Pedagogical Activities in the School of Nyírtelek

By: Mrs József Krajnyák and Péter Lázár
Source: Nyírtelek School, 1996

The village of Nyírtelek is in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, at a 10-kilometre distance from the town Nyíregyháza. It is on Route 38, between Nyíregyháza and Tokaj.

Our school is of medium size, with 327 pupils educated by 30 teachers. Our situation can be considered unusual in the sense that the pupils attending the school live in 14 separate farming settlements.

1. In what way are they disadvantaged when they first come to school?

1.1. The disadvantages that stem from the location of Nyírtelek within the country and the structure of the settlements

· We live in the north-east of Hungary, in a crisis area with hardly any opportunity for people to find employment
· The students live in farming settlements far from each other (half of our pupils are day pupils living in these settlements)

1.2. The disadvantages that stem from the families' living conditions

· The income per person is between 5001 and 8000 Hungarian Forints per month
(Many families live on childcare allowances or unemployment benefits.)
· The parents' low level of schooling:
Mainly physical workers (64.3%)
· Single parents
· Bad housing conditions

1.3. Biological reasons

· Slow learners, retarded children
· Dyslexic children
· Their level of motivation is low
· They belong to an ethnic group (Gypsies)

As these disadvantages can easily lead to failure at school, - if we teachers are to take our profession really seriously - they cannot be ignored!

What initiatives have we taken so far to provide these pupils with a chance to continue their studies, too? In other words, what have we done in order that their skills and abilities may provide a reliable basis for their secondary education?

2. A success orientated school

Upon an overall assessment of their circumstances, we concluded that one of the tasks of our school concerning these children is to eradicate certain defects. We need to provide the children with all that their families have not been able to.

In order that a child can become a successful person, it is necessary to create a certain environment or milieu where they can feel good because they are loved and paid attention to. So we built a children-centered school (taking their abilities, defects, needs and naturally, our requirements into consideration).

We regard these two maxims as the guidelines for our educational activity:

"ONLY THE HEART CAN SEE CLEARLY…"
"AND LET THEM BE PLAYFUL…"

The failures caused by the children's disadvantaged situation may lead to learning disorders and conflicts concerning the children's integration into the community. Consequently, the methods and circumstances of the educational process ought to be considered very important factors in the life of a school. This is what led to our initiative to establish a school where children can feel at home, where, by reviewing the traditional authoritative teach-pupil relationship, we can do tremendously much to prevent the failures.

3. Special educational programmes

3.1. Approximating the KINDERGARTEN and the SCHOOL

AIM: To build confidence
Getting acquainted by organizing playful activities in which this year's and next year's 1st grade pupils participate jointly in the school.
The advantage of building this kind of relationship is that children are open and less strained when they come to school in September, since their teacher can start working with a group of children whom she has met previously.

3.2. The project called "AT HOME IN THE CLASSROOM"

Our motto is: "A smile is the shortest distance between two people."
AIM: To leave sufficient time for the children to develop their abilities and personalities. We find it essential that children should not consider schoolwork burdensome. Also, we are convinced that apart from the education of the separate school subjects, the importance of a wide-scope, genuine, personal curiosity should be emphasized.

The conditions that the school provides: Our classrooms have a cozy atmosphere, they resemble the rooms of a family home (they are furnished with carpets and shelves and have play-corners). There are plants, pets and decorations made by the children. The children can play, tell stories and listen to music sitting and lying on the carpet.

The educational activities of the different classes of the same year are synchronized. A team of three teachers teaches the classes in each year. Their co-operation is essential. They have weekly meetings to discuss and plan the tasks of the following week.

The grouping of the school subjects is regarded as the basis of the scheduling of the educational activity (i.e. the education concerning main topics plus additional activities).
The daily framework of the activities is created based on different topics linked together. Everything is largely dependent on the children's capacity to work (their attention span and their ability to concentrate).

THE GROUPING OF SCHOOL SUBJECTS

1. Core Subjects 2. Practical skills
§ Mathematics § Singing
§ Writing § Art
§ Reading § Physical Education
§ Writing compositions
§ Science

3. Free leisure activities (Optional)
§ Music
§ Dancing
§ Drama classes
§ Sports, games

THE WEEKLY SCHEDULE

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
8.00- 9.00 "starting a new week" opening
the day opening
the day opening
the day opening
the day
9.00-10.00
10.00-11.00 The presentation of the new teaching material Systematic practice and revision, evaluation
11.00-12.00 PLAYING GAMES
12.00-13.00 LUNCH
13.00-14.00
14.00-15.00
Additional activities Weekly evaluation
"closing
the week"

The daily and weekly schedule: The daily study activities last from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
These include the presentation of the teaching material, practicing and additional relaxing activities.
After 3 p.m. the children can choose to attend specialized activity groups according to their interests.

The curriculum has weekly units. These include the activities called "starting a new week" every Monday morning and "closing the week" every Friday afternoon.
(What have we learnt this week? What are we going to learn next week?)

