B Class students of Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna in the “Mathematics Symposium of Attica: A Day on Mathematics” 🎓

With great pleasure, we congratulate the students Vasiliou Eirini, Travlou Magdalini, Tsavala Panagiota, Giannoulas Konstantinos, Papadopoulos Christos, and Prapas Stamatios, who represented the Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna, on Saturday, April 5, with a presentation at the “Mathematics Symposium of Attica: A Day on Mathematics”, organized by all the Mathematics Consultants of Attica under the auspices of the PDE of Attica.

The students of the Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna presented in an impressive way Graph Theory, a branch of Mathematics that “hides” behind social networks, GPS routes, the logic of games but also our everyday life!

With examples from real situations, clever visualizations and simple but apt questions, they proved that Mathematics can be understandable, attractive and… everywhere around us.

What do friends on social media (Instagram, Facebook), bus and metro schedules have in common? They can all be analyzed with Graph Theory – and our students did it with impressive clarity and passion!

All student presentations of the “Mathematics Symposium: A Day on Mathematics” stood out for the originality, creativity and enthusiasm with which Mathematics was approached. Through reflections and experiential activities, the students demonstrated in practice that Mathematics is not just numbers, but a way of thinking, creation and collaboration.

Congratulations to the students for their creative work and to the teachers who encouraged them to seek Mathematics out of their notebooks!

Warm thanks also to the Mathematicians of the Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna, who supported and guided the children in this endeavor – their contribution was valuable and essential.

Job shadowing in Sigtuna (Sweden) within the framework of the Erasmus+KA121, in March-April 2025

As part of the European Erasmus Project 2024-1-EL01-KA121-SCH-000228006 of the Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna, the Mathematician and Vice Principal of our School, Dr. Argyri Panagiota, participated in job shadowing at the Sigtunaskolan Humanistiska Läroverket (SSHL) High School, in Sigtuna, Sweden, from Monday, March 31, 2025 to Friday, April 4, 2025.

 

SSHL is one of the most renowned boarding schools internationally and one of the leading educational institutions in Sweden, combining academic excellence with a comprehensive student experience. Multiculturalism and quality education make it an excellent destination for students seeking an international perspective in their education.

For this reason, the Erasmus+ KA121 program was a unique opportunity for the teacher to gain valuable experience and knowledge, as well as to develop professional skills. More specifically, through attending courses, a direct insight into the teaching process and the interaction between students and teachers was obtained. Participation in the student organization workshops provided valuable knowledge regarding the development of students’ autonomy and leadership skills, but mainly the cultivation of a culture of youth participation, for the formation of active and responsible citizens. Through the involvement of students in organizations, which include decision-making processes, voluntary actions, student and social initiatives, young people acquire skills, strengthen their voice and actively contribute to shaping their future.

 

The experience of a different educational system offered valuable knowledge regarding the teaching subjects of the Curriculum and in particular the organization and implementation of the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB DP), the methods of assessing student performance and the methods of utilizing new technologies. Exposure to different cultural and educational environments enhances the understanding and acceptance of diversity, contributing to the creation of a more inclusive school environment.

In particular, staying within the boarding school as a guest teacher offered her a unique opportunity for a deeper understanding of the educational culture, the cultivation of autonomy and the development of self-discipline. Education is not limited to class hours. Students develop skills through group activities, studying in common areas and interacting with peers and teachers in a more informal environment. Experiencing the daily lives of students, she was able to understand the challenges they face, such as adapting to a rigorous schedule. Finally, as a guest teacher at the boarding school, she had the opportunity to interact more closely with colleagues and exchange ideas in a more natural and informal context, such as during meals or shared activities.

In summary, participating in the Erasmus+ KA121 program through job shadowing at SSHL was a transformative experience both professionally and personally. The knowledge, skills and new teaching approaches acquired can be used to improve educational practice and create a dynamic, participatory and innovative learning environment.

For this unique educational experience, the Vice Principal of Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna Dr. Argyri Panagiota would like to warmly thank the Principal Kerry Browning, the administrative and educational staff at SSHL High School, and Mr. Georgios Savvas for the invitation, the organization of the program of activities and the high quality of the hospitality services provided at the boarding school. Also warm thanks to Dr. Sofoklis Sotiriou, Director of the Department of Research and Development of Hellenic-German Education, for the recommendation to her to do job shadowing at SSHL High School.

Visit to the Faculty of Philosophy at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (N.K.U.A.)

