“This training was one of the coolest things that happened to me in the last few years. I got a lot of new useful information about news, facts-checking and social media tricks, as well as political watch-dogging tips and also motivation to be more politacally active.

I met new people from the Baltics, with whom we discussed and compared our countries, what actually was very interesting and a bit unpredictable for me. I am very much looking forward to the next meeting in July to learn how to and make the games on this topics!”

Giorgi

“Critical Thinkers – What did I like about it? I think we had wonderful four days together. We played and used non-formal methods to learn about politics, what to look out for and be consious when being on the Internet or using media. Also, we discovered ourselves how little do we know about politics and decision-making, and how non-formal methods can make you more interested about the topic. Questioning, questioning, questioning is the keyword…”

Rõõt

“I was really excited when I first saw the call for Critical Thinkers KA2 Training online. I wanted to go ahead and apply. Then I became more excited when I heard the results and I was accepted. This would be the first Erasmus+ project I would join after 5 years.

Everything was well organised, we booked our tickets, filled forms and while we were on the bus, we heard the unfortunate news. However, when we reached the training area the mood was lightened. It was amazing to see people from different countries, with different backgrounds coming together for a common purpose. The whole training was a success in my eyes and one of the most efficient ones. I was able to implement what we studied/practised on the same day.

Information about critical thinking, finding the correct information, red flags to be careful, how to approach the misinformation and many others… This helped me a lot to get the right news and keep myself up to date regarding what was happening. Also about watchdogging, I learned more about how to follow up the promises of politicians, how the electoral system works in different countries and the EU, as well as the consistency of information with a combination of critical thinking.

All in all, it was a great experience and I would like to thank first Shokkin and everyone involved in the project. I’m looking forward to sharing my experience and taking part in the upcoming parts as well :)”

And a quick reminder for everyone out there: Erasmus+ supports lifelong learning, so it is never too late! If you want to join a project, meet amazing people, see beautiful countries and work for the greater good, take a step now. Follow Shokkin 🙂

Umut Can

“During the training I uderstood that every piece of information you see should be checked, whether the expert is tryly an expert in this area (for example, during COVID there were many people that turned into virologists overnigt). I understood how to make news spread better (that emotions help here a lot) and now feel more aware of information I consume.

Moreover, I understood that I didn’t really knew much about decision making in our local government and municipalities. I still feel that there is a possibility to get better in this topic, so we will continue getting to know the system here in Estonia.”

Ksenija

“I was happy to take part in the training in Vilnius. I discovered a lot about critical thinking and active participation. The most interesting part in this kind of training is that even if you think you know the topic, there are always some “a-ha” moments! I brought many “take aways” home and feel excited to learn more. The second cool aspect was – people! Friendly international atmosphere was something that we all were looking forward to for a long time. 

Anna

“Critical Thinkers” is a long-term strategic partnership project dedicated to developing blended online and offline educational materials in media literacy, political watchdogging and gamification for youth NGOs, youth workers, educators and young people. The project is implemented by Shokkin Group (EE), Europos Namai (LT) and Skeptiska biedrība (LV) with the support of the European Commission.