TINY STEPS
FOR GREAT CHANGES
TARRAGONA
Tarragona is located on the Mediterranean coast, 90 Kilometers southwest of Barcelona, in the region of Catalonia. The city is located on the Costa Dorada (Golden Coast) and boasts of a rich history and culture apart from a wonderful view over the Mediterranean Sea.
The city was founded as a Roman military camp in 218 BC and grew quickly, being considered the most important Roman town in Spain. Due to its Roman heritage, Tarragona boasts over a Roman Amphitheatre, the remains of a circus, an impressive aqueduct, the city wall, the Archaeological Museum and the Necropolis. However, another important highlight is the 12th century cathedral together with some examples of modernist architecture.
In Tarragona some historic re-enactment events are organized, which join archaeologists, historians, script writers, narrators and extras to spread and share the city’s history and our classical civilization through events like the TARRACO VIVA festival in May and the sessions dedicated to the Napoleonic War.
During festival celebrations it is a Catalan tradition and sport to build human towers which can be seen in action at city festivals such as Sant Magi (in August) or Santa Tecla (September).
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Institut Torreforta is a state secondary school founded in 1996 and located in a working-class neighbourhood in Tarragona, on the northeast coast of Spain. It offers the 4-year compulsory secondary education for youngsters 12 to 16, and the two-year post-16 stage of education (Batxillerat), which is non-compulsory and leads students to university studies and/or higher vocational training.
There are about 500 students at Institut Torreforta. They come from Spain but also from East Europe, Nigeria, Ghana, South America or Morocco. More than 50 teachers work daily to take this multicultural diversity in advantage to foster a more open minded and tolerant attitude in the classroom, thus preventing discrimination, segregation and bullying and reducing disparities of learners with disadvantaged backgrounds.
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The school facilities include a two-storey building, a gym and two playgrounds (basketball courts, football pitch), general classrooms and specific rooms for most subject areas (e.g. laboratories, workshops, language room, art rooms, etc.). It is also equipped with a library, ICT rooms, an events hall and several multipurpose rooms, the teachers’ departments and other facilities.
The school is highly committed to the community and a range of activities are organized inside and outside the formal curriculum to contribute to strengthen the bonds among students, families, teachers, neighbours, other schools, etc. Students are engaged in different projects at local, regional and European level which deal with a variety of topics such as art, citizenship, healthy lifestyle, gender equality, etc. The school has participated in several Comenius projects and has been the coordinator of Erasmus KA2 for the last 5 years dealing with topics such as renewable energies, healthy habits, cultural heritage and sustainability. These projects have encouraged the school board to implement Project-based Learning methodology further within each academic year.