As part of LINKgroup, Savremena Gimnazija got the opportunity to participate in the Erasmus+ project "LEAF". The goal of the project is the development of an innovative methodology for engaging students in the community in order to monitor plant biodiversity in accordance with the principles of service learning.

Service learning: transferring learning to real life

Service learning means creating a connection between learning goals, students and the real needs of the community, and transferring learning to real life, i.e. learning outside the classroom, which serves the needs of the community. Since the service learning programme is characterised by increasing students' competence and simple acquisition of knowledge, we expect that through this methodology our students will learn a lot about the importance of preserving plant biodiversity, and at the same time help the community by drawing attention to this current and very important topic of the modern age.

Creation of a Handbook on Plant Biodiversity and LEAF online academy

In addition to LINKgroup, schools and non-governmental organisations from Croatia, Romania, France, Greece and Italy participate in the Erasmus+ project "LEAF" as well. The united forces of all six countries, through project tasks, will work on achieving the goals of this project for the next two years.

One of the results of the project will be the LEAF Handbook on Plant Biodiversity, which will serve as an important methodological tool for teachers who want to deal with this current topic. It is also planned to purchase several WE-LABs – small portable laboratories that include a microscope and a spectrometer that students will use in practical classes.

Another result of the project will be the LEAF online academy – an open online environment on the Moodle platform for secondary school teachers that will integrate the learning path planned by the Handbook. It will contain a set of resources (i.e. Toolbox), such as activity ideas, project concepts and strategies, templates, assessment sheets and digital resources in various formats.

The professors of Savremena Gimnazija are participating in the project: Dijana Šarac and Barbara Rosandić, biology professors, Jelena Spasojević, sociology professor, Milica Ivanović, Spanish language professor, as well as Nina Stojanović and Glorija Martinović from ICE.

Meeting of national operators in Biot, France

Some of the project activities that are implemented with the goal of better communication and easier decision-making at the level of all project participants are meetings of national operators. This year's meeting took place in Biot, France, and the meeting was attended by Professor Dijana Šarac and Barbara Rosandić. In the constructive discussions that lasted for two days, important decisions were made, all with the aim of increasing the success of the project implementation.

Preservation of the environment is a particularly important value in Savremena Gimnazija

We consider projects whose goal is to raise awareness of the importance and preservation of a healthy environment to be particularly important because these are values that are especially cherished in Savremena Gimnazija. It is important to us that our students adopt healthy habits, that they become environmentally conscious and that their responsible behaviour influences the protection and preservation of the environment.