On Monday, March 31, 2025, the Human Sciences Orientation classes of our High School 3rd and 2nd grades had a very important experience. The students and accompanying teachers from Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna visited the facilities of the Faculty of Philosophy at the N.K.U.A. and attended presentations by the university professors about career orientation and professional opportunities for students of the Faculty.
Specifically, Ms. K. Menouti from the Department of French Studies, Ms. V. Eustathiou from the Department of Psychology, Mr. P. Petridis from the Department of History and Archaeology, and Ms. D. Menti from the Department of Philology spoke to the students in the welcoming space of the Faculty of Philosophy.
In a follow-up discussion, the students were able to clarify many of their questions regarding the curricula and prospects for graduates of the above departments.
Earlier, the participating students, accompanied by their Greek Language teachers Mr. G. Thodis and Ms. A. Tsachtsarli, visited the Library of the Faculty of Philosophy, where they were informed by Mr. Tourkogiannnis, Ms. Loumbaki, and Mr. Argyriou about the wide range of fields covered by the humanities studies and the various categories of related materials available.
Finally, they attended a lecture on “Psychodiagnostics and the Evaluation of Personality, Mental Functioning, and Psychopathology” by Professor Mr. Stavros in one of the Faculty’s amphitheaters.
We would like to warmly thank the departments of the Faculty of Philosophy at the N.K.U.A., the library staff, the professors who informed our students, and especially Professor Plato Petridis from the Department of Byzantine Archaeology for his invaluable assistance and the organization of this visit.

Participation of Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna in the music event “The Fantastic Museum of Mr. Manos”

On Sunday, March 30, 2025, the music group of our High School, consisting of 1st-year students Georgios Zacharakis, Dimitrios Zacharakis and Theodora Palla, presented, in an exceptional manner, the following works at the music meeting organized by the Model Secondary School of Ionideios School of Piraeus, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Manos Hadjidakis:

• “Once upon a time”, from the album “Roman Market”
• “Waltz of Lost Dreams”, from the film “Lost Dreams”
• “The Concert”, from the orchestral suite “The Smile of the Mona Lisa”.

The music meeting for the centenary of Manos Hadjidakis’ birth featured music groups from Experimental, Model, and Music Schools across Greece.
The person responsible for the participation of our High School’s group was the School Principal, Mrs. Antigoni Laskaridou.

Warm congratulations to our music group, which contributed to this enchanting music meeting, “which offered the opportunity for experiential engagement with our cultural heritage,” as emphasized by the Education Quality Supervisor of the Piraeus Directorate of Secondary Education, Dr. Chrysanthi Koumparou.

Visit of the Clubs of Cinematic Education of the 1st and 2nd Grades to the Greek Film Archive

On Wednesday, April 2, 2025, the students of the Clubs of Cinematic Education of the 1st and 2nd Grades, accompanied by the teachers in charge Sotirios Kollias and Eirini Arnaouti, visited the Greek Film Archive. They had the opportunity to first tour the museum of the Film Archive, where they saw, among other things, an impressive collection of early projection and editing machines, as well as many interesting exhibits related to the history of cinema in Greece.

They then visited the workshops for the restoration of old films, where they spoke with technicians about the process of transferring a film from negative to digital format. Afterwards, they watched the restored Greek ethnographic documentary from 1961, “Fishermen and Fishing,” which documents the life of the fishermen and the local community of Molyvos in Lesbos at that time. Immediately after that, they participated in workshops on dramatizing both static and moving images, inspired by the content of the documentary.

It was an overall very interesting experience, and the students gained valuable stimuli, which they will creatively utilize in their educational engagement with the art of cinema.

 

 

Model teaching in the Modern Greek Language course

On Thursday, March 27, 2025, and on the occasion of the Erasmus+ KA121 program, teacher Dimitrios Kominos conducted a model teaching session in the Modern Greek Language course of the 3rd Grade. The lesson plan, on which the teaching was based, focused on one of the axes of the course, which concerns the preparation of students for their active participation in social and political events and on the capacity of academic citizenship.

The main “tool” for the implementation of this specific lesson plan was the well-known speech of former US President Barack Obama during his visit to Athens in November 2016. The students had the opportunity to watch excerpts of the speech on the interactive board and then analyze, evaluate and process them linguistically on the worksheets that were distributed. The students then worked in groups and, utilizing their creativity and critical thinking, were asked to work as government officials and provide solutions to pressing social and economic issues that concern the Greek society. The teaching was attended by teachers from our school who completed an evaluation questionnaire at the end.

