50/50 as part of the entrepreneurship education

In November 2010 there was an international seminar called Exellence in Entrepreneurship Education at Vaasa Polytechnical University. I (the headmaster of Länsimetsä school) was asked to speak about entrepreneurship education in practice for the participants.

Entrepreneurship is not really a school subject in Finland, but it is one of the cross-curricular themes in our national curriculum. Actually the cross- curricular theme is called Participating citizenship and entrepreneurship. In a primary school the purpose of entrepreneurship education is not to make business but to increase enterprising attitude.

I think that 50/50 is not only a good way to save energy. It is also a very good entrepreneurship education project. Our students are main actors. They have been very creative even in this kind of thinking and they have really showed enterprising attitude in finding out so many ways to decrease the consumption of water or electricity.

The 50/50 –project has made good results so far, but there is still work to do. In November we noticed higher consumption in heating compared to earlier years. That is why I wrote an appeal to those, who use the school building in the evenings and during weekends. Our gym is available for after school use about 50 hours a week,so it really can be possible to get savings if we get sport clubs and other groups involved - with positive, enterprising attitude of course!

Hope that 2011 will be successful for our project! Happy New Year!

Matti Autio