2014

This booklet belongs to:

Name: ……………………………………………………... From: ……………………………………………………….

2

CONTENT

Welcome message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Important contacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

PRE-DEPARTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Prepare yourself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Before leaving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Packing check list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

During your stay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Culture shock and homesickness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Personal goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Who am I ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

My family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

My country . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

My host family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

My host country . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

ORIENTATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

My identity/ies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

National identity/ies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Ethnicity vs. minority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Stereotypes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

What about the values? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

European identity/ies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

3

What are the European Institutions?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Me as an Active Citizen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Me as an Active European Citizen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

BRUSSELS CAMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Dictionary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Some words about EFIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

A special thanks to Kerttuli Heikkilä, volunteer from AFS Finland who

drafted the first version of this Booklet together with EFIL’s secre-

tariat in 2012.

4

WELCOME MESSAGE

Dear ECTP participant,

Congratulations for making the great choice of being part of the

European Citizenship Trimester Programme!

We want to warmly welcome you to the journey, where you will

explore another European culture and find out what it means to be an

Active European Citizen.

Have you ever wondered why there is this programme called

European Citizenship Trimester Programme and not just AFS

Trimester Programme? What is European citizenship, after all?

What is Europe? What is Active Citizenship??? This all may sound

complicated, but don’t worry if you don’t know the answers to these

questions, this Trimester Programme is there to make you

experience all this, especially through the Brussels Camp where you

will spend 4 unforgettable days together with about 200 students

from all over Europe, who had just gone through a similar experience

as you, and 40 volunteers, who will be there just for you!

With this Booklet we want to help you to start looking at your

Trimester exchange with European andActive eyes so that you can

get the best out of your experience, where you will do extraordinary

things, meet many new people and learn also a lot about yourself.

Don’t be afraid of English, we try our best to use easy language. But

if you have any doubts, check the dictionary at the end of the

Booklet.

Are you ready for the adventure ahead of you?

We wish you a great journey!

EFIL, the Federation of AFS organisations in Europe

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IMPORTANT CONTACTS

Tel. of my host family:_____________________

AFS Office of my country: __________________

AFS Office of my host country: ____________________

EFIL Office in Brussels

(only for information about the Camp in Brussels!)

Phone: +32 -2-514-5250

Email: elisa.briga@afs.org

http://efil.afs.org/

http://www.ectp.eu

ECTP Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/

groups/482370285223279/

Remember to join the ECTP 2014 Facebook Group! There you will

have the great chance to share your thoughts, questions and

experiences with other ECTP students.

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It’s time to pack your luggage and start to prepare yourself for the

journey of your life! Here are some nice exercises and

pieces of advice to help you in your preparation.

PREPARE YOURSELF

This may be your first longer period of time that you spend abroad.

Don’t worry, it will be great! You are going to face a lot of new things

and challenges, so it’s good to prepare yourself to encounter the

exciting experience.

Before leaving:

• Find out information about your hosting country.

• Learn already some words of their language.

• Tell your friends about ECTP and that

you won’t be all the time available.

• Join the ECTP Facebook Group.

• Start packing… (Leave enough space

for the souvenirs!)

PRE-DEPARTURE

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Packing check list

• Personal stuff (clothes, passport,

medicines, camera…)

• Pictures of your home country, family,

friends, hobbies...

• Map, postcards or a book about your

country

• Music, traditional dress or some other

specialities of your country

• Small gifts to give to your host family

and new friends

• A lot of open mind and humor! :)

During your stay:

• Try new things, make new friends, stay active! It all will help you

to feel home in your hosting country.

• Ask questions! People like to help you and tell you about their

culture.

• Tell about your home reality (country, people, habits…) — if you

don’t know something, admit it. Find the answer if possible.

• Don’t spend too much time on Internet or telephone. Three

months is too short a time to experience a new culture, if you

spend half of it on Facebook…

• Remember to ask for permission of the AFS Office in the hosting

country, if you are travelling abroad during your exchange.

