About us

Author of the program

Cooperation and partnerships
Academy of Young Franchisers
Our project, “Academy of Young Franchisers”, was approved by the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Croatia. As part of the extracurricular activities of primary and secondary schools and student dormitories, we implemented the project during the 2021/2022 school year.
Our intention was to approach franchising as one of the safest forms of business (Erceg, 2017). We included vocational school teachers in the project, who went through cycles of education and counseling and created new examples for the application of the business case method in the extracurricular process.
The project was divided into two cycles, and in the second cycle we included activities related to students. Through an extracurricular activity, the students, guided by the teachers, were motivated to recognize good business opportunities, write a business plan based on the example of franchises and master franchises operating in the Republic of Croatia.
We focused on questions such as why to choose a franchise instead of designing a new product or service, what are the advantages and disadvantages and how to integrate your own ideas into an already developed brand. All these aspects were presented by the students through a research-business project within the extracurricular activity “Academy for young franchisors”.
Franchise, as a business model, has potential in various industries, from retail to various professional services. It represents a method of business growth and expansion for entrepreneurs who have developed and standardized their business, as well as entry into entrepreneurship and self-employment for beginning entrepreneurs.
Given that franchises may be underutilized, we believe that they hold a perspective for the development of franchise business among young people.
Mathematics in Children's Hands
Collaborators on the “Mathematics in Children’s Hands” project received approval from the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Croatia. The project was implemented within the extracurricular activities of primary and secondary schools and student dormitories in the 2021/2022 school year.
The elementary school of Vladimir Becić actively participated in this project whose proposal was focused on mathematics as one of the four STEM approaches to education. Given the increasing importance of STEM fields for the sustainability and progress of countries (Fielding-Wells and Makar, 2008), it was necessary to ensure that children and young people acquire basic STEM competencies based on a combination of different fields, subjects and ways of thinking.
The project “Mathematics in Children’s Hands” was a pilot project in the Republic of Croatia, intended for the implementation of innovative methods in learning mathematics, especially for children with developmental disabilities. The project followed a special numerical and didactic system aimed at primary school education, and the inspiration for its basics came from education carried out in Great Britain, with application in more than 6,000 schools, and was developed by experts from Oxford University.
It has been proven that children’s mathematical activities improve if more senses are involved in the learning process. Therefore, the project “Mathematics in Children’s Hands” was expected to rely on the VAK method with the aim of using visual, auditory and kinesthetic elements in the process of learning mathematics. Cooperation with partners was crucial, and the goal was to train and strengthen the capacities of four classroom teachers and one educational rehabilitator. Their role was to implement the VAK method in extracurricular activities with the aim of improving the learning of mathematics among children of primary school age.
ImaginationArt
The “ImagionationArt” project is a project of the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Croatia. During the 2022/2023 school year, the project was successfully implemented as part of work with gifted students in primary and secondary schools.
The primary school of Ivan Filipović was actively involved in the project, especially with students and teachers of the third grade. The goal of additional work with gifted students in the area of the Croatian language was to strengthen their competences in written and oral expression, encourage verbal and non-verbal communication, and teach critical expression towards the world in which they live.
Given that research has shown that grade school students lag behind in understanding written text, the project provided space for additional work with gifted students and encouraging critical thinking in grade school children.
The central intention of the project was to reduce the negative influence of the media and social networks and to encourage social inclusion and empathy through teamwork with gifted children. Educational workshops, led by a professor of Croatian language and literature and a drama pedagogue, were a key part of the implementation of the project. In addition, the students had the opportunity to independently, in a team, design and prepare their drama performance.
The selection of a dramatic performance as a medium for research and play has been confirmed by numerous studies, including the work of Aladrović Slovačak (2018), which indicate the connection between increasing early literacy and active social games and early language and literacy development. It also emphasizes the connection between social skills, speech development and dramatic play, which complement each other.
Through the project, gifted students developed their imagination and creativity, which we consider extremely important for expressing themselves, getting to know the world around them better, and studying the teaching material and additional activities with greater understanding to nurture their giftedness.
Millennial Competition
The Millennium Creative Industry Competition is an international competition organized for elementary, high school and university students from the Republic of Croatia and abroad.
The competition is designed according to pedagogical and methodical standards, and is held in December at the Faculty of Economics in Osijek. Every year we actively participate in the organization and sponsorship of this event.
Find out more at: https://milenijsko.efos.hr/
Creative Treasury
The creative treasury is a popularization symposium of scientists and practitioners gathered around the millennial role of the creative industry. Publicly open to exhibitors and visitors, it is in the service of socially responsible association of cultural and economic effects. It is held once a year at the Faculty of Economics in Osijek in cooperation with a number of public institutions.
Find out more at: https://kreativna-riznica.com/
Sweet Learning
This project, designed for students of the hospitality and tourism school, aimed to encourage the development of culinary skills, creativity, writing, collaboration and raising awareness of nutrition and cultural heritage. During this project, students researched, prepared and tested different sweet recipes, documenting their results in a unique recipe book. The project was enriched with various activities such as culinary workshops, research of traditional recipes, teamwork, preparation of desserts and a visit to the Faculty of Economics in Osijek. Through these activities, students not only developed their skills, but also created creative desserts, promoted healthy eating and acquired knowledge about food safety. The final product of this extraordinary journey is a recipe book containing the students’ best recipes.