KOSTIVERE SCHOOL
CONTEXT
Olga, the principal of Kostivere school, told us that Kostivere has 753 inhabitants. It belongs to the Harju region in Estonia, situated 30 minutes away from Tallinn, the capital, and near Jagala river and the Baltic sea. She added that most of the families live in the countryside but work in the city of Tallinn.
Kostivere school is a public school. Parents do not have to pay for anything, therefore, they have breakfast and lunch included. The school starts on the 1st September and finished on the 10th June. There are 2 weeks off at Christmas and a week of in April, not a religious holiday because people are either Orthodox or Protestant.
Olga emphasizes the fact that they enjoy having autonomy from the government to choose what classes are taught outside the building, choose the book and also decide whether the students have to do homework or not. The principal has also the power to give incentives to quality teachers.
WELCOMING
Olga told us that it is a public school that has 114 students and 24 teachers. They start classes at 08:30 and finish at 16:00. They have students aged from 7 to 16 years whose families have a very good socio economic and cultural background. Kostivere school was built in 1984 but it was rebuilt in 2013, therefore, their facilities are almost brand new. They have a skate park, a gym with an attached room of workout machines, a football field, a basketball court and a canteen. They do not have a theatre because they use a Cultural Center a few minutes away from the school.
Dues alumnes amb molt bon nivell d’anglès ens varen ensenyar l’escola. Les 8 professores d’Itàlia i l’Isaac i jo vam poder veure totes les aules de l’escola. L’Anni, una de les alumnes, ens explicava que de 1r fins a 4t, l’alumnat no canvia d’aula tot i canviar de matèria, en canvi; l’alumnat de 5è en endavant, l’alumnat va d’una classe a l’altre perquè tenen classes específiques de música, plàstica, matemàtiques, Anglès, laboratori i informàtica.
En toda la escuela hay 6 alumnos con necesidades especiales que solamente comparten espacios con la resta del alumnado cuando comen, a la hora del recreo y en fiestas o celebraciones especiales. En cada curso, no hay mas de 20 alumnos por clase, un verdadero lujo!
