PRIDE OF OUR PLACE - The Centre for Cross Border Studies

I suppose I feel much more relaxed. Having established a relationship with our partnerschool and teacher, there’s really nothing to fear and my expectations are now based onexperience. (Teacher, Year Two)Fears were unfounded; great parental support. (Teacher, Year Two)At the start of the project the fears expressed were in terms of the amount of time required, notknowing what lay ahead, taking on too much, the impact on other areas of the curriculum andthe expectations of parents and pupils. Midway through the project teachers commented thatthe fears they may have had in the beginning were unfounded. They also spoke of the greatsupport from partners and parents and a feeling of confidence and being more relaxed.Practical issues were then of more concern such as the problem of lack of time for exchangevisits. There was also an expression of concern over the finance and budgeting for the project,particularly in terms of cost of transport for visits. On completion of the project there was asense of relief that it had been worthwhile and that none of the fears had really materialized.At the end of Year One all the schools felt there were no disappointments with the projectexcept some minor ones in relation to technical problems with ‘Blackboard’ and lack of time toget everything done.I wasn’t disappointed. I just felt under pressure because of the time element, and when thechildren really got going I felt there was a lot more we could do. (Teacher, Year One)Similarly there were few disappointments at the end of Year Two. Some teachers highlightedthe need for more funding as a small number of schools had overspent on their budget on theirfirst year, which caused them concern.We actually spent quite a lot from our own school budget. (Teacher, Year Two)One teacher commented on the lack of time for the exchange visit. This was an issueparticularly with regard to the small number of schools which had to travel a long distance andpack a lot into a very short day. In future project work this time/distance element should befactored in to the project structure. This also has implications for the project budget, particularlyif a project runs over a number of years and if there are small rural schools participating.Better links could have been established between pupils in both schools (and their teachers)if proper internet access had been available in schools – I would recommend this bechecked, and support given where necessary. (Teacher, Year One)IT problems: sending and receiving e-mails from/to partner school due to inadequate(non-existent) internet access and problems in sending entries for the logo competition.(Teacher, Year Two)Our computers are unreliable so the IT aspect was not as developed as I planned.(Teacher, Year Two)A lot of work in a short time (my fault). I didn’t realize how much could be covered by thetopic until I had started. The project grew and grew as I progressed! (Teacher, Year Two)Meeting financial obligations. Completing full visit in limited time. (Teacher, Year Two)38 Pride of our Place 2002-2006