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Interview with Paul Even

Are you interested in getting involved in an eTwinning project with a school in Luxembourg? To learn about how eTwinning is working in Luxembourg, we recently talked to Paul Even, the Coordinator for eTwinning in Luxembourg

1. How does education in Luxembourg differ from other countries in Europe?

I think that the biggest difference between Luxembourg and other European countries lies in the importance of a multilingual education from the very beginning. Children in Luxembourg speak their native language, Luxembourgish (Lëtzebuergesch), at home or with their friends. In the first year of primary school (duration of 6 years) they learn German and in the second year they begin to learn French, so that they understand (speak and read) three languages when they finish primary school. In high school (duration of 7 years) pupils learn English as well and after four years they can also choose between Italian, Spanish and Portuguese as an elective.

2. How is ICT being implemented in Luxembourg?

The importance of ICT is growing in Luxembourg’s education system. The national education portals and close eTwinning working partners - myschool!, technolink and nortic - develop pedagogical tools for teachers from primary and secondary education and pupils from all ages. In high schools, ICT is more and more used in classes as working tools and is included in the official programmes of the Ministry.

3. How has eTwinning impacted your country? How are schools and teachers responding to it?

Luxembourg’s eTwinning Action started in October 2005. The National Support Service (NSS) is managed by the Ministry of Education and Vocational training through the National Socrates Agency in collaboration with the National Educational Portal “mySchool!” These institutions, which operate across the country, maintain contact and cooperation with all schools in Luxembourg. In this way, information can be disseminated centrally and across regions.
In order to make eTwinning accessible to as many schools as possible, close cooperation is maintained with these partner institutions as well as with Luxembourg’s eTwinning teachers. The teachers act as ambassadors and “multipliers” in their regions by publicising and distributing information about eTwinning throughout schools. They are supported by the NSS through the national eTwinning newsletter, PDF presentations and other material. Contact with eTwinning ambassadors is continuous through the collection of ideas and the planning of further activities. The NSS attaches great importance to ambassadors that take their work seriously.
From the very beginning, our aim was to publicise the Action through word of mouth promotion from participants to other teachers in their schools. This method of public relations appears to have been very effective in a small country with a total of 32 secondary schools and 2104 primary classes. For the moment there are 31 schools registered with 16 partnerships.

4. What kind of projects are Luxembourgian schools most often interested in?

It is very difficult to answer this question, because the focus of interest depends of the school system and age of the pupils; however, there are many projects dealing with language.

5. Are there special eTwinning activities going on in Luxembourg?

After the “eTwinning Weeks” this autumn and the annual eTwinning conference in October, which included the presence of the national Minister of Education and Vocational Training, the NSS is now preparing the next professional development workshops and work groups. Also, new registered schools now receive the national eTwinning Label in order to further recognise their pedagogical commitment to the eTwinning Action.

6. Do you have any advice for teachers who are interested in twinning up with schools in Luxembourg?

I think that eTwinning partnerships with schools from Luxembourg are very interesting because of the multilingual education of the pupils. They can easily handle a project with schools from many European countries due to the fact that they all learn three to four languages.
There are many schools from Luxembourg looking for partners, so don’t hesitate to contact them or the NSS. We will do our best to help them find a partnership!

Are you interested in getting involved in an eTwinning project with a school in Luxembourg?

Learn more about Luxembourg by having a look at information on its national school structure and eTwinning projects.