From February 2nd till February 6th, 2000 we had our first meeting in Feldkirch. These were some of our highlights.
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At the beginning of the 13th century the Lords of Montfort founded the town Feldkirch. It is close to the Swiss border and to the principality of Liechtenstein and the Lake of Constance, which is only 30
minutes away, Feldkirch itself with about 30000 inhabitants is the best preserved middle aged town in Vorarlberg. Because of the culture historical importance the whole old town is under natural trust and a lot of streets and roads are free of traffic. |
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It is a living small town , in which the Alemanns built themselves a little jewel at the most western part of Austria. |
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The landmark was built in 1260 as a protection for the town and it’s citizen. It was the main castle for the Lords of Montfort, who raised as the reigning royals in the region of Vorarlberg during the
middle ages. After Feldkirch was given to the House of Habsburg in 1390 they built important extensions. After the castle was given free for tearing down in 1825 the town bought the grounds. It is today a museum and a restaurant., which is famous for its huge "Wienerschnitzel". |
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The "Pädagogische Akademie" in Feldkirch is the place where our project started. |
At our first meeting we mainly talked about the methodology and pedagogical approaches.
We all agreed on creating material on the basis of de-suggestopedia, a method which involves the following principles:
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Presenting language in a multi-sensory way |
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Working with higher input |
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Creating an emotional atmosphere |
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De-suggesting learning barriers |
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Learning through art |
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Motivating through dynamics |
Since Austria has the role of a forerunner in the field of English education at primary schools, the Austrian partner in this project has done a lot of preparation work and groundwork for this project.
Mr Graham Crane, who is responsible for instruction to improve the language competence of the teachers involved in the Teddy-bear project in that part of Austria, presented material and passed on his experience to all partners of the project.
