My Ancestors at My Age - Award Ceremony of First Georgian History Competition
On Friday, 22 June 2018, the award ceremony for the first Georgian history competition took place at the “Writer’s House” in Tbilisi. The fin-de-siècle building formed a suitable setting for the ceremony which was attended by around 70 participants and tutors. In their addresses, members of the organising institutions, the NGO “SovLab”, the “Georgian Association of History Educators GAHE” and DVV International, congratulated both participants and tutors to their efforts and success in the competition.
A total of 57 students participated in the competition and handed in 44 entries. The winners received certificates and prizes ranging from books to electronic devices. Moreover, winners were invited to join a summer-school in Georgia, organised by “GAHE”, and to apply for the EUSTORY Next Generation Summit in Berlin later in 2018.
In short speeches, jury members reflected on the topic of the competition “How My Ancestors Lived at My Age - Being Young in 20th Century Georgia” and pointed out the close connection between past and present life. This connection became visible during the screening of a short film, produced by a group of winners, about their interviews with members of the older generation. The participants claimed that during the interviews they came to realise that many members of older generation actually had to live through difficult times when they were young, witnessing insecurity, shortages or even wars. This aspect of intergenerational communication and understanding formed an experience of most participants and was welcomed by them as well as by the interviewees.
Music by a young Georgian duo, a buffet and the stately setting of the Writer’s House with its period rooms and veranda contributed to the festive yet familiar atmosphere of the evening.
Early next morning, tutors and organisers started for the wine- and fruit-growing region of Kakheti, where a two-day feedback-workshop was held in the hotel of a Georgian-German wine-company. The workshop included a trip to the valley region “Pankisi Gorge” to learn more about schools and teaching in this border-region of Georgia.