Call for Workshop Leaders
Dear YFU Volunteer,
We are happy to invite you to the upcoming Young Europeans’ Seminar (YES) 2015! We are offering you the opportunity to become a participant of the amazing YES 2015 as a Workshop Leader (WSL).
As a WSL your role will be to design a workshop, which helps students see different aspects of the topic of the YES 2015 while using diverse methods and approaches.
In this document you will find:
- Relevant information about the YES 2015
- Task description of Workshop Leaders (WSL)
- Requirements for a Workshop Leader
- Contact information
- Application form for Workshop Leaders
YES 2015
The Young Europeans’ Seminar (YES) 2015, taking place from 29 June to 3 July, is the year-end seminar for all the YFU exchange students who are from Europe and who spent their exchange year in another European country. This summer about 500 students and more than 100 volunteers will take part in the seminar.
The YES aims at promoting discussions of current European issues among the students by using their intercultural experiences. The participants are enabled and encouraged to understand themselves as young Europeans with responsibilities and opportunities in a changing interdependent world. Each year, the YES has a specific topic, which forms the basis of all the activities at the YES.
The topic for the YES 2015 is “Human Rights in a Digitalized World”. During the YES 2015, YFU volunteers will invite students to think about how our daily behavior online impacts others and affects the exercise and promotion of human rights globally. Every action that we take online leaves a digital footprint and it is our responsibility to shape the path ahead. Young people who are well informed, empowered and capable of questioning will then be able to rewrite reality, share values and change the online and offline world.
For more information, please consult the attached Description Letter.
Task description of a WSL
As a WSL, your task is to develop and lead a workshop for about 20–30 students aged 15 to 18. Each workshop should be two-hours’-long and needs to be facilitated three times to different groups of students. The workshop topics should relate to the overall YES theme.
We are looking for a selection of workshops that differ in topic, approaches and methods. The YES 2015 team can support you in the selection of the topic and the development of your workshop. To help you prepare your workshop and get relevant feedback, an e-platform will be made available for you before the YES. The handbooks to help you prepare the workshop will be sent out as well.
Take into consideration that the students get to choose the workshops they wish to participate in. However, if they fail to sign up on time, they will be assigned to workshops randomly or according to language skills.
Materials you may need for your workshop will be arranged by the YES 2015 team (if you require something unusual or more expensive, please check with the WSL Coordinator Ieva Kotryna Silickaite about the possibilities in advance).
Aim and objectives of the Workshops at YES 2015:
The aim of the workshops is to create a learning space for the students about topics related to Human Rights in a Digitalized World. Some of the objectives of the workshops at YES 2015 are:
- Raise awarenes of how our daily behavior online leaves a digital footprint, which impacts others and affects the exercise and promotion of human rights globally;
- Help students identify and recognise different strategies of manipulation and misinformation, as well as tools and approaches designed to make positive changes on the way digital media deal with human rights;
- Inform and empower students to take actions and to adopt a responsible aptitude on the way they create, publish, distribute and consume media contents.
Requirements for a WSL
The workshops have an important part in covering different aspects of the YES while giving the students space for self-reflection. As such, your role as a WSL will be very important at the YES. As a WSL you should:
- be at least 21 years old and be able to lead a workshop in English and/or German;
- have some previous experience in training, facilitating or leading a workshop;
- be able to develop the concept of a workshop that is relevant to the topic of the YES 2015 by the end of March 2015;
- familiarize yourself with the Workshop Leaders’ Guidebook, which will be sent to you upon selection, and develop your Workshop according to its guidelines;
- be committed to leading your workshop three times;
- have regular internet access and time to develop the concept of your WS in the e-platform before the YES;
*Members of the European Trainers’ Network (ETN) are strongly encouraged to apply. Experience as a trainer will be considered as a preferential criterion.
If you don’t meet some of these requirements, but still feel that you would be a good WSL, please don’t hesitate to fill out the application form nevertheless!
If you are interested in developing a workshop, but are unsure how to approach the topic, don’t hesitate to contact the WSL coordinator. You do NOT have to have a fully-developed workshop while applying to become a WSL, but rather a general idea of what you would like to do. We would also recommend you contact the WSL coordinator to help you ensure that your workshop topic relates to the overall theme of YES 2015.
Contact information
If you have any questions about the topic, development of your workshop or any other comments related to this Call, please do not hesitate to contact me.
The selection of WSL will be made considering a balance of topics, methods, experiences, diversity of YFU organisations, genders and languages. You will get an answer and further information by e-mail in the beginning of March 2015.
Good luck!
With warm greetings,
Ieva Kotryna Silickaite
WSL Coordinator
Skype: ieva_kotryna
We are looking forwards to receiving your application!
On behalf of the International Organizing Team,
Valentina Razvan Ieva
YES Project Coordinator Content Team Coordinator Logistics‘ Team Leader
Application form for Workshop Leaders
Please fill in the form below and forward it to your national YFU organization by 21 February 2015[1]!
First Name:Last Name:
Are you…
□ Male □ Female□ Other ()
Your YFU Organisation:
Date of birth:
Nationality / Native language:
Exchange year (if applicable):
Host country:
Occupation:
E-mail:
Telephone number (mobile):
Postal address:
Language abilities (be as specific as possible):
I speak / I understand / I am able to lead a session in
English
German
Any other languages
I have a valid life guard / first aid (please check) certificate:
Yes valid until: No
If you have further medication education, please specify:
What is your relevant experience as a participant attrainings/workshops/etc.?
What is your relevant experience in leading a training/workshop/etc.?
What is your motivation for participating at the YES 2015 as a WSL?
What is your field of study/expertise?
Tentative title of your workshop:
Aim of the workshop:
Brief description of the content and methods you will use:
How does your workshop fit into the overall flow of the topic of the YES 2015?
Materials needed (if already known):
Additional comments:
Thank you!
Please remember to send this form to your national YFU organization by 21 February 2015[2]!
15-005 CB | Call for Workshop leaders1
[1]Unless your National YFU Organization specifies a different deadline, so please double-check this with them!
[2]Unless your National YFU Organization specifies a different deadline, so please double-check this with them!