Multimedia knowledge publisher Sirma Media and the Centre for Creative Training have organized a student essay and video contest on the topic of “How do I imagine the class room of the future”. The competition will be held in two categories – “Essay” and “Video”. Pupils from all Bulgarian schools are eligible for the “Essay” category. They have to write an essay on the aforementioned topic, where they describe their vision of the future of class rooms and education. The essays that include ideas about how new technologies can change learning and class rooms will have an advantage. The “Video” category is accessible only for pupils (or student teams) from schools where Sirma Media has already implemented The Class Room of the Future. They have to include the ClassmatePCs from their class rooms in their videos, so that they best describe how learning and education is going to change. The pupils in the “Video” category are also be able to participate in the broader “Essay” category.

The contestants have to send their project no later than 10 May 2012 to the following address: 1748 Sofia, 135 Tsarigradsko Shousse Blvd., flour 4, for Sirma Media. They also have to mention that the letter or the package is about the competition about the class room of the future. Another option is to send the essays and videos to alexander.angelov@sirma.bg. Awards will be given to the winners in each of the two categories. They will be divided into age groups – up to 12 and between 12 and 18. The awards include packages of multimedia products, digital cameras and a video camera. The big award will be brought though the cooperation with the Center for Creative Training (www.cct.bg) – a scholarship to take part in the Space Center of NASA in the city of Izmir, Turkey, in the summer of 2012. Teenews.eu, which is the media partner of the event, will give an additional award in each category.

Teachers from all over the country are also able to participate in the competition. There will be special awards for teachers’ winning essays and videos. The jury of the contest is to be announced in the web site of Sirma Media by 5 April 2012.

“The team of Sirma Media has been presenting different ways to improve class rooms and educations as a process for years. With the current competition, we want to include the youngest participants – pupils – in the discussion. They could give us fresh ideas and innovative points of view, and in fact they are the ones changes are made for and who will take advantage of these changes,” said Alexander Angelov, Business Development Manager with Sirma Media.