How do you find a partner school for Service-Learning abroad?

When planning a transnational Service-Learning project, finding a partner school is a decisive step. A well-coordinated school partnership lays the foundation for the joint civic engagement and makes successful cooperation across national borders possible. Various networks, platforms, and funding programs can be good starting points in the search for a suitable partner school and even lead to initial contacts:

Option 1: Your own school network Many schools already have partnerships with schools or classes abroad. It can therefore be helpful to speak with colleagues and ask about their experiences with transnational projects. Former students or existing exchange programs can also be valuable points of contact in the search for a suitable partner school or class.

Option 2: Your own municipality Many cities and municipalities participate in town twinning programs with municipalities in other countries. These existing links can be a starting point in the search for a partner school. Speaking with the municipal administration or the town twinning association can be helpful; it may even be possible to identify a specific social need that the students can address with their transnational civic engagement project.

Option 3: Platforms and funding programs eTwinning is a digital network for connecting schools and day care centers in Europe. It supports international exchange, cooperation, and the development of school partnerships and provides a concrete opportunity to find a partner school. In addition, the EU Erasmus+ program offers financial support for concrete project implementation on-site with partner schools.

Option 4: Service-Learning network Since 2022, organizations that are committed to promoting and disseminating Service-Learning in schools have been joining forces to form a pan-European network. Participating organizations support local schools by promoting transnational exchange, providing materials for the implementation of Service-Learning, and connecting schools with each other. This network can also be used to find a suitable partner school for a transnational Service-Learning project:

Reliable and constructive cooperation between the participating school classes and partner schools is at the heart of a successful Service-Learning project, enabling students to work together on socially relevant challenges. European meetings within a project can take many forms. In an online format, students work together digitally, using online channels and platforms to communicate and organize their work together. In a hybrid format, students travel to another country to engage with the students there after the civic engagement has been prepared online in subject lessons. The following case studies offer concrete examples of the formats that can be used to collaborate across national borders: