Teachers are increasingly facing the problem of getting pupils to motivate themselves to set goals, develop visions and shape their own future. With the “Future Week” project, teachers assist students in planning an individual path for the following year or years, and encourage them to focus on solutions rather than problems, enabling them to actively shape their own future. The concrete goal is to achieve successful completion of the final academic year. The solutions which have been put forward are then implemented with and by the students during the current academic year. In this way, day-to-day lessons should not be perceived as a problem by the students but rather as a useful solution.

The modular topics of the project include:

- Thoughts about personal future goals: “In which direction do I wish to head?”
-> Generation of a future tree

- Learning style test -> Reflection -> Development of individual learning strategies

- Team work (practical tasks) -> video analyses and reflection
-> Development of individual strategies for actionp>

- Strength/weakness analysis -> Recognizing “weaknesses” as an opportunity -> Development of individual strategies for exploiting strengths and reducing weaknesses

- Bringing together school life and strategies for action that have been gained -> Development of concrete implementation plans for the current academic year

As it is not possible to implement all this within the teaching framework and as school is not the ideal venue for it, the students are given the opportunity during the “Future Week” to gain this important experience at a secluded location, where they take on a high level of personal responsibility for daily activities. The “Future Week” should offer a balanced mix of theoretical content, leisure activities and plenty of opportunity for reflection.

It is possible for the Frank Hirschvogel Foundation to assume part of the costs for a career orientation measure. 

Project inquiry