1. Prerequisites – eligibility for eTwinning Schools Label application
eTwinning schools recognise the importance and values of eTwinning and embed it into the school’s policies, practice, and professional development with the support of school management.
With the eTwinning School Label, eTwinning recognises and asseses the involvement, commitment, and dedication not only of individual eTwinners, but of the whole school, where teams of teachers and school leaders work together.
General prerequisites:
Applications for eTwinning Schools 2024-2025 will open on 6th of February and the schools that are eligible to apply will have to meet the following prerequisites:
- the school must have been registered with eTwinning for more than two years (cut-off date: 01/01/2022 or earlier),
- there are at least three eTwinning teachers working in the school who have been involved in projects, professional development, or other eTwinning activities since 01/01/2022,
- the school has been involved in at least one eTwinning European project that has been granted a National Quality Label since 01/11/2021.
If a school fulfils these requirements, all eTwinners in the school that are registered on ESEP will receive an email invitation to complete the application form and a notification on ESEP, see below.
Dear name,<br/><br/>
Congratulations! Your school is eligible to apply for the title of <a link1>eTwinning School</a>.<br/><br/>
Before you proceed, we advise that <b>you discuss</b> this application with the other teachers who are registered for eTwinning in your school. Please also involve the <b>school principal or director</b> as their signature on the declaration of honour is mandatory for the application to be submitted. <br/><br/>To apply for the eTwinning School Label, please click on <a _link2>this link</a> where you will find the application form.<br/> <br/>Good luck with your application!
Kind regards,
The eTwinning team
2. Filling in the application form
Only eligible teachers have access to the eTwinning School Label application form within the eTwinning area of the ESEP. They need to go to the eTwinning area and click on the ‘eTwinning School Label application’ button.
The application will then open and they must select the school they want to apply for. Only eligible schools will appear in the dropdown menu.
Teachers click on ‘Next’ and read some general information about the application form. Here, they have access to the eTwinning School Mission and they can download the application form. They can print it and share it with their colleagues so they can discuss what information they need to add.
When filling in the form on the platform, the information submitted can be saved as a draft at every step of the process.
In the next step, teachers have to provide evidence of the eSafety policies at their school.
When they select ‘Yes’, the system requires the applicant to either add a URL or upload a relevant document (PDF or JPG) and then add a description if needed. In all descriptions, applicants can write up to 2 500 characters (spaces included).
NOTE: To upload a document, the applicant should click on the ‘Upload documents’ button after selecting the document to upload. One document per statement is allowed. The applicant can delete a document they have uploaded if they want to upload a new one and repeat the procedure.
Once this is done, they click ‘Next’.
In steps 3 to 7, the applicants should reply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to the different statements. If the applicant does not know, they can select ‘I am not aware’, but this will count as a 'No'. When they select ‘Yes’ for a statement, they have to upload a document up to 10MB as evidence. At the end, they will have a text box where they must give a short description of the evidence they have uploaded for the questions. Finally, they have a text box where they are asked to describe what they plan to do in the next 2 years in relation to each eTwinning School Mission statement.
Below you can find screenshots of all the questions:
Once the applicant has filled in all the information and uploaded the relevant documents, they will need to download the ‘declaration of honour’, have it signed and stamped by the school principal, and upload it back into the form.
Once this has been done, the applicant clicks on ‘Save and Preview’ to check that the information is correct. If the applicant didn’t upload all the relevant documents, they will be notified.
At this stage, the applicant can download the completed application form.
If everything is okay, they click the ‘Submit’ button.
Once the form has been submitted, the applicant will receive an email to confirm that their submission was successful:
Your application has been submitted successfully.
Thank you
Kind regards,
The eTwinning team
If, upon review of the application, the NSO rejects it, the applicant will receive a notification on their ESEP desktop and the following email:
Dear _name,
Following your recent application for the eTwinning School Label, we wish to inform you that your application form for _school has been audited by your National Support Organisation. As a result, they have decided to reject the awarding of the eTwinning School Label at this time.
This is the reason given by your National Support Service:
_reason
If possible, please address the comments made by the NSO and re-submit the application with the relevant evidence by _resubmission-deadline.
Kind regards,
The eTwinning team
If the school can address the comments made by the NSO, they can re-submit the application with the relevant evidence (TIMEFRAME TO BE ANNOUNCED).
If the application is approved by the NSO, all the teachers at the school who are registered will receive a notification on their ESEP desktop and by email:
Dear _name
Congratulations! Your school has been awarded the eTwinning School Label 2023–2024. This is a great achievement by the eTwinning team in your school!
The official announcement will be made on the European School Educational Platform, other eTwinning news channels, and the European Commission's news channels this week.
What's next?You can proudly use the eTwinning School Label badge (attached) on your school website.
Your NSO will shorty send you a parcel containing some eTwinning materials and, of course, the eTwinning school plaque.
You will be invited to participate in the eTwinning Schools' Group and in the various activities for eTwinning Schools.
Congratulations again for being an example to all other schools. We count on your dedication and commitment to promoting eTwinning and its values, which are represented by the eTwinning Schools' Mission.
Kind regards,The eTwinning team
3. Evidence to be submitted
Applicants should submit relevant evidence to support their answers to each of the statements.
Data protection note: All the information provided as evidence will be treated confidentially for the sole purpose of evaluating the eTwinning School Label application by the NSO.
If you prefer, you can hide the personal information of people who are not registered with eTwinning.
Below, you can see the types of evidence that teachers can upload for each statement:
Shared leadership | |
Statement | Examples of evidence to be provided |
There is a shared school vision outlining the school's values and objectives that is shared with the whole school community. |
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The shared school vision has been translated into mission statements, which explain what the school is currently doing to achieve its vision. (*This might take the form of the school’s action plan). |
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The school’s leadership is not restricted to those who hold formal leadership roles, but involves other staff members who lead other school activities (e.g. eTwinning, Erasmus+ coordinator etc.). |
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There is a well-established sharing culture in the school where decision-making processes and goal setting are shared and collaborative practices. |
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Collaboration | |
Teachers plan their teaching activities together in official and informal meetings. |
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Teachers collaborate on shared projects and/or they engage in co-teaching activities. |
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The school collaborates with parents with the shared goal of maximising pupils’ learning outcomes and wellbeing. |
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The school collaborates with the local community (e.g. community organisations, sport clubs, education and training providers, government organisations, local business, and industry) to help pupils understand their role in the broader community. |
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Students as agents of change | |
Teachers and pupils work together from planning an activity to its actual implementation. |
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The school involves pupils in making decisions about school issues/project issues etc. |
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Pupils who have participated in a project are asked to present what they did at an open event at the school. |
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Pupils are involved in training other teachers/pupils on how to use eTwinning-ICT tools. |
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Pupils are involved in parents’ meetings or meetings with local authorities and promote eTwinning from the pupils’ perspective. |
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Pupils have opportunities to showcase their work at events outside school such as educational fairs, competitions, etc |
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Models for other schools | |
The school organises training courses on eTwinning (methodology, tools, opportunities) for its teachers and pupils. |
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The school staff organises training sessions for the schools in the area by presenting projects, tools, and teaching methods etc. |
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The school’s website is regularly updated to inform the community about all the school’s eTwinning activities. |
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The school staff (not just teachers) participates in events (e.g. educational conferences, etc.) to share the school’s work. |
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The school has an eTwinning corner to showcase eTwinning activities. |
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Inclusive and innovative learning organisations | |
The school creates and supports continuous learning opportunities for all staff e.g. participation in training, conferences, anddistant learning. |
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The school promotes team learning and collaboration among all staff. |
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The school nurtures a culture of inquiry, innovation, and exploration. |
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The school demonstrates activities that prove teachers’and pupils’ awareness of how toresponsibly use the internet. |
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The school benefits from partnerships developed with the external environment and the wider educational community (e.g.universities, community organisations,and subject experts etc.). |
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The school recognises and supports pupils with special needs, who might face learning, linguistic and social challenges, through specific support and actions that are aimed to increase their learning success. |
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