ELOS

EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS

EKIALDEA B.H.I.

VITORIA-GASTEIZ

This questionnaire was given to a group of students aged 15-18 who have participated in the different Comenius projects and Elos activities Ekialdea B.H.I. has carried out for the last three years . We know that the reliability of the results is not the same as if we had done the questionnaire at the end of each activity. Results might be considered positive for this reason, as we tend to forget about the bad things and keep only the best memories. We have learnt from this that we should ask students at the end of each project to get more reliable feedback and improve the weak points for the following years.

If we were to carry out an assessment, students' participation was absolutely necessary. The questionnaire was filled in anonymously to let students feel free to express their feelings.

The fifty students who answered the questionnaire were 15-18 year old girls and boys currently studying the last year of Compulsory Secondary Education and first and second year of Upper Secondary Education. They have worked and exchanged with students from Arnhem (The Netherlands) , Belin, Carquefou (France), Tallinn (Estonia), Eskisehir (Turkey) and Rome.

Summary of the answers

A. BILATERAL OR MULTILATERAL PROJECT

According to the questionnaire, most students value their experience in a positive way. They feel they have learnt about the importance of respecting deadlines, especially when working in groups, and they feel more autonomous after taking part in the project. Most students have stated they are more aware of other cultures different from their own's and only one student had problems with the new rules in the host family and at the school.

Questions and answers

Do you think you have learnt anything in the following areas as a result of taking part in the ELOS project?

Respect deadlines

YES 47 94%NO 3 6%

Autonomy

YES 40 80%NO 10 20%

Teamwork

YES 42 84 %NO 8 16 %

Awareness of other cultures

YES 48 96 %NO 2 4 %

Accept (even for a short time) different school and family rules

YES 49 98 %NO 1 2 %

B. PORTFOLIO

As a result of taking part in the ELOS project most students think that the project has contributed to their learning of the foreign language. Three out four students think that they know now more about Europe. They are more aware of the European Union, their different cultures and problems.But on the other hand, more than forty per cent of the students think that the presence of Europe in their school life is not enough, that if they want to know more about Europe school should help.

Questions and answers

Do you think you have learnt anything in the following areas as a result of taking part in the ELOS project?

Foreign languages learning

Yes 48 96 % No 2 24 %

Knowledge about Europe

Yes 37 74 % No 13 26 %

Presence of Europe in your school life

YES 29 58 %NO 21 42 %

Knowledge about the European Union, different cultures and problems

YES 43 86 %NO 7 14 %

Could European issues have more presence in some of the subjects?

YES 41 82 %NO 9 18 %

C. OUTCOMES

All the students think that their language skills have improved to some extent and half of them think that they have improved quite a lot. There are seven students who think they are not more confident when speaking in English than they were before the project.What may be put down to shyness or lack of feedback with the host family. Most students think that their social and ICT skills have improved at least to some extent as a result of the contact with another European school. Most students consider that their participation in the project has had an impact on their motivation for school work and they are more aware of the importance of learning other foreign languages.

Questions and answers

Has the project improved your language skills in general?

Not at all 0 00%To some extent 16 32%Quite a lot 25 50%A lot 9 18%

Do you feel more confident using English after participating in this project?

Not at all 7 14%To some extent 13 26%Quite a lot 22 44%A lot 8 16%

Do you feel your social skills have improved as a result of the contact with other European schools?

Not at all 2 4%To some extent 12 24%Quite a lot 25 50%A lot 11 22%

Do you feel your ICT skills have improved as a result of the contact with other European schools?

Not at all 2 4%To some extent 16 32%Quite a lot 25 50%A lot 7 14%

Did participating in this ELOS project make you more motivated for school work and language studies?

Not at all 6 12%To some extent 6 12%Quite a lot 21 42%A lot 17 34%What is your dearest memory of the project(s) in which you participated?

When asked about their dearest memory, students' answers range from visiting new places to meeting new people and having a nice time with their partners and their families. Most value the experience as a very good opportunity to know first hand different people with a different culture and another language. The schools they visited are often highly considered.

How much did you enjoy.....?

When asked about what they liked most in the projects they participated in, answers are very positive, most students say the best was the exchange itself as well as their host families. In addition, students had a good time working in groups in the different activities of the projects carried out.

Project activity Not at all 1 2%To some extent 2 4%Quite a lot 29 58%Very much 18 36%

Group work

Not at all 1 2%To some extent 2 4%Quite a lot 33 66%Very much 14 28%

Exchange

Not at all 0 0%To some extent 1 2%Quite a lot 9 18%Very much 40 80%

Host families

Not at all 0 0%To some extent 3 6%Quite a lot 18 36%Very much 29 58%

How would you define your participation in the project?

Would you recommend others to take part in a similar activity to this one?

All the students asked would recommend the experience and they define their participation in the project as intense or very intense in most cases.

UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES

The students were asked if there had been any positive or negative unexpected outcome related to the host families, the partner school and the project presentation.Most students think that their host families were very kind, friendly, and even lovely. Some students still keep in touch with them. They think host families made efforts to make them feel at home. Just a few mention problems of communication , but all in all living with a host family, even if it was for a short period of time, was better than expected.

As for the partner schools, students refer to the big and good facilities, especially those related to sports, music and new technologies. Students underline that foreign students behaved very well and that they seem to respect their teachers more than Basque students do here. Another thing which draw their attention was the lack of noise, that is, they could hear the silence. It was a new experience for them, as we are quite noisy. Some students refer to the different timetables and class organisation too.

Regarding the project presentation, most students affirm they were very nervous at the beginning of the presentation because talking to a big audience in a foreign language was quite new for them and they were afraid people wouldn't understand them, but as time went by they gained confidence and they were quite satisfied with the results. They value the presentation as a very rich experience.