Between 4-6 November, the 7th National and Ethnic Studies Conference was organized by the Association of Ethnology in Szeged, to which I was invited by one of the mentors, András Gál. The event was opened by Béla Debreczeni-Droppán, President of the Association for the Study of Homeland and Folklore, who emphasized that the teaching of homeland and national heritage is not only important in the classroom, but should be almost a way of life, as we have a duty to pass on the values of our country to future generations. As a student of history, it was a very special experience to sit in the same room with professionals whose names appear in programmes, magazines and book covers. The theme of the conference was Local History in Schools. The speakers presented their own experiences on how to integrate local history and geography into the classroom or as an extra-curricular activity. The Friday evening was closed with a presentation by Géza Fábri, folk musician and cobz player.
On Saturday morning, we had a hands-on introduction to the digital learning opportunities for teachers and the digital tools they can offer students to learn a subject. We created and presented the exercises ourselves. In the afternoon, we visited the Ferenc Móra Museum in three groups, where we were given a museum education methodology presentation, and then we visited the local history exhibition “Journey to the past” in the Castle Museum. This was followed by a more leisurely but equally informative sightseeing tour, where we got a glimpse into the history of Szeged’s sights in a depth that no tourist book could cover.
Sunday morning’s presentations were on teaching local history in the age of online education, and on online classrooms for local history. This was followed by a round table discussion on talent management.
I am glad to have been able to participate in this event, it gave me the opportunity to get a glimpse of the familiar university life and to expand my practical professional knowledge and circle of acquaintances. Thank you for the opportunity and I look forward to the next one!
László Gázsik, Nagybajom Group 1, ELTE English language and history teacher student