Establishing a relationship with the parents: Parents are invited to come to the school, visit the classes, see the life of the school, find out what the children have learnt and how much they have developed on the last Friday of each month.
Parents have the opportunity to consult each other and the staff in a casual atmosphere. In addition, they are (continuously) informed on what their children have learnt in weekly written reports.
Our results: Our children have become more humane, their interests have become manifold and specific.
Their second home has become their own; they look after it and care for their treasures. The vandalism and negligence have disappeared.

COACHING PROGRAMMES IN THE SCHOOL

AIM: To foster the children's abilities so that they reach the level required. To facilitate the integration that is to follow.

The Gypsy children are taught by Gypsy teachers in their own community in the preliminary phase of their schooling. This is the so-called phase of socialization.
· Flexible scheduling
· Setting specific tasks for each pupil
· Differentiated teams

When the Gypsy pupils' abilities have reached a certain level which makes it possible for them to be taught together with the non-Gypsy pupils, they may continue their studies in the 3rd grade.
This is the phase of integration. From this point on, the class master's or class mistress's role will be more important, because it is their responsibility to facilitate the children's integration into the new community and supervise the further coaching projects concerning the different school subjects.

4. Special coaching scheme for multiply disadvantaged Gypsy children

AT THE SCHOOL
The phase of SOCIALIZATION (1st and 2nd grades)

(Teaching the basics of good manners and communication skills. Fostering the children's abilities so that they reach the level required. Facilitating the integration that is to follow.)

A special feature of this phase within the educational process is that Gypsy children do not start their studies in the normal classes but follow a special remedial curriculum (which process is controlled by a teacher of Gypsy origin). Since the majority of these children have not at all or very infrequently attended kindergartens, they fall below the average level of children of their age. At the start of their schooling (especially in the first two years) it is very important to provide them with playful skills development schemes.

These include:
· the enlargement of vocabulary
· the development of speaking skills
· the development of the skill of abstraction
· the development of the attention span and memory
· the refinement of locomotive skills
· the development of remembering speech
· the development of remembering sounds
· the development of the sense of rhythm
· the development of drawing skills

With these skills development schemes we intend to make the process of their integration into the normal classes at the end of the 2nd school year as smooth as possible.

The phase of INTEGRATION (3rd and 4th grades)

(The pupils in the 3rd and the higher grades are placed in normal classes. It is very important that the skills that have been developed earlier should be consolidated and further developed in this phase of their school careers.)

In order to secure this, a special coaching scheme has been put into operation in addition to the curricular activities. The teachers participating in the scheme provide each pupil who needs this kind of assistance with specifically outlined coaching plans.

BOARDING SCHOOL education

(The knowledge acquired through social learning is added to that acquired at school, which makes it possible for the pupils to change their worldviews.) Boarding from Monday to Friday is provided for the Gypsy children studying in our school in a building (functioning during the week), which follows the family model.

The most important tasks of the boarding school programme are to promote values that serve to improve the efficiency of school education, secure the harmony of the development of the children's personalities, foster their sense of identity, enable them to develop a positive vision of their future and create the basis of their integration into society.

SCHOOL BOARDING SCHOOL
Phase of SOCIALIZATION 1st grade Preparatory phase
Habituation
(Pre-socialization)
Development of the basic skills
Coaching schemes
*Gypsy Literature Visits to the boarding school, participation in different activities together with the parents
2nd grade Reinforcement
Skills development
(remedial + normal requirements)
*Gypsy Literature
Starting at boarding school
Creating certain social and hygienic circumstances and assisting children in forming certain habits (rules and regulations, activities, values)
Phase of INTEGRATION 3rd grade
4th grade Integration into normal classes
Follow up schemes (led by tutors)
Skills reinforcement and skills development Sense of identity, vision of the future
Assessment system
*Gypsy Literature and Civilization

What makes this programme unique?

The fact that the work that we carry out at the school is assisted by a social background institution, the House of Kindness.
The building: a detached house with a garden.

How does it function in practice?

AFTERNOON SESSIONS
(They are run by members of the school staff.)

· Playing games, drama classes
· Music, dance
· Manual activities
· Gardening
· Household science

EVENING TALKS

· Telling each other what happened at school and who was praised by the teachers
· Talking about family and school matters
· Discussing the stories that the children have read

An annual schedule serves as the basis of maintaining the relationship with the children's parents.

A. Maintaining a direct relationship
(We wish to involve parents in the everyday life of the boarding school by organizing e.g. cooking sessions, excursions, etc.)

B. Organizing talks on health matters
(about motherhood, pregnancy, giving birth, different lifestyles, one's goals in life)

THE STAFF OF THE "HOUSE OF KINDNESS":

· the principal (a qualified teacher of Gypsy origin)
· a permanent night-time supervisor (a female primary school teacher of Gypsy origin)
· a teacher in charge of leading the afternoon study activities
· a kitchen worker
· a nurse
· a janitor

The aim of the educational process in the boarding house: to provide knowledge based on social understanding, which is supposed to change our Gypsy pupils' views on life. (It is possible to lead a different life!)

Co-operation between the "House of Kindness" (boarding school) and the school
In the phase of socialization the same teacher who teaches the children at school takes care of them in the boarding house.
In the phase of integration the children's class master/class mistress is in charge of leading the boarding school activities.
The main aim of the co-operation is the enhancement of the children's future integration into society.

