Watersports, a new European adventure! Watersports in the educational system in Europe Our project is a European staff training programme. The school is already offering a new field of studies that focuses on watersports and sciences. Regarding this innovative branch, we are looking for interesting models of good practices in a European context. Watersports is a fast developing field of sports and to stay up-to-date with the new techniques and enhancing tools we feel the need to train ourselves on the field. We can't practise all watersports in Flandres and that is why we would like to work in a European context. We firmly believe in the importance of learning outside of the classroom. To this end, outdoor education is seen as being an important part of a student’s life. Enriching the schoolcurriculum with naturebound sports will help students improve their self-confidence, teamwork, self-awareness, social skills and motivation, as well as their academic skills. We also need to be aware of the importance of equal opportunities for each child, so these watersports courses will be accessible to all students. By implementing watersports in the curriculum (physical education and sports classes) and by offering watersports in the after school activities we hope that all students get access to watersports activities. The objective of our staff training programme is to enhance the quality and the international value of our new field of study. We also want to enhance the quality of our watersports activities. Firstly we would like to find and analyse examples of good practice. Secondly we want to optimize our technical and cognitive skills in the area of watersports. Our staff members need training to become professionally qualified instructors, so as to guide all students to progress through the levels in each watersport, ultimately working towards their own instructor's qualification if they choose to do so. We want to motivate our students by implementing watersports into the curriculum and after school sports activities. Our road map Firstly, we would like to organise a job shadowing project with two European schools (offering a similar curriculum) to gain an insight into their working area, share best practice and exchange experiences. Both job shadowing activities will be attended by one physical education teacher and one person responsible for the quality care at our school. The first school is the Cirila Kosmač Piran Primary School in Slovenia and the second school is the Windermere School in the U.K.
Secondly, our watersports teachers will undergo further technical and cognitive training. Firstly, three watersportsteachers will go on a wavesurfing structural training in France. Secondly, two watersports teachers will go on a structural windsurfing training course in Naxos and thirdly all five watersports teachers will attend a structural training course in Holland. This course will focus on sailing and rescue swimming. During these structural training courses new enhancing tools will be taught. The final result of this staff training programme would be the creation of two guidebooks (including a script) in which we offer other schools, located near watersports facilities, interesting guidelines on how to implement watersports into their curriculum (P.E. and sports lessons) or how to organise after school watersports activities. All this in cooperation with our partners VYF (Flemish Yachting Federation) and Howest in Flandres and the Windermere School in the United Kingdom and Cirila Kosmač Piran Primary School in Slovenia on European level. Our teachers will also attend training courses for Physical Education in association with BVLO, Howest and SVS to guarantee the publicity of the project across Flanders. In association with VYF and Howest, our school will organise an international colloquium to introduce and promote our guidebooks and script, and report on the final results of the European project.