Three different schools are taking part in Comenius school project this year:

Nelson College ( UK )   the coordinator

Vantaa Vocational school (Fi) partner

I.I.S.S.J.C. Maxwell sez. Ass. Settembrini ( Italy ) partner

Three staff from the Finnish partner school and two students arrived in Milan.  The students were to stay in accommodation provided by the Italian hosts with families of their students. 

Finnish and Italian students met to present aspects of their current projects at Maxwell School, the presentation being attended by the school Head Teacher, Mr Giuseppe Sammartino and other members of teaching staff.

Visits were made to the City Hall in Milan where City Officials presented the party with a medal of the city, prints of Milan landmarks and a book about the history of the city.  These gifts were presented to all members of the visiting party and reflect the interest and enthusiasm for the project and hospitality of the hosts.

Two English project partners arrived in Milan to join the teams.  A project meeting discussed the continuing themes with a suggestion that we conclude with a topic of applying for employment after graduation within each of the partner countries.  This would then be added to the final CD Rom.

Project team met at the home of the Head Teacher for an evening meal and further discussion about the project.

Finnish staff and students returned home following a visit to the Brera Art Gallery where a tour of classic painting by artists such as Caravaggio, Giovanni da Milano, Bernardino Luini, Hayez, Canaletto and Rembrandt were seen, to name just a few.

The two English staff visited Maxwell school to meet staff and the Head Teacher.  Following a tour of the school and meeting various staff they met with the Head Teacher with time to discuss the changes that are being made to the education systems in each country particularly with regard to quality and assessment.

A further meeting was held at Settembrini school where staff from the Comenius project, Maria Grazia Cupini ( co-ordinator) and Andrea Duchi were met.  The visitors met with a class of Italian students, some of which have visited England previously as part of the project.

 Two teachers from the Finnish Agency, Juha-Ville Makinen and Arja Voss with two students arrived in Manchester during the morning.  They met with the projects co-ordinator, Allan Dye, at 11.30 am in Nelson & Colne College.

The Italian project team, consisting of the School Principal, Giuseppe        Sammartino, who was paying a Comenius study visit , the project leader Maria Grazia Cupini, and two students from the 5^th class of the electrical department ( Camigliano and Torre) arrived during the afternoon and were met by Allan Dye.Then they met Andrea Duchi the other member of the team who had previously taken part in the teacher placement from 18 Monday.

 The visiting group settled in their hotel and met at 7.30 pm at Nelson and Colne College in the restaurant where they had a meal which had been prepared and served by college students.  The schedule for the meeting was discussed.  The Italian students were met by their hosts, whom they had stayed with on a previous visit.

 The group met at 9.30 am to practice the presentations and check that the    computer   equipment and power points were compatible.

  The group had a tour of the college at 10.30 and met with catering staff to discuss possible     future projects.  The group visited the main site of the college at 11.45.

  The group visited the main site of the college at 11.45.

 The group visited the Connexions centre and were given a presentation by the Manager.The agency provides careers and vocational advice to 14 – 19 year olds.  They also provide   a full range of services to support young people.  The centre brings together a number of different agencies who support the young people in Nelson and Colne.There are only four other centres of this type in the North of England.

   The group travelled back to the College where the work of the project was presented to a group of students and staff.  The Finnish students provided details of their course and the experience to their teachers.  The presentation was given in English and used power point.

  The group met with the new College Principal at 3.00 o’clock.  Mr Giuseppe Samartino  presented Dr Birkinshaw with prints of Milan and Juha-Ville a gift from the Finnish school.The principal discussed the project and experiences from the project. Discussion also included descriptions of the different educational systems.

  The project team met at the home of Allan Dye for an evening meal and continued their discussion sharing information about education and culture.

  The project team visited Liverpool. A visit was made to the Albert Dock, once warehouses for ships coming up the Mersey River and now renovated as a tourist attraction which includes the Beatles museum. 

  In the evening the group had a meal together at the hotel to conclude the project meeting.

  Before leaving for their homes,  the Finnish group visited Manchester and the Italian group one of the biggest shopping malls in Europe – The Trafford Centre, Manchester.

 The material from the presentation will be placed on the web site hosted by S.S.Settembrini in Milan linked to the other sites with a CD being produced by the Italian students for the agencies.

  All project work should be completed by the end of May and sent to Milan by the first week in June.