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Culture shock and homesickness

• If you feel homesick, don’t be afraid to

talk about it with your host family or AFS

volunteers. They’ll understand you and

talking makes you feel better. Spending

too much time on speaking to your family

and friends in your home country may

cause more homesickness.

• After some time you may feel that the new reality isn’t that

interesting anymore and the way things are begins to annoy you.

Don’t worry, it’s normal. You may be suffering from culture shock.

Try to find positive things of your hosting culture every day and

don’t stay alone, talk to people!

• Accept the fact that you may encounter problems during your 3

months journey. There are problems also in your home country!

Remember that every problem has a solution and don’t hesitate to

ask for help.

• Remember the AFS slogan about culture:

It’s not better, it’s not worse — it’s just different!

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PERSONAL GOALS

It’s good to think what you are expecting from ECTP and why you are

taking part in this programme. It also helps you to make the best out

of your experience. Try to set your goals on a reasonable level, so you

may feel the joy of success.

Here are some questions to help you set your goals:

• What do you want to learn during your exchange?

• What new things would you like to try?

Write down five things you expect the most:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

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WHO AM I?

Name:_____________________________

Age:_________

Hometown:_________________

Inhabitants in your hometown:________________

Nationality/ies:___________________________

Mother tongue/s:__________________________

Hobbies:_______________________________________

MY FAMILY

Write about your parents and siblings!

Pets: _______________________________________

Name&Surname

Profession

Place of birth

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MY COUNTRY

Official name:____________________________

Number of inhabitants:_____________________

Official languages:______________________________

System of government:___________________________

Leader of the state: (President, Prime minister, King, Queen…)

_________________________________

What else would you like to tell about yourself, your family

or your country?

What is the flag of your country? What do the colours

mean?

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MY HOST FAMILY

Write about your host parents and siblings!

Pets:___________________________________________

Hometown:_________________ Inhabitants:____________

Nationality/ies:___________________________

Mother tongue/s:__________________________

Hobbies:_______________________________________

Pets:__________________________________________

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MY HOST COUNTRY

Official name:____________________________

Number of inhabitants:_____________________

Official languages:______________________________

System of government:___________________________

Leader of the state: (President, Prime minister, King, Queen…)

_________________________________

What else would you like to know about your host family or your host

country?

What is the flag of your host country? What do the colours

mean?

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Draw here a map of your host country. Mark your new hometown and

the capital city of your host country on the map.

15

Before leaving abroad, try to find out what is going on in your host

country. What do the people in your host country talk about? Watch

the news on TV, read newspapers, surf in the Internet...

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MY IDENTITY/IES

"Men and women are not only themselves; they are also the region in which they were born, the city apartment or the farm in which they learnt to walk, the games they played as children, the tales they overheard, the food they ate, the schools they attended, the sports they followed, the poets they read and the God they believed in."

- W. Somerset Maugham, The Razor's Edge

Everybody has her/his own identity; two people won’t have exactly

similar identities. Identity is defined by one’s family, hometown,

school, country, hobbies, friends — everything that has made one the

person she/he is.

One person may have many different identities; she/he may feel

being a part of one’s family, neighborhood, town, region, country and

continent at the same time. She/he may also feel being a member of

a sports club, music group, political party or religious society.

ORIENTATION

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• How would you define your identity? Which groups or communi-

ties you feel you belong to?

• Who has shaped you as a citizen the most (your family, school,

society)? Why?

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NATIONAL IDENTITY/IES

Every country or state consists of different people and different

peoples. Nationality is the status of belonging to a nation - being a

citizen of a state by birth or naturalisation (marriage, residence...).

In a country there may be many nationalities living beside each

other; living in a country doesn’t mean being a citizen of a country.

• What are the most represented nationalities in your

home country? What about in your host country?

