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Fourth transnational meeting of the EMstep project in Porto, Portugal

EMSTEP project logo – red circle with EMSTEP text
The fourth transnational meeting within the project 2023-2-TR01-KA220-SCH-000170568, ‘Empowering Middle School Teachers for Social Inclusion through Observation-based Professional Development‘ was held in Porto, Portugal, from 18 to 20 November 2025. Representatives of all project partners attended it: the hosts from the Universidade do Porto, D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics (Svishtov, Bulgaria), EGE University (Izmir, Türkiye), Academia, izobrazevanje in druge storitve d.o.o. (Maribor, Slovenia), Oslo Metropolitan University (Oslo, Norway), and Me We Istituto di ricerca innovativa srl (Florence, Italy) participated online due to health reasons. The Academy was represented by Head Assist. Prof. Yuliyan Gospodinov, PhD - Project Manager for TAE and Researcher, and Assoc. Prof. Nikolay Ninov, PhD - Researcher.
Group photo of the meeting participants in Porto, in front of the university buildingЮлиан Господинов и Николай Нинов представят проекта EMSTEP на срещата в Порто

The three days of the meeting were packed with an intensive work programme,  which included several thematic sessions:
  •  Reviewing the results of the project’s diagnostic observation and quantitative data collection in the pre-test phase;
  •  Organizing and conducting social inclusion-focused peer classroom observation using developed observation tools;
  •  Preparing to conduct a qualitative analysis using observation tools;
  •  Communication and dissemination activities within Work package 3;
  •  Digital learning platform https://emstep.eu/ pilot study - assessment report;
  •  Development of school-based professional learning plans (PLPs);
  •  Conducting quantitative data collection in the post-test phase (at the end of the school year);
  •  Obtaining feedback from teachers from the three Portuguese schools on the project’s implementation and revising observation tools.

Yulian Gospodinov presenting a presentation on the Handbook for Professional LearningA group of participants discussing Yulian Gospodinov's presentation in the conference hall
According to the previously agreed agenda, each partner had thematic  sessions to present, and all together actively participated in the subsequent  discussions and deliberations. TAE presented the topic of developing a Handbook  of professional learning: Strategies and activities for improving teaching  practices. The preparation of the Handbook will be based on the professional  training needs of teachers from the 18 schools from 6 countries covered by the  project, identified through the analysis of observation forms, the professional  learning plans developed by the school leadership teams and the 3 professional learning  activities organized by each school. Thus, the Handbook, including a total of  54 school-based professional learning activities, would serve as a valuable  resource for teachers and school leadership teams dedicated to enhancing  teaching practices for social inclusion of vulnerable pupils.
Group of participants and teachers in front of the school building in Porto
  In addition to the program, the periods for holding the fifth and sixth  transnational project meetings were specified, as well as organizational issues  in the preparation of the International Conference ‘Social Inclusion in School’  (Izmir, Türkiye, 01.07.2026)  were discussed.<br>
  The fourth transnational meeting ended with a visit to the School group  ‘Eugénio de Andrade’, a meeting with the principal and teachers, observation of  the work of educators with vulnerable pupils with different social needs and  activities for their integration.
Logo of the International Conference “Social Inclusion in School”