January 20, 2021
The Institute of Informatics & Telecommunications (IIT), NCSR Demokritos is the coordinator of the new project EU–Pri: An approach how to teach citizenship education in the prison which runs in collaboration with the Department of Social & Educational Policy of the University of the Peloponnese (UoP) and the support of the Robert Bosch Stiftung Foundation.
The project is being implemented at the premises of a Second Chance School in a prison located in Athens and includes the implementation of workshops with the use of technological sciences, like Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and 5G Networks.
The project aims to enrich the knowledge of adult students-inmates about their civic and European identity rights making them aware of European values and at the same time empowering their self-confidence and self-esteem. By providing them with the chance to participate in the context of the school society and decide on issues that affect them the project aims to cultivate a more inclusive and democratic school environment. The weekly workshops consist of a working team for participants to learn how to work in groups and collaborate with each other. The workshops are designed respecting the principles of citizenship education and are based on the Competences for Democratic Culture as published by the Council of Europe. The working team acts as a Student Council, the members of which are able to act as mediators between the educators and the other students, to negotiate with the educators and the prison Council and to recognise the needs of their school, prioritise them and suggest corresponding solutions. At the same time, the working team has also to transmit the knowledge/experience to the other students by organising workshops and seminars.
Education in prison, and most important – citizenship education – aims to empower prisoners for their future re-integration into society as active citizens, reducing the possibilities to return back to criminal behaviours.
The implementation of the EU–Pri is an approach on how to teach citizenship education in the prison project which was made possible through funding of the Robert Bosch Stiftung Foundation.
The Press Release is available to review in English and Greek.