PROJECTS

NGO ”Our World – Nas Svet” is a highly specialized team of artists – tutors and vocational experts who together apply their collective experiences to devise educational arts projects on request or in response to perceived needs. Our team of professional artists have built up a local, national and international reputation for creating new and exciting approaches in using the art as a positive force for social, personal and issue based learning.

Using multi arts as a tool for creative learning and exploring issues that occupy and influence our lives, provoking thought and emotion, expending cultural and educational norms, our team has successfully designed this project with an aim to make learning fun and accessible for all. In a positive and creative environment our flexible education approach strengthens and develops self confidence, self esteem, communication skills, art skills and creative expression.

SAFETY ON THE INTERNET
The program which involves using storytelling as a positive force for issue-based learning.
The target groups are children and young people age 7-12 and 13–16 from elementary schools
Young people will be given the opportunity to learn in a fun and interactive way about the internet and ways of keeping safer online, and will be empowered to:

develop internet technology skills and interests

make informed choices and awareness of the consequences of those choices
devise strategies for resisting peer pressure to engage in potentially dangerous and harmful practices
develop personal and social communication skills
self-advocacy, expressions of thoughts, concerns and aspirations

Further objectives are included to:

facilitate an atmosphere of support and friendship between groups and encourage participants to work collectively
devise from personal experiences and aspirations
use storytelling as a stimulus for debate and empowerment
involve participants in the selection and decision making processes

develop a methodology where participants will have ownership of the created material and means of production

Our creative team of specialist tutors has conducted research and based on the results we have devised stories which are performed for the students in schools , and cover the following issues.

A) For the younger age group

1) Virus and antivirus

- Potential threats for the computer data

- Virus infection

2) Choosing a safe password

3) Publishing your personal information online

B) For the older age group

1) The importance of back-up process

2) Publishing personal information online

3) Authors’ rights and copyrights

4) Reliability of data downloaded from the Web

Classroom methodologies: storytelling (including digital storytelling) and drama role play.

Material created with the participants will be analyzed, selected and incorporated into the digitalized stories.

Schools are encouraged to create their own set of internet safety strategies. Additional educational material is selected to be given to schools for teachers and parents/school governors. Selected class teachers are instructed on methods for follow up.

EDUCATIONAL ARTS DRUG PREVENTION PROGRAM FOR PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS

Using various art disciplines children and young people are informed about drugs and dangers related to drugs use and during the process they create multi-medial presentations which explore drugs use in different life situations at the same time presenting alternatives to drugs use.

This educational arts approach, as a flexible learning strategy, stimulates young people’s interest to learn, express and understand the importance of drugs awareness.

The program involves workshops which use drama, movement, music and visual arts. In a creative and positive environment facts about drugs misuse and abuse, misconceptions and myths are explored and challenged – What are drugs, how and why are they used? What is drugs misuse and what are the effects and consequences? How are people pressured to participate in drugs use? What strategies can we use to resist pressure? How incidents occur and what can we do to reduce the harm?

The objective of all workshops is to facilitate participants to analyse and learn about drugs use and dependancy, develop understanding of dangers related and awareness of emotional and social consequences. The aim is to equip young people with attitudes and skills they need to resist getting involved in drugs use by developing self-confidence, assertiveness and communication skills and also raise awareness of ways for recognising and resisting negative persuading influences.

Program for primary school year 7 and 8 students uses drama role play, music, visual arts and dance workshops in which students explore and analyse projected life situations involving drugs use with an aim to clarify definitions of drugs, drugs use, misuse and abuse and increase their knowledge and awareness. The last day students present their devised drama pieces, songs, dances and painted canvases within their school for lower level students and their parents. The material reflects their thoughts, ideas, views, fears, problems and misconceptions.

Program for secondary schools begins with introductory sessions as thought provokers backed up with printed Teacher’s classroom material. After the introductory sessions students choose the art form in which they would like to express themselves and continue working. The material created and designed throughout the process in drama, music, visual and dance workshops develops into a final scenario and a multi-media performance – theatre show. The theme of the show is based around drugs misuse, their concerns and ideas, information and misinformation, risks, myths and stereotypes, peer pressure, decision making and exploration of how to avoid involvement in drugs misusing activities.

PEER EDUCATION as a method of learning from one another has proven to be one of the most effective ways of passing on drugs education messages between young people. The material created and gained from primary schools is used as a base for the scenario which the secondary school students continue developing. The material reflecting ideas and concerns of the primary school students is analysed by the secondary school students incorporating their own believes and views, clarifying misconceptions with the emphasis on recognizing their own responsibility for decision making and promotion of rational choices and a healthy life style. The scenario develops into a script which is rehearsed to be performed, therefore experientially reinforcing awareness and commitment to challenge drugs use and abuse. The created material communicates the group’s shared concerns about drugs misuse. The show is performed for all students of the secondary school and students of the primary school who participated in the process. After the performance students and the audience participate in a debrief discussion encouraging acquisition of drugs education program. All students participating are asked to fill out questionnaires relating to the project objectives for evaluation purposes.

TEACHER’S TRAINING

All primary and secondary school teachers whose classes are involved in the peer project are required to participate in INSET sessions with the ”Our World – Nas Svet” Educational Art Team as a pre-requisite of their school’s participation in the program.

Teacher’s INSET schedule includes:

pre program sessions to debate classroom strategies and use of classroom drugs education material, to increase teacher’s knowledge of factual drugs information and gain understanding of Our World’s working method and develop confidence to support Our World team during class sessions.
after school Teacher’s debrief sessions
attendance Parent / Governors evenings relating to neighbourhood drugs education program
proactive involvement in creating school’s drug incident policies
follow-up workshops with Our World including role play as a stimulus for debate on continued strategies for creative approaches to drug education which will reinforce the original messages

PARENT / SCHOOL GOVERNORS CO-EDUCATION WORKSHOPS
Each participating school will be involved in at least one evening workshops for Parents and school Governors which involves:

role play demonstration as an initiative for parents to openly ask questions and comment on role play situations which show them a family incident where parents do not know how far to go in responding to their children’s challenging questions around drugs use
a debate will follow led by Our World’s team and representatives from the Police and if necessary or requested, from other relevant agencies

Drug education work packs and school’s drugs prevention policies can be created upon request.