With help from Colombia
The teaching materials developed by Mi Cuerpo/Min Krop are, at their core, about Colombia and are designed for Spanish lessons.
Students encounter social issues from everyday life, explore gender equality and gain insight into the cultural and social context in which Colombians live. The materials have all been developed with Colombians who know the realities of their own country.
But the learning does not stop at Colombia's borders.
As part of the project, students work with four different elements: written materials, a card game featuring real-life situations from everyday life in Colombia, and a set of tools that allows students to investigate gender equality at their own school or in their local community. The students also work with the podcast Miradas cruzadas: Perspectives on Latin America throughout the project.
And it is precisely the encounter between Colombia and the students' own everyday lives in Denmark that makes a difference.
Blown away by the students' response
The card game and podcast are based on real-life situations experienced by the Colombian partners themselves. The situations have been developed to show different experiences of gender equality in Colombia – not only for women, but also for men and LGBT+ people. This gives students an insight into real people's everyday lives rather than an abstract or stereotypical picture of Colombia.
The materials were developed in close collaboration with Mi Cuerpo/Min Krop Colombia, which contributed experiences and perspectives from the Colombian context. Students and teachers from the gymnasiums were also involved throughout the process, helping to adapt the materials to their level, interests and the time actually available in the classroom.
This means that students are not only learning about a reality far from Denmark. They are also being asked to look at their own.
Using the digital diagnostic tool, students assess gender equality at their school or in their local area. And the project has already produced an interesting result: students' assessments are generally lower than they had expected.
This has prompted some students to ask what they themselves can do differently.
"Many of the students have become extremely motivated to find out what they can do in their everyday lives to improve gender equality in Denmark," says Salka Wollesen Breum, founder of Mi Cuerpo/Min Krop.
At one of the schools, the teacher was reportedly surprised by the students' response.
"She was blown away by the students' response," says Salka Wollesen Breum.
After the summer break, the students were highly motivated to continue working with Colombia on their own initiative. They began exploring how they could improve gender equality at their own school – and how they could get others involved in the effort.
Taking Colombia with them
For Salka Wollesen Breum, the most important result is not simply that students learn about gender equality in Colombia. It is that they begin to examine their own reality.
Several students have continued working with topics from the project in their major written school projects, known as studieretningsprojekt (SRP), as well as in their exams. Teachers have contacted Mi Cuerpo/Min Krop because students have chosen to explore topics they first encountered through the Colombia-focused teaching programme and needed additional material for their work.
At the same time, teachers report that students remember the programme and are motivated to challenge the status quo at their own school.
According to Salka Wollesen Breum, this is partly because students and teachers were involved in developing the materials, while the local partner in Colombia ensured that the teaching was grounded in the experiences and perspectives of people who live with these issues.
"Many of the students highlight the programme as one of the things that has made the biggest impression on them," says Salka Wollesen Breum.
About the grant
LOCATION: Denmark/Colombia
PARTNERS: Mi Cuerpo/Min Krop Colombia/Denmark
TITLE: Engaging students for gender equality
GRANT: EUR 17,413 / DKK 130,174