Victoriia Shefer, a student of the 401-FH group of the specialty 035 "Philology" at the National University "Yuri Kondratyuk Poltava Polytechnic", became an active participant in the Erasmus+ training programme "Developing Mental Health Through Youth Work and Non-formal Education", which took place on April 13-21, 2022 in Store Klaus (Denmark).
The training was part of the Erasmus+ programme implemented by the Copenhagen Youth Network together with the Youth for Society Georgia as well as partner organizations from Europe and abroad with the financial support of the European Commission. The program aims to offer the necessary practical tools and support the development of professional competencies of young professionals working with vulnerable youth.
Thirty active young people and youth tutors from Denmark, Germany, Italy, Greece, Ukraine, Jordan, Turkey, Hungary, Poland and Georgia took part in the project. They had the opportunity to take part in intensive classes containing theoretical, practical and experimental approaches to training.
The training was conducted by coaches with many years of international experience and deep knowledge in psychology, especially in the field of youth mental health and non-formal education, and the focus was on both general ideas of human psychology and specific issues of the peculiarities of mental health of young people, mental work, behavior models and implementation of acquired knowledge in non-formal education.
"The impressive diversity of cultures has enabled each participating country to express their own views and opinions on such important topics and to understand that despite the differences in cultures and mentalities, we are, first and foremost, human beings and in this we are alike. Personally, the training helped me to form a holistic view of the realities and find possible answers to current issues as well as contribute to building the capacity of their organizations," – commented the participant of the training Victoriia Shefer.
At the first stage of the project, trainings on the basics of mental health and work with youth were conducted, and after the training, in the second phase of the project, the participants had the opportunity to translate their ideas into reality and organize events for young people to disseminate information to their local communities on maintaining the youth mental health, a reasonable lifestyle, and the formation of resilience.
The most important thing is that within the framework of the project, a practical toolkit was created for youth workers, coaches and stakeholders to help young professionals understand what mental health is and how to talk about it. In addition, youth leaders, teachers, educators, lecturers, professionals and volunteer coaches were offered specific ideas on maintaining mental health through youth work and non-formal educational activities, as well as involving young people in the study of such an important topic. The toolkit will be published on the Copenhagen Youth Network's official website and on the portal of educational instruments – Salto until the end of May.
"Erasmus+ International Academic Mobility Programmes are a great opportunity not only to deepen your knowledge of English and other languages but also to gain new skills, broaden your horizons, learn about European values and make friends from other countries. Words of sincere gratitude to the Ukrainian NGO "Development and Initiative" and project coordinator – the Head of International Projects "Dnipro Polytechnic" Kateryna Priazhnykova for giving our student the opportunity to develop and study, even during the war," – commented the guarantor of specialty 035 "Philology" – Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Germanic Philology and Translation of the National University "Yuri Kondratyuk Poltava Polytechnic" Anna Pavelieva.
National University "Yuri Kondratyuk Poltava Polytechnic" has supported a flash mob dedicated to the 35th anniversary of Erasmus+ in Ukraine.
Earlier, the student took part in the project of social entrepreneurship development and online training under the Erasmus+ programme "Volunteers beyond borders", and Poltava Polytechnic scientist Anna Pavelieva became a participant in the 5-day online academic mobility Erasmus+ programme "Future Skills Now", dedicated to improving professional skills of young teachers and scientists.
Media Center of
National University “Yuri Kondratyuk Poltava Polytechnic”
