One School One Country schools prepare to welcome delegations

One School One Country (OSOC) Day on 10 September is an exceptional opportunity for students and Competitors to meet, and for students to learn about the culture of their paired delegation throughout the year.

For several months, the teaching teams at the schools participating in the programme have been working with their classes to devise specific activities that will represent French culture, facilitate discovery of the skills represented at WorldSkills Lyon 2024, and encourage the creation of links between students and Competitors on 10 September.

Since the pairings were announced at the programme’s launch in January, schools have been learning about the culture and the skills of their chosen delegation. Teachers have been able to draw on resources developed by WorldSkills Lyon 2024 and the OSOC team, such as the WSC2024 teaching kit and its card game. Some schools have proudly displayed their delegation’s colours and flag within their facilities.

For Christine Jourdier, classical literature teacher at Collège Martin Luther King, “the OSOC programme is an opportunity to show students the skills they have and for them to work on less ‘academic’ subjects. It is a chance for students with difficulties to find meaning in the activities carried out as part of the project”.

As the school year draws to a close, ideas for workshops and welcome activities are taking shape. Activities include school choirs rehearsing the national anthems of France and the paired delegations, typical sports tournaments, presentations and questions on skills.

Many schools have also chosen to invite their delegations to lunch at their cantines, introducing them to French and local culinary culture through typical Lyonnais menus. Christine Jourdier adds, “the OSOC programme enables students to share their culture with that of another country far removed from their own, and that is a very rich experience. Especially for those who never travel, who are never confronted with otherness”. Local schools can also count on the support of their town councils, who are involved in the project and have arranged for representatives of their town to be present at OSOC Day.

Schools and delegations are communicating regularly to get to know each other better and build together an unforgettable welcome for everyone. Thanks to exchanges of videos and photos of student presentations, as well as meetings online or at the consulate, links are forged, and excitement builds. After months of preparation, OSOC Day on 10 September 2024 promises to be rich in exchanges and emotions!