The winner of the PT Schools Project – The Knowledge Adventure - has been chosen. The Colégio Conciliar de Maria Imaculada, via its team “Alfa” will be equipped by Portugal Telecom with the School of the Future. The European Year of Citizenship for education saw the conclusion of a project with which PT undertakes great responsibility, affording the community, specially the youngsters, access to new information and communication technologies.
Saturday, 2nd July, 09:30. Strategies were defined by the teams competing in the final of the PT Schools – The Knowledge Adventure. There was tension in the air. After all the prize at stake was the School of the Future.
The following teams were competing: Max 5, from Escola Secundária de Alcochete; Yamakasi, from Escola Secundária José Estêvão, in Aveiro; Megasound, from Colégio de Nossa Senhora do Rosário, in Oporto and Alfa, from Colégio Conciliar de Maria Imaculada, in Leiria. The feeling was common: somewhat nervous but ready to winner.
In Belém, the first to go on stage were the Yamakasi and Max 5 – the latter won this phase. For the Aveiro team participating was the most important point. “We did our best, we got to know the town, its history and technology”, they say. Alda Oliveira, was one of the teachers who accompanied the Aveiro team. “It’s really a pity that they didn’t make it to the final because they are excellent students and deserved this victory. But anyway this competition has brought new dynamics to the school. Today we gathered teachers, parents, students and school staff cheering!” says the head of the executive council. Albino Oliveira, another teacher from Aveiro said that “this is undoubtedly na experience for life”. This teacher did not hide the frustration felt for not having brought the prize home, after all they had done all their homework properly and the whole school was ready to support their team. He underlines that “they won great prizes and they had the opportunity of their life. This experience will help them in the future and I can only thank them for all their effort”.
The second phase was disputed between MegaSound and Alfa, who ran through the Chiado streets in search of clues given by the researchers who were in the studio. The Alfa team showed that it had done its homework very well. For a group from Leiria they were very well acquainted with the symbols of downtown Lisbon. This excellent work won them a presence in the final.
A true moment of fair play followed when the members of both teams congratulated each other, and “if we have to lose then we prefer to lose with Alfa”, said MegaSound who saw them as strong elements in this initiative”. This opinion is shared by their teacher, Eduardo Santos who enhanced the “interesting and refreshing environment of the competition”.
The final was held at the Parque das Nações between Alfa and Max 5, in an environment of excitement and nerves. In the studio the audience was anxious but the contestants looked quite calm, after all it was already a victory to arrive at this point.
“Alfa” open the doors of the School of the Future
The Pavilhão do Conhecimento (Knowledge Pavillion), there could be no better place, was chosen to “hide” the School of the Future key The key was found by the Alfa explorers composed by two boys and three girls with ages varying from 14 to 16, who got to the TV contest through the on-line phase.
It was the team of Ana Rita, Diogo, Mariana, João and Raquel which won this adventure that started in February and finished on 2nd July. The Colégio Conciliar de Maria Imaculada, in Leiria is going to receive the longed for PT School of the Future and the five participants are going to receive scholarships, portable computers, broadband Internet amongst other prizes.
This was then followed by an explosion of happiness when they met up with their colleagues who had stayed in the studio.
“We fought for this throughout these months and now we have accomplished our aim. We dedicated a lot of time to this project and this is the recognition for all our effort”, they say with pride.
Felícia Figueiredo shared the emotion of her students. “I am extremely happy for their effort and dedication to this initiative”, she says. For this maths teacher, the School of the Future in which she will be teaching represents innovation and it will be an added value for both teachers and students. The contact with other schools, research techniques and all the information obtain in the visits to the different towns are the added values highlighted by the teacher in this Knowledge Adventure.
Sister Maria Aurora assures that she prayed a lot so that the team from her college in Leiria could get to the final. And, with divine grace or not the Alfa team won against Megasound. “Our library was open past the closing hours so that they could prepare themselves for this phase. And everyone helped, from the parents to the teachers, the colleagues and the sisters,” she underlines. But the main concern of the headmistress of the college was to prepare the Alfa team to know how to celebrate their victory or to know how to accept their defeat.
Madalena and António Sales came from Leiria to support their daughter Ana Rita who was one of the Alfa explorers. “It was a unique experience for us and specially for them. To support from far is more nerve-wrecking but equally exciting”, they say.
Max 5 must also be congratulated and “this new experience was what most mattered”, says the team for whom this initiative is considered as a prediction of what the future has in store. “To win is very good, it’s a feeling that we will never forget and now there’s just one left,” say the students who don’t hesitate in saying that if there is another PT schools they will be there and this time to win. “This contest is not like others, besides being fun it teaches some important things about consulting and researching on the Internet. And the interaction between those outside and the ones in the studio is rather interesting”, they say.
According to José Caninhas, another teacher of this team “all this Exchange was essential and gratifying. This event is the future. Technological schools are things we have to get adapted to”, he concluded.
There was a lot of excitement and in the end it was victory for all.
Catarina Furtado enhances educational side
One of the attractions for the teenager participants in this Project was the presenter. To meet Catarina Furtado personally caused great joy to many of them. “I’ve worked in music programmes and I’ve worked with children but I had never worked with teenagers and I loved the experience. They taught me many things and I was specially surprised by the fact that they know how to lose and have a good sense fellowship”, says the presenter who accepts this challenge as something different, “specially its educational side”, she underlines. She guarantees that there are no preferences but there is special attention for the younger ones, “because they compete in equal circumstances with older teams and at that age the difference is easily noted”, she adds. To create a good atmosphere with the contestants is fundamental, so that they feel more confident and comfortable in front of the cameras. Always with a smile on her face Catarina Furtado ended the adventure.
PT Schools: A dream that came true
Abílio Martins, of the Corporate Communication Department at Portugal Telecom, and Pedro Mota Carmo, co-ordinator of the PT Schools project did not hesitate to make a positive balance of the whole project. The numbers are a proof of this. Since February the “Knowledge Adventure” has been adding on victories. “This Project is a dream come true. It was something we had hoped for, for a long time and it pertains to an area in which PT assumes responsibility - education. Congratulations are an order for the whole team for their work and we hope to have more PT Schools, in Portugal and in Portuguese speaking countries.”
Note that the PT Schools Project was launched in April with the co-operation of RTP and it includes an on-line portal and a national TV contest aimed at awarding those who research well and quickly on the Internet. Between April and 14th May, PT went to all the district capitals to choose some of the teams which went on to the qualifying phase and which represented their school in the TV contest, broadcasted since 28th May, in six programmes, by RTP. This initiative was aimed at students between 12 and 18 years of age and involved around 1 700 schools from our country.
