“You can’t use up creativity, the more you use it, the more it grows.”
What do I like to do? Where are my talents, my strengths? Do I like to work in a team, perhaps also alone at times? What are the key aspects of good teamwork? What does our future look like? What are the key aspects of good teamwork? What does our future look like? What skills and abilities are in demand? What are the current megatrends? How is digitalisation changing our everyday life and how do we react to it?
These and many other questions about their own person/personality and community life are addressed in depth by the pupils of the 8th/9th school year. In the second year of school, the students learn more in-depth about their chosen career and about media and information technology.
On the one hand, the kids deal with themselves, on the other hand with the outside, our world in which we live.
Personality development, recognition and promotion of talents and strengths, self-efficacy and mutual support are in the foreground, along with learning the “basics” in the area of career choice (formulating e-mails, making telephone calls, creating a CV, writing applications, etc.).
A concrete example: Currently, a core team consisting of five to six students from the 8th and 9th grade, which will intensively deal with the area of “multimedia” in the coming months. A casting, which was co-organised and led by a pupil who already had a lot of “know-how” in this field, enabled interested kids to apply for the core team. A jury, consisting of three students, one teacher and our much appreciated house staff, challenged the applicants with questions: What is your interest in becoming part of the group? What skills would you like to bring to the group? What does good teamwork mean to you? What experience do you already have? How do you show your willingness to think about new topics and to work persistently? Do you like to take responsibility?
During the audition, the kids were – almost unconsciously for them – put in a situation comparable to a job interview. They answered the questions and listened to each other attentively. The participants and the group of spectators were allowed to get to know each other – and above all themselves – even better in a new situation. The conversations were reflected on together. Finally, the jury exchanged views on the candidates and decided on the group of five to six kids who will now explore the multimedia field as a core group in the coming weeks and months. The idea is for the students to organise themselves as independently as possible, plan projects, carry them out, reflect on them, develop and advance skills and pass on their abilities and skills to other students. Projects can involve kids from a wide range of classes; they can be film projects, streaming, interviewing, creating application videos, etc. The kids set their own goals and pursue them.
Creativity, team spirit, innovation, organisation, perseverance and much more is now required.
