eTwinning is a community that allows teachers and schools across Europe to collaborate online, find partners, and share projects. It provides tools for professional development through online workshops and helps teachers develop skills in using web technologies. Schools benefit from eTwinning through improved collaboration between teachers, unique projects, and community involvement. Teachers can get started by visiting the eTwinning website to find inspiration and contacting an eTwinning ambassador for guidance and support.

1. Group 1 Presentation to Headteachers

2. What is eTwinning? eTwinning is a community of teachers and educational practitioners from across Europe. It is a place where teachers can be creative and inspirational with their learning. eTwinning offers schools the tools to find, collaborate and celebrate learning with partners from a large number of countries. From eTwinning, schools can easily progress onto Comenius projects that provide funding and travel opportunities for Headteachers, teachers and students.

3. Learning The ‘eTwinning’ Way With eTwinning, learning becomes a fun and enjoyable experience. It encourages creativity and innovation, and develops problem solving skills – all objectives outlined in the Life Long Learning Plan in response to the European Commission's ‘Europe 2020’ Strategy. It enables teachers and students alike to develop capability in the use of a wide range of web 2.0 technologies. It provides a ‘real’ audience for children through sharing of work.

4. What can eTwinning Offer Teachers? eTwinning is a successful tool for Professional Development. It is free of charge, and enables teachers to access a large number of workshops online to enhance their teaching, meaning that training can take place within the school itself. eTwinning creates better teachers, more interesting teachers, teachers that can work in the new ‘technological environment’ and keep up with fast paced development in this area.

5. What can eTwinning Offer Your School? Through eTwinning, teachers develop collaboration and teamwork skills. As there is no set path or route to take when eTwinning, projects are unique. The new challenges and opportunities that this creates leads to raised standards within the school. Teams within the school can work together on a project, bringing together teachers from many different disciplines within a school. eTwinning can involve the wider community, ensuring parents, Governors and members of the wider community become part of the learning process.

6. How to Start eTwinning Visit the eTwinning website to see a variety of inspirational projects. http://www.etwinning.net/en/pub/profile.cfm?fuseaction=app.project&pid=17998&lang=en http://www.etwinning.net/en/pub/profile.cfm?fuseaction=app.project&pid=26459&lang=e Contact your NSS through the website to get in touch with an eTwinning ambassador or mentor – these are active and experienced members of eTwinning who will be able to guide you through the process of starting eTwinning, and help support your eTwinning journey.

7. eTwinning – Modern Teaching for Modern Schools ‘ When people are intrinsically motivated they enjoy learning. They are more likely to succeed at whatever tasks they do. They are less easily discouraged. They work harder, longer and more effectively at learning. They take on challenges.’ Make Learning Fun by Jon Jenkins and Gerrit Visse, http://www.imaginal.nl/learningFun.htm This is eTwinning