It should be noted that this specific lesson plan serves the axes of democracy and creativity, on which the school unit is working within the framework of the Erasmus+KA120 Accreditation, which it has received for the period from February 1, 2024 to December 31, 2027.

 

Conducting the Experiment of Eratosthenes

On Friday, 21/03/25, in the yard of Evangeliki Model High School Smyrna, at solar noon, the activity of measuring the Earth’s radius using the method of Eratosthenes took place. This activity is organized every year on the same date during the spring equinox, March 20-21, under the auspices of PANEKFE (Panhellenic Union of Laboratory Center Coordinators for Physical Sciences).

It involves measuring the Earth’s radius using the method of Eratosthenes of Cyrene, who, in the 2nd century AD, calculated the Earth’s circumference with very simple tools and, from there, its radius. For more information about the activity, visit the link: The Experiment of Eratosthenes.

From our school, 16 students from the 1st and 2nd grades of High School participated, equipped with a broomstick, a measuring tape, and a level. The calculation of the distance from the Evangeliki School yard to the Equator was made using the software Distance Calculator.

The best measurement was made by the students of B2class, Kyriakakis Panagiotis, Boulamatsis Konstantinos, and Nonota Sofia. The result is attached here, and it is 6,113.3 km, with a relative error from the actual value (6,371 km) of only 4.04%!

We thank all the students for their participation and enthusiasm!!

The Physics Teachers:
Vamvakas Ioannis, Katsinis Georgios, Toulatou Margarita

 

  

 

Model teaching in the subject of Computer Science Applications

On Wednesday 26 March 2025, as part of the Erasmus+ KA121 project implemented by our school, Ms. Panagiota Ismini Matthe, Computer Science teacher at Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna, conducted a model teaching in the Computer Science subject for fellow teachers, who at the end completed observation forms.

The teaching scenario was entitled “Create a Digital Assistant for Plant Watering” and was implemented with group A2. The goal was to enhance students’ computational thinking and creativity, as well as to promote environmental education. The students were asked to create a digital assistant for plant watering using the micorcontroller arduino UNO and a soil moisture sensor.

Ideas implemented in the learning scenario derived from the teacher’s job shadowing experience in Sabadell, Spain.

 

You can read the teaching scenario in Greek here.

Visit of the Chemistry and Biology Clubs to the Thriasio Wastewater Treatment Center and the First Microalgae Pilot Unit in Europe

On Thursday, March 13, 2025, students from the Chemistry (supervised by: Christodoulos Makedonas) and Biology (supervised by: Katerina Ntakou) Clubs of our school visited the Thriasio Wastewater Treatment Center (K.E.L.T.) of E.Y.D.A.P. in Aspropyrgos.

The visit was part of the European project RHE-MEDiation (https://rhemediation.eu/), in which E.Y.D.A.P. (https://www.eydap.gr/) and the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR, https://www.hcmr.gr/en/) are participating from the Greek side. One of the main objectives of the RHE-MEDiation program is the operation of pilot wastewater treatment units with photo-bioreactors, which are based on microalgae. With these photo-bioreactors, it is expected that heavy metals, PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals”, various pharmaceutical substances, pesticides, and other chemical pollutants can be removed from urban wastewater. The ultimate goal of the program is the protection and improvement of the water quality in the Mediterranean (EU Mission: Restore our Ocean and Waters).

The visit began with Dr. George Katsouras, a chemical oceanographer from E.Y.D.A.P.’s R&D Department, who initially described the areas in which E.Y.D.A.P. and HCMR are active. He then explained the five-stage process used for wastewater treatment at the K.E.L.T. In the last part of his presentation, Dr. Katsouras provided a detailed description of the goals of the RHE-MEDiation program and the expected results from its implementation. A free discussion followed with him and Mr. Nikos Strefhtaris (MSc), marine biologist and representative of HCMR, during which our team had the opportunity to learn more about PFAS, the “forever chemicals”, and the role that microalgae are expected to play in wastewater treatment.

After the necessary break, our students were guided through the facilities of the K.E.L.T. and then to the pilot unit of the photo-bioreactors. There, they learned more about their role from Ms. Anthi Yfanti, a researcher at E.Y.D.A.P.’s R&D Department and chemical oceanographer. Ms. Yfanti discussed with our group the challenges they face, the processes of quality control, and the prospects for the wider application of such technologies.