• What is common and what is different between the major

nationality groups in your home country? (Values, behavior,

culture…) What about in your host country?

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ETHNICITY VS. MINORITY

Ethnicity or ethnic group refers to the cultural and sometimes

physical characteristics used to classify people into groups

considered to be significantly different from others. In some cases,

ethnicity involves merely a loose group

identity with little or no cultural

traditions in common. In contrast, some

ethnic groups, like newly arrived immigrant

groups, are coherent subcultures with a

shared language and traditions.

People of same nationality may be part of

different ethnic groups. It is important

not to confuse the term minority with

ethnic group. Whether an ethnic group is

a minority or a majority in a population depends on the perspective:

some ethnic groups may be a majority in their region but at the state

level they may be considered as minorities.

REF: http://anthro.palomar.edu/ethnicity/ethnic_1.htm

• What ethnic groups are there in your home country?

Which are minorities and which are majorities?

• What should the citizen do when society is failing to

respect the rights of certain sections of the community?

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STEREOTYPES

Stereotypes are

characteristics given to

groups of people involving

gender, race, national origin

and other factors. These

characteristics often tend to

be oversimplifications.

For example, someone who

meets a few individuals from a

particular country and finds them to be quiet and reserved may

spread the word that all citizens from the country are quiet and

reserved.

Generalisations don’t allow diversity within groups and may result in

stigmatisation and discrimination, if the stereotypes are largely

negative. Even so-called positive stereotypes can be harmful due to

their limiting nature.

REF: http://racerelations.about.com

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• What kind of stereotypes are there about the people of your

home country?

• What kind of stereotypes are there about your host country?

• Do you already know some people from your host country? If yes,

what are they like? If not, what kind of people do you think you

will meet?

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WHAT ABOUT THE VALUES?

Values are important beliefs or ideals shared by the members of a

culture, about what is good or desirable and what is not. Values have

major influence on the behavior of an individual and serve as general

guidelines in all situations.

• What are the main values of your home country? What do you ap-

preciate the most?

• What do you think are the main values of your host country?

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EUROPEAN IDENTITY/IES

Every day you are confronted with the word “Europe”, either through

newspapers, TV, school or AFS. What does it mean to you?

• What is Europe ? What are the borders of Europe?

• Who is European? What makes YOU European?

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• What would be the common values of Europe?

• Are there common values among all peoples of the world? What

would they be?

25

WHAT ARE THE EUROPEAN INSTITUTIONS?

There are two separate institutions with different status in the

European affairs: the European Union (EU) and the Council of Europe.

The Council of Europe has been founded in

1949 by 10 countries and it covers virtually the

entire European continent, with its 47 member

countries. The Council of Europe seeks to

develop throughout Europe common and

democratic principles based on the European

Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the

protection of individuals. The main bodies are:

• The Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) represents the political

forces (majority and opposition) in its member states

• The Committee of Ministers consisting of the Ministers of

Foreign Affairs, meeting usually at the level of their deputies

• The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities consists of 636

representatives of regional or municipal councillors or presidents

of regional authorities

• The European Court of Human Rights, which is a supra-national

court established by the European Convention on Human Rights

• The Conference of INGOs, “the voice of civil society” , is the

chief body representing the INGOs with the Council of Europe

and has more than 400 participants (EFIL is one of them)

REF: http://www.coe.int/

26

The European Union traces its origins from

the European Coal and Steel Community

(ECSC) and the European Economic Community

(EEC), formed by six countries in 1957. The

Maastricht Treaty established the European

Union under its current name in 1993. The

decisions are made by a vast set of

institutions. The main bodies are:

• The European Council brings together national and EU-level

leaders (representatives of national Ministries) to discuss

specific policies

• The European Parliament consisting of directly elected

Parlamentarians (MEPs) representing EU citizens

• The European Commission, whose members are appointed by

national governments, their role is to implement the decisions of

the European Parliament and the Council of the EU

• In the Council of the European Union the representatives of

governments have a chance to defend their own countries'

national interests

• The Committee of the Regions (CoR) is an advisory body

representing local and regional authorities in the European Union

• European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is a consultative

assembly, which represents Europe's employers, workers and

other interest groups in respect of EU issues

• The Court of Justice of European Union interprets EU law to

make sure it is applied in the same way in all EU countries

REF: http://europa.eu/

27

What is the difference between EU and the Council of Europe?

