Erasmus - MEANING
About the project
As a language school that specialises in adult education, we are very well aware of the fact that senior language students have different learning needs compared to younger ones, which is why speakeasy Berlin decided to take part in the MEANING project. This project, which is co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, aims to improve the language learning experience specifically for senior students. In order to achieve this objective, MEANING mainly focuses on two aspects. First, it wants to motivate and activate senior students to learn and motivate them to participate in lifelong learning. And second, it aims to assist them on their language learning journey so that the seniors can achieve overall better results in English language learning.
Project Results
Throughout a total of 27 months, the partners of the MEANING project worked hard to create a number of different resources, that will help facilitate the language learning process for seniors. These resources include:
IO1 Framework & Research
At the beginning of the project, the consortium under the coordination of the French partner first had to identify the special needs and expectations of senior learners. In order to do this, we conducted our own research in the form of in-depth interviews and focus groups. This provided us with a number of insightful results, which we could make use of in the following project phases.
IO2 Guidelines for teaching adults
Secondly, the partners under the coordination of the Lithuanian partner created guidelines for teachers to help them better tailor their teaching approach to the needs of senior learners. As a result of this phase, the consortium created a handbook filled not only with theoretical content, but also with practical tips and activity sheets.
IO3 Ready to use cards
Finally, under the coordination of speakeasy Berlin, the project team put together a card game with activities specifically designed for language lessons with senior learners. The content of this teaching resource consists of tools, techniques, and games to help seniors learn a foreign language, as well as questions and various exercises that are ready for teachers to use in the classroom.
All of the resources that were created over the course of this project were thoroughly tested with both teachers and senior learners to ensure that they are fully adapted to the needs of senior students and their language teachers.
The project consortium
- Solution: Solidary & Inclusion – NGO that aims to promote social cohesion through non formal education (France)
- Kaunas County Public Library – the largest Lithuanian public library that implements international and mutual projects (Lithuania)
- Fundacja Parasol – educational institution that provides seniors, the youth and the employed with various educational opportunities (Poland)
- speakeasy Berlin GmbH – privately owned language school that specialises in adult education (Germany)
- Eurospeak Language Schools Ltd – private English language school that wants to give learners the best opportunity to improve their lives (United Kingdom)
