Our participatory seminar from March 3rd to 7th, 2025, focused on the theme "The First Step." A total of 24 students from Solling High School spent a week at the Wannsee Forum. Class representatives and their deputies were the main participants, working on issues and problems facing their school.
A cooperative game for getting to know each other
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Click here to see impressions from the seminar on Flickr.
Monday began for everyone with a joint plenary session. Here we started with an initial introduction and an overview of the seminar. In a series of activity stations, participants developed a dream school, completed a cooperative game on the theme of "The First Step," and collected topics, problems, and projects that are currently relevant to the school and should be explored further in the seminar.
The students then divided themselves into three workshops – Analog Photography, Rap, and Podcasting – through a democratic process. In these groups, the students worked together with the artists throughout the week on an artistic project themed "The First Step." On Friday, the finished products were presented and admired in a large exhibition.
Analog photography workshop during photo development
The Analog Photography group first learned the techniques and operation of analog cameras. The group then split into smaller groups, each creating their own photo series. These series explored the themes of bullying, loneliness, and teamwork. They ultimately presented their work in an interactive exhibition. (Click here to see the results on Flickr.)
In the rap workshop, participants collaborated on a song about bullying. Everyone wrote their own lyrics on the topic, which were then combined. The group filmed a music video together and presented it to the group. (You can see the results on Vimeo here.)
The podcast workshop incorporated their own associations with the theme of "taking the first step" into their texts. They combined their ideas and conducted interviews. They questioned their opportunities for participation as well as their rights and freedoms to implement their own ideas and projects at school.
After the impressive presentations from all the workshops and a review of the week, it was time to say goodbye. We would like to thank all the students, teachers, and guest lecturers who made this wonderful and valuable week possible, and we look forward to seeing you all again!
The seminar was funded by the Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family.