The European Union

• Based in Brussels, Strasbourg

and Luxemburg

• 27 Member states

• Founded in 1957 by 6 countries

• Concentrates on economic and

political integration

• Has a strong power and

influence on its member states

The Council of Europe

• Based in Strasbourg

• 47 member states

• Founded on 5 May 1949 by 10

countries

• Concentrates on promoting

democracy and human rights

• Can only give

recommendations

Is your home country a part of EU? How about your host country?

Are they candidates for EU membership?

What are the news about Europe in your country? What kind of top-

ics the news include when they talk about Europe?

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THE EUROPEAN UNION: in grey the candidate countries

THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE: the founding nations in yellow

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ME AS AN ACTIVE CITIZEN

Citizenship — What does it mean?

Citizenship is the state of being a

citizen of a particular social, political,

national, or human resource community.

Citizenship status includes both rights

and responsibilities: political

participation in the life of the

community, the right to vote and the

right to receive certain protection

from the community.

REF: wikipedia

What is then Active Citizenship?

30

An Active Citizen...

• takes part in community life (decision making, voting…)

• looks for information, tries to understand how the society works

• does volunteering (for an organisation like AFS or Scouts, for

the school or the community)

• takes part in public discussion (by writing a blog or writing to a

newspaper or Internet debates)

• organises fundraising

• saves energy

• fights injustice

• or does anything to make the world a better place!

(Active) citizenship stands for active participation of citizens in

the economic, social, cultural and political fields of life. In the youth

field much emphasis is on learning the necessary competences

through voluntary activities. The aim is not only to improve the

knowledge, but also motivation, skills and practical experience to be

an active citizen.

REF: Siurala, Lasse (2005): European framework of youth policy

31

32

Reflection time...

• Are you an Active Citizen? How do you participate in the life and

decisions of your community? How could you improve such partici-

pation?

• Have you volunteered for any activity in your country — in school,

in your community, somewhere else? Do you know how you can get

involved?

• Are you allowed to vote in your country? Did you vote at the last

elections?

• Should youth aged 16 have the right to vote? Why?

• What forms of participation, other than voting in elections, are

possible for the ordinary citizen? What kind of activities have

you taken part in?

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ME AS AN ACTIVE EUROPEAN CITIZEN

We all are citizens of our own countries, but at the same time we are

Citizens of Europe and the whole world. You are a citizen of Europe,

if you are a citizen of a European country, even though you may not

be a citizen of EU. Being a European Citizen means that you share

the same basic values, like democracy and human rights, with other

Europeans. Being an Active European Citizens means that you are an

Active Citizen also at the European level. An Active European Citizen

wants to learn about the world and especially about Europe to make

it a better place to live.

What makes you an Active European Citizen?

European Citizenship

• European Citizenship is a citizen-citizen relation, a process of

peaceful interactions based on human rights and responsibilities

of people.

• European citizenship doesn’t mean a “belonging” to a particular

territory (country, EU), but a “belonging” to a value-based

community.

• Europe is meant to be not only a continent of many countries but

rather a community of communities, community of people and

peoples with different backgrounds but common history, common

values and shared perspectives of political, economical, social and

cultural development.

• Europe is a way of thinking and acting and European Citizenship

does not want to replace the national identity/citizenship or any

other belonging.

34

• European Citizenship is not a given formal status but an active

social, political and cultural role (voluntary identity and

capacity) of citizens to participate in building a new Europe.

