Twitter and Youtube and that they are viewing more and more videos so that they become viral or the fact that they are responding to our tweets. They affect us in many ways. They make us think that some things are in fashion. We are kind of worried about the future with social bots. - Maria, Elena, Alexandros, Kostas

First of all we had never heard anything for social bots before. Social bots impressed us because we had never thought that there could be robots who are programmed to act like real humans behind some accounts. They can affect us in our lives without even knowning because they can see a lot of times one video so it will become viral and other people will see it too out of curiosity. They can also affect oyr opinion by applying posts and they overload the websites so nobody can use them. We are very worried about the future because technology is constantly progressing so there will come a time that we will not know whether we should speak with people on the website or not because we will not know if they are real or they are robots. - Eleni, Vasiliki, Eleni

Honestly, I didn’t know that something like this exists. These days we can hardly imagine a world without social media, but as it is already known, there isn’t always a human on the other side of the screen and it isn’t easy to identify it. It’s disappointing that people use artificial intelligence for making popular accounts on social media. For me it’s too much. I have mixed feelings about the evolution of technology and I am seriously thinking if I still want to use social media, because it will only get worse. I’m against social bots. - Marzena

I’ve heard about social bots before. As far as I know, these are the forms of disruptive intervention in opinion-making processes. They have significant public and political impact. In my opinion, bots and other related influencers can facilitate making a topic appear greater than it actually is. Actually it’s not only social bots which can be dangerous, but also the reaction to them. The fact, for example, that the government would contemplate adopting censorship-like measures is concerning. - Anna

 I haven't heard about social bots before or maybe I just don't remember. Thanks to the presenation I know much more about them and it raised my awareness how technology can be hazardous. In my opinion the technology has gone too far. Robot acting like human is an impressive invention but I think that our world is developed enough and people don't need more advanced gadgets. Instead of making useless robots or artificial intelligence people should save the environment and care about the Earth. The technology can make in the future some vengeance and I think that social medias should only be used by people. - Adam

Nowadays the problem of social bots is one of the fastest-growing in the world of technology. I have heard something about them before but really a little. In my opinion people still don't realise how using a lot of social media be harmful and dangerous. These days we are not sure who we really chatting with on social networks or if sharing any information in the virtual world will be use against us. In my opinion technological development is going in the wrong direction. Everybody should raise awareness about social media and remeber that any kind of robots and artificial intelligence can replace a human. - Wiktoria

Young people and politics

The German students discussed the results of the survey using the worksheet above.

They believe that to be a responsible voter

• you need to have your own opinion
• you should be fair to other voters and keep your vote secret
• you need to be informed about politics
• you should have knowledge about the election you are taking part in
• you need to know about the parties and their aims so that you can choose wisely.

They all do not feel fit for voting. Most of them do not use the internet to find political information because they

• think it's boring
• don't understand
• are not interested.

Sometimes they look at news from their hometown if it's not too complicated and they try to follow the important national news.

They pointed out that you can also find politician on twitter and instagram so you could follow these people. But they personally use social media for private communication to keep in touch with friends.

This drawing reflects what we said:

Polish Survey on Social Media Results

Here are the results of the survey, Polish students carried out among all students of their school and which also comprises the answers of Greek and German students: