eTwinning Schools Conference - strengthening citizenship education in eTwinning Schools

Marcin Szala is an experienced educator. Currently he is one of the co-founders and heads of Liceum Artes Liberales, an innovative high school in Poland. He believes in the lasting transformative power of education in making societies fairer, more resilient and empowered. He was previously a deputy head of and part of the founding team at Akademeia High School, an academically selective school in Warsaw. He has experience teaching theory of knowledge (TOK) TOK in an International Baccalaureate (IB) programme and lecturing in a teacher development programme with Collegium Wratislaviense, where he was also Programme Director. He studied Physics and Philosophy at Oxford University, and is an alumnus of Leadership Academy of Poland, a Salzburg Global Seminar fellow and supports the UWC Poland/Polish Scholarship Scheme.

Irene Pateraki is a Senior Pedagogical and Community Manager at European Schoolnet. She holds a masters degree in Multicultural Education from Goldsmiths College, University of London and worked for several years as kindergarten teacher in Greece. For six years, she was seconded in the Greek Ministry of Education and worked as pedagogical expert in the eTwinning National Support Organization, and since 2017 has worked for the Central Support Service of the European School Education Platform and eTwinning.  She has created, organized and facilitated online courses, webinars, conferences and workshops for teachers from 45 countries and moderated the Creative Classroom eTwinning featured group for more than 10 years.

Nikolaos Mouratoglou holds a Doctorate from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He is adjunct Lecturer at the Department of Educational Sciences (University of Athens) and the Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences (European University of Cyprus), specialising in digital education, teacher training and counselling. He has (co-)authored more than 50 publications in (inter-national) scientific journals and conferences and has collaborated with national, European and international organisations and universities on projects related to teachers’ professional development, vocational education and training, AI and digital transformation, skills development and employability. He is currently the Pedagogical and Monitoring Manager at European Schoolent, working in the European Commission’s initiatives, the European School Education Platform and eTwinning.

Anca Couasnon has been an eTwinning ambassador from France since 2018. She teaches English and French as a foreign language at a sports school in the Eastern Pyrenees, in the small ski resort of Font Romeu. In addition to her teaching role, she assesses eTwinning projects for the National Quality Label, a mission she finds particularly rewarding as it allows her to continuously learn, discover new ideas and explore innovative tools. She also moderates the eTwinning featured group ‘Small and Remote Schools Network’. Passionate about collaborative work, peer learning and innovative teaching, she is dedicated to fostering meaningful educational experiences through international collaboration.

Juan Carlos Garrido Herrero has been an eTwinner and eTwinning ambassador since 2012, with several NQLs and EQLs, a National eTwinning Prize and two European eTwinning Prizes. He has worked for the Spanish NSO since 2018, and is in charge of several tasks, including teacher training, the national eTwinning ambassadors net, quality in eTwinning, national and international events, national prizes and the eTwinning School Label, among others.

Miriam Salinas moderates the ‘History’ featured eTwinning group, integrating activities such as Socratic dialogue and thinking routines. She also coordinates the EPAS+ European Union programme, complementing her work in fostering critical thinking and civic engagement. She is also involved in the eTwinning project Eurocitizens, which focuses on European citizenship and values.

Emelie Hahn is a lead teacher and teaches Social studies and German at Gränbyskolan, Uppsala, Sweden. She is an author and an educational materials developer. Emelie is a long-time eTwinner and an eTwinning ambassador for Sweden. She has won the European Language Label and other educational prizes.

Lene Yang Møller is a lower secondary education teacher and has been an eTwinning enthusiast and ambassador for many years. She teaches mathematics and science at a school for gifted children in Aarhus, Denmark. The school’s ethos is based on project-based learning and she is enthusiastic about sharing her experiences in this field.