• European Citizens are co-citizens, living and co-operating with

others, caring for European affairs, promoting peace, equality,

democracy, wider social solidarity and justice, seeking the

compromise, respecting and protecting minorities...

REF: Training course on European Citizenship, Concepts of Citizenship and European Citizenship, http://www.european-citizenship.org/documents/

• What are the rights and responsibilities of a

European Citizen?

• If you are coming from a EU member state, did you know that

only 50% of EU citizens voted at the last elections for the

European Parliament? Why do you think this is?

Would you or did you vote? Why or why not?

35

BRUSSELS CAMP(s)

When: 30 November –4 December 2014

Where: Belgium, in the small village of Dworp, near Brussels. There

will be 2 venues(2 parallel camps!) : Destelheide and Hanenbos

Who: more than 200 young people 15-18 year old from 24 European

countries that have been on a trimester exchange in Europe! Plus a

group of 45 volunteers from all over Europe which will coordinate the

programme of 4 unforgettable days.

What???

How will you know more?

• Join the FB group ‘European Citizenship Trimester Programme

2014’

• Read the emails that you will receive from the ECTP Brussels

Camp Preparatory team as from August 2014

• Surf the website www.ectp.eu!

Sun 1 Mon 2 Tue 3 Wed 4 Thu 5

Arrivals Share your

exchange

experience

Visit to the

European

Parliament in

Brussels

Workshops on

Active

Citizenship

departures

Workshops on

Europe

Sightseeing in

Brussels

Preparation

for Re-entry

Welcome

evening

Evening

programme

Evening

programme

Goodbye party

36

DICTIONARY*

Active citizen - a citizen who takes an active role in the community

(as in crime prevention and taking care of neighborhood).

Citizen - a native or naturalised member of a state or other political

community.

Citizenship - the status of a citizen with rights and duties.

Country - an area of land distinguished by its political autonomy -

state; one's native land or nation of citizenship.

Culture shock - feeling of uncertainty, confusion or anxiety that

people experience when visiting or living in a society that is different

from their own. Culture shock can arise from a person's unfamiliarity

with local customs, language and acceptable behavior, since norms can

vary significantly across cultures.

Ethnicity, ethnic group - a people of the same race or nationality

who share a distinctive culture.

Identity - the set of behavioral or personal characteristics by which

an individual is recognisable as a member of a group; the quality or

condition of being the same as something else.

Minority - a group of people that has different national or cultural

traditions from the majority of the population.

Nation - a relatively large group of people organised under a single,

usually independent government - a country; a people who share

common customs, origins, history, and frequently language - a

nationality.

37

Nationalism - a sentiment based on common cultural characteristics

that binds a population and often produces a policy of national

independence or separatism.

Nationality - the status of belonging to a particular nation by birth

or naturalisation; people having common origins or traditions.

Stereotype - a conventional and oversimplified conception, opinion,

or image.

Values - a person’s sense of right and wrong; what ought to be.

Xenophobia - a deep-rooted antipathy towards foreigners;

unreasonable fear or hatred of the unfamiliar, especially people of

other races.

REF: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/

http://www.investopedia.com

*The concepts might be translated differently in different languages.

38

Notes

39

40

Notes

41

42

Some words about EFIL

The European Federation for Intercultural

Learning (EFIL) is the umbrella organisation

of 28 AFS Organisations in Europe. AFS

(formerly American Field Service) is a non-

profit volunteer based educational

organisation offering educational exchanges

for young people around the world.

The Members of EFIL are voluntary, non-

governmental, non-profit organisations

providing intercultural learning opportunities

to help people develop the knowledge, skills

and understanding needed to create a more

just and peaceful world, and to act as

responsible global citizens.

43

44

EFIL - European Federation for Intercultural Learning

Roger Vandendriesschelaan 18, 1150 Brussels

Tel. +32-2-5145250

http://efil.afs.org/