cafebabel.com

Kirtimai: Lithuania's Roma on education and 'missing England'

('Annie Rutherford',) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 12:36:54 -0000

Less than 3, 000 Roma live in Lithuania. Representing 0.1% of the population, there are still enough Baltic 'gypsies' to serve as a scapegoat in a country feeling squeezed by the crisis. However, in one Lithuanian village, Romualda, Svetlana, Konstantin and Konsela are helping the community to lift its head

'Our School' documentary: segregated Roma schools despite EU funds

('Linda Krajcso',) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:40:25 -0000

When directors and producers Mona Nicoară and Miruna Coca-Cozma followed three Roma children in a small Romanian village for four years, their film initially about a success story of integration became one about the realities of ethnic segregation. Interview

Belarus schools: language of peasants or programmers?

('Annie Rutherford',) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 16:26:22 -0000

According to its constitution Belarus has two state languages - Belarusian and Russian. Authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko has repeatedly emphasised the equality of both, but nationalist Belarusians view the state policy as 'russification'. The argument is being played out in the schools

Study philosophy in Europe: France’s discern is UK’s ticket to top

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 11:30:00 -0000

In the collective (French) conscience, it’s a lunar individual who studies philosophy, disconnected from the modern world and who brushes aside finance and marketing books. In reality their anxiety for the future remains a young one, choked by the crisis and demanding whether Socrates or Aristotle can really still mean something

‘Learning German is pointless’: British students abandon foreign languages

('Tim Mac an Airchinnigh',) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:51:10 -0000

Could the British actually be getting worse at language learning? Apparently so. In a 21st century UK, more young people than ever are questioning why they should learn a second language at all

Europe and PIIGS: bitchy politics

('Tim Mac an Airchinnigh',) — Tue, 04 May 2010 17:38:23 -0000

The acronym 'PIIGS' seems to have characterised the five eurozone losers as that nasty group of girls that everyone hated in school. Since things turned sour on Europe’s financial front, the EU community has shown its bitchy side - a sentiment which is hardly emblematic of the shared vision that the EU was founded on. Rant

Dissecting Europe's crucifix conflict

('euro topics',) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:47:35 -0000

On 3 November the European court of human rights ruled that crucifixes in classrooms violate the religious freedom of schoolchildren. Representatives from politics and the church roundly condemn the judgement, while many media welcome the decision. The Iberian, Maltese and Italian press react

Learn how to practice safe sex at the Højskole, Denmark's alternative school

('Andrew Burgess',) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:10:21 -0000

With no examinations, a free timetable and learning-speed unique to each individual, the 'Højskole' proposes an education without competition (and diplomas), allowing each student to freely express their creativity and live within a community

An East German childhood: ‘People took off their clothes to express their freedom’

('Sarah Pybus',) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:00 -0000

West Germans often subscribe to a pretty grim idea of life growing up behind the wall in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Yet although East German children had few toys and less holidays, were they really less happy than their western counterparts? Eik, 29, recalls his Soviet upbringing

Love story: a German teacher deals with an autistic child in Wales

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 10:28:43 -0000

German language assistant Alissa tells the story of a separation in the Welsh valleys in Glamorgan. This article was second runner-up of the 2009 German Youthreporter award, ‘Verliebt in Europa’ (‘In Love With Europe’)

65% of European students want free university

('Joss Corner',) — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:00:00 -0000

In Germany, students are threatening to strike. In France, certain universities are blocked for the long term. The question of end of year exams is looming. ‘Students and the further education reform?’ - perilous survey by the European commission

Why would you not do Erasmus?

('Hayley Wood',) — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:00:00 -0000

In France, around 4000 Erasmus bursaries found no takers in 2008. But why say no to an experience abroad? Efficiency, money, elitism…here an assortment of experiences shed some light on the situation surrounding the student exchange programme in Europe

For Czech students, European travel is not a priority

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Tue, 05 May 2009 15:00:00 -0000

Slap bang in the middle of the Czech Republic's six-month presidency of the EU, and not only does the state lack a little enthusiasm for European affairs, but Czech students too seem less willing to go and study in another European country

Bologna Process: French universities react

('bellaonbabel',) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 11:59:55 -0000

At the end of 2008, Spanish, Italian and Greek universities showed their discontent. In 2009 it is France’s turn to denounce the consequences of the Bologna Process, which recommended a more hierarchical ‘management’ of universities. A professor explains why

Teachers in France and Germany: not lazy sacks

('Emily Griffins',) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:00:00 -0000

Spending your time passing on your knowledge of and passion for language and literature - what a wonderful job! However in German and French society, the profession is still unable to shake off its crop of clichés. Vies from two teachers from either side of the Rhine

European run-down of teacher training and starting salaries

('Hayley Worsley-Carter',) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:00:00 -0000

Working conditions for teachers are being discussed in every staff room throughout Europe. Overview

Bullying: European network online

('Susannah Readett-Bayley',) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Be it cyber-bullying via Youtube or tell tale classroom signs: the EU-backed site supports those who may see in-school violence happening and who struggle to know how to cope

Students think 'Europa' at the International School, Seville

('Kate Stansfield',) — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:28:37 -0000

Not yet at university, but they are already pondering Europe’s identity. They speak foreign languages, know other countries and want to be listened to, to be able to give their opinion for a better future. Who are these young people? What do they know about Europe? Do they believe in the European dream?

European School in Strasbourg

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 12:00:00 -0000

The first European school in the Alsatian capital opens in September 2008. Concerns arise that it will undermine the international sections of existing schools and how it will relate to the EU

Bad European universities

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 12:00:00 -0000

Non-existent courses in Italy, freezing toilets in France, everyone having to sit on the floor in Germany, bribery in Lithuania. A trip around the universities of the EU