Conference

A few words summarising an international conference "Education is a relationships. Communication. Competences. Space."

On March 3-4, 2023 an international conference Education is a relationship. Communication. Competences. Space, organized by the City of Lublin and the City of Reykjavik, took place. During the two days of the conference, there were 4 panels and 6 workshops, which concerned three areas of education: communication at school, developing students' social competences and creating school space. The speakers were experts and educators from Iceland and Poland. The event was an opportunity to present the recommendations developed during the one-year project implemented by the City of Lublin and the City of Reykjavik. The conference began with the welcome of the participants by Mariusz Banach, Deputy Mayor, Krzysztof Stanowski, Director of the International Cooperation Center, and Jan Hernik, Political and Business Affairs Specialist at the Embassy of Iceland in Warsaw, which took the honorary patronage over the event.

Panel I was devoted to Icelandic solutions in education. It was attended by partners from Iceland, including representatives of the Reykjavik Department of Education and Youth: Hjörtur Ágústsson, Magdalena Elisabet Andresdottir and Ólöf Kristín Sívertsen, as well as the representatives of two Icelandic schools: Hrefna Birna Björnsdóttir and Guðlaug Elísabet Finnsdóttir from Vesturbæjarskóli and Sólveig Þórarinsdóttir and Jóhanna Björt Guðbrandsdóttir from the Dalskoli School.

Panel II concerned school-student-parent communication. The assumptions of the project recommendations were presented by Izabela Meyza, an expert in the project Education is a Relationship. Then, the discussion was attended by prof. Sylwia Jaskulska (UAM), Anna Kędzierska and Maciek Cichocki, i.e. the duo Opowiedz.to, Daria Chmiel (Centre for Sociotherapy KĄT) and Magdalena Elizabeth Andresdottir from the Department of Education in Reykjavik. The panel was moderated by Jarosław Durszewicz (Szkoła bez Ocen Foundation).

Panel III was devoted to the methods and ways of shaping students' social competences. Recommendations were presented by Paweł Dryl, an expert in the Education is a Relationship project. In the discussion that followed the following experts took the floor: Wiesława Mitulska (teacher/trainer of early childhood education), Małgorzata Zachajczuk (teacher of Polish and history, Primary School No. 10 in Zamość), Rafał Boryc (teacher, Primary School No. 20 in Lublin) took the floor. in Lublin) and Sólveig Þórarinsdóttir and Jóhanna Björt Guðbrandsdóttir from the Dalskoli school.

School space was the subject of discussion in the last, 4th panel, moderated by Małgorzata Michalska-Nakonieczna (WSPiA). Recommendations were presented by Agnieszka Czachowska, an expert in the Education is a Relationship project, and the other experts in the discussion were Barbara Ostrowska (MLO Paderewski), Iwona Pietrzak-Płachta (Teacher of the Year 2022), Hrefna Birna Björnsdóttir and Guðlaug Elísabet Finnsdóttir from the Vesturbæjarskól school, and Alina Januszyk ( Beetle Foundation). The conference was addressed primarily to representatives of the education sector, teachers, pedagogues and psychologists. Parents and students also attended the event. The conference was organized by the the City of Lublin at the end of the project "Education is a relationship. Cooperation of Lublin and Reykjavik for education" financed from the EEA Grants. The main objective of the project was to strengthen the knowledge, competences and experience of the school staff in building a friendly environment at school and strengthening the social competences of students.

During two days:

• We hosted almost 150 Conference participants a day.
• We had the opportunity to meet 22 speakers - experts in the field of education.