Finally, our students had the opportunity to discuss specific issues concerning the monitoring and proper functioning of the subunits of the K.E.L.T. with Dr. George Tzatsanifos, an electrical engineer. Among other things, everyone was struck by Dr. Tzatsanifos’s mention of the frequent lightning strikes on one of the center’s tanks.

Overall, beyond the knowledge our students gained, equally important was their realization that the proper functioning of such a facility requires the collaboration of many different specialties and scientific fields. Through this experience, our students understood in practice the importance of interdisciplinary approaches and teamwork in addressing modern environmental challenges.

We would like to express our special thanks to the above-mentioned scientists and engineers, both for their warm hospitality at the K.E.L.T. and for their excellent presentations, as well as for their willingness to discuss the many questions from our students.

Finally, we would like to thank Mr. Ilias Stefanou, the communication officer of E.Y.D.A.P., who organized our visit and took care of all the necessary details.

 

Active Citizenship Enhancement Initiative

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On Thursday, March 13, 2025, the Active Citizenship Enhancement Initiative was successfully implemented in Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna.

The initiative aimed to cultivate modern transversal skills associated with Active Citizenship and directly linked to one or more of the 17 thematic fields of the Active Citizen Actions Curriculum of the Institute of Educational Policy (IEP). Through the undertaking of relevant collective actions and targeted activities based on experiential learning by the school community, the initiative was structured around three key pillars:

✔ Awareness and reflection on issues affecting the community (school, local, broader).

✔ Designing organized interventions to address these issues.

✔ Taking action to resolve or mitigate these issues.

The ultimate goal is to develop critically thinking active citizens, who acquire the necessary skills and the disposition to contribute to public affairs, reflect critically on societal matters, and apply humanitarian and democratic principles. Through this ecosystemic approach, students recognize the significance of the systems they belong to and their role within them, actively engaging in collaborative citizenship actions.

Thematic Area of the Initiative

The initiative falls under the thematic field SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being and is specifically aligned with two of the six active citizenship themes:

✔ b) Coexistence in the community

✔ d) Promotion of quality of life for the general population (health, education, rights)

Subject Area: Physical Education (in the third year of high school)

Brief Description of the Initiative

The initiative involved the participation of students from all grades of Evangeliki Model High School of Smyrna, under the organization of the third year of high school students and the guidance of the Physical Education teachers. It focused on the organization of intra-school sports activities, supported by volunteer student teams. These teams played a crucial role in ensuring the smooth and effective implementation of the activities, promoting equal participation, fostering initiative-taking, and encouraging collaborations between different stakeholders.

This initiative highlights the importance of the system in which students operate, emphasizing their role in collaborative citizenship actions.

Expected Learning Outcomes

After participating in this active citizenship initiative, students will be able to:

✔ Promote health and well-being in the community and school through volunteer teams.

✔ Develop and implement programs for health promotion and disease prevention.

✔ Take care of their personal well-being while also considering the well-being of others.

✔ Contribute to improving education, fostering equal and inclusive participation for all students through activities such as presentations, workshops, and awareness campaigns.

✔ Actively participate in social initiatives and contribute to improving society (local, broader, and global).

Additional Goals of the Initiative

✔ Encouraging and educating young people in adopting lifelong healthy habits.

✔ Cultivating ethical and democratic values.

✔ Fostering a sense of belonging and strengthening social cohesion.

✔ Encouraging teamwork, recognizing diversity, and appreciating the contributions of all.

✔ Promoting initiative-taking and collaborative efforts to tackle challenges.

✔ Building self-confidence and experiencing the joy of play.

Recognition of Participation

Upon graduation, each student receives a certificate of participation alongside their diploma, documenting their involvement in active citizenship initiatives and the corresponding grade level in which they participated.

  • Congratulations to all students from all three grades who took part in the initiative!
  • Special recognition to Vasilis Papadopoulos and Nikolaos Loumos (third year of high school) for their valuable contribution.
  • A heartfelt thank you to the Mayor of Palaio Faliro, Mr. Ioannis Fostiropoulos, and Deputy Mayor, Mr. Michalis Koumentakos, for hosting our school at the Palaio Faliro Municipal Sports Center for this event.

Responsible Physical Education Educators:

George Sarlas  – Smaragda Belte