5. The positive way of leading one's life (this topic is integrated into the curriculum of the weekly sessions of talks led by the class master/class mistress)

AIM:

Provide access to essential information on addiction to smoking, alcohol and drugs. Encourage children to develop their self-knowledge. Prepare children to form groups and participate in teamwork. Assist children in their orientation and inform them on the psychological aspects of human relationships. Promote the values of a healthy and safe life. Prepare children for potential dangers. Teach them about the possibility and responsibility of knowing how to defend themselves.

TOPICS OF DISCUSSIONS

· Self-knowledge
· Me and my place within the world surrounding me
· A healthy and safe life
· Protect yourself
· Project work

6. The relationship between the process of education and the different activities organized in the school

The principle that it is the school's task to awaken and promote the need for culture and a thorough education, which is also backed by the school's image of the pupils and their sociological background, was regarded as definitive when the different phases of the educational process were outlined.

As far as the teaching process is concerned, especially in the 1st-4th grades, we intend to help the children to get to like learning by using methods based on playing (e.g. in the workshop activities).

We do our best to secure that each child can develop and spread their knowledge in accordance with their individual abilities. We help those falling behind to catch up with the rest of the class in a special study group (within which we separate smaller groups) as well as within the framework of traditional classroom activities (by setting different tasks for the different children).

According to the experience that we have gathered so far, the difficulties concerning integration and the learning problems of disadvantaged pupils can be best handled by making sure that the children concerned become more and more active at school.
The most efficient way to do so is introducing workshop activities.

HOW DOES THAT FIT INTO THE CURRICULUM?

In the 3rd and 4th grades:

The teams teaching all the pupils of one year within the school organize so-called days of complex activities (once a fortnight or once a month), when the different activities are centered around the four seasons. The essence of these is reading, mathematics, music, movement, playing and manual activities, all linked to one single topic.
In the 5th-8th grades:

COMPLEX EDUCATION CONCERNING ART

The complexity of the programme derives from the integrated curriculum comprising those of three traditional school subjects (literature, music and art). (Thus children have the chance to view the whole of the teaching material in its own complexity.)

The "days of complex activities" organized for these pupils (twice a month) enable them to absorb knowledge on the different branches of science at the same time.
The aim of the activities:

· To enhance the children's ability to engross in art emotionally and spiritually so that they can better understand it
· To encourage the children to develop a modern perspective concerning visual arts
· To develop the co-operation between pupils, between teachers and pupils and between teachers
· To help the children develop a sound critical sense based on their own experience
· To teach the children to become independent

HOW ARE THE WORKSHOP ACTIVITIES RUN?

The schedule of these days is not built on 45-minute class sessions. The activities last form 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The three teachers do not teach the children consecutively but all stay with them together during the day. (Teamwork)

This method is perfect for the absorption in one's work and for introducing group activities. The scene of the activities is a classroom furnished and equipped in a way that creates a cosy atmosphere and enhances creative work. To complete the daily schedule, the children may exhibit their works (drawings, puppets, decoration, models, plasticine figures, etc.).

The advantages of team work: the joint planning and activities as well the joint success increase the chance of "good" co-operation and also serves to motivate the staff members.

7. Training programmes for teachers

In order to run the school along these guidelines it is essential that the staff members can think together. Teamwork, though, is not easy to introduce and the traditional attitudes of teachers do not change from one day to the other, either.

Passing on new pedagogical contents and teaching the children to spend their spare time usefully require a "different kind" of training. Training programmes organized for staff members in and outside the school can facilitate the change of attitudes.

For this reason, several members of our staff have studied drama pedagogy and information technology, participated in training programmes for teachers of dance, eurhythmics and folk dance and attended courses on recognizing dyslexic children. We are to arrange for other staff members to get training on the education of handicapped children and socio-pedagogy because dealing with disadvantaged children can only be successful if we can count on the work of qualified experts as well as on our teachers' patience and problem solving skills.

SUMMARY

WHAT IS THE TASK OF A PRIMARY SCHOOL?

Teaching skills (reading, writing and counting) and abilities (i.e. knowledge that pupils can apply in practice), enabling pupils to continue their studies at a secondary level. For this, it is also important to prevent children from dropping out.

STARTING PRIMARY EDUCATION (1st and 2nd grades)
"To provide equal opportunities at the start of schooling!"
Coaching schemes may include:
· organising separate classes (as early as in the 1st grade!)
· dividing the classes into groups

Running a separate class for backward children can only be successful if (within a period of 2-3 years) the abilities of the children improve to an extent that makes it possible for them to integrate into "normal" classes when they start learning in the 3rd grade. INTEGRATION!!!

CONSOLIDATION, MONITORING (3rd-6th grades)
· establishing small groups

Within the traditional framework based on working in traditional classes
· differentiating

COMPLETING PRIMARY EDUCATION (7th-8th grade)
· working in small groups based on the pupils' choices concerning their secondary education (from the 7th grade on)
· preparatory courses in the subjects relevant for the pupils' secondary education (in the 8th grade)