The Mangualde Group of Schools (AEM) was established in 2010 and is the junction of several groups of schools (since the pre-school until the 9th degree) and a secondary school.
The educational offer is diverse: pre-school, primary, secondary education and VET courses, adult education and early intervention. In special education, there are structured teaching units for students with autism spectrum disorders and expert support to education for students with multiple disabilities and deaf congenital blindness.
In secondary education, there are general courses of scientific secondary education – humanistic areas of science and technology, visual arts, languages and humanities and economic-sciences. The VET courses are: tourism, computing, electronics, childhood support, accounting logistics, health, …
We offer psychology services and school guidance that operate in the following aspects: psychological and psycho-pedagogical support and educational and vocational guidance, along with supporting the development of the relations of the educational community system.
The AEM is the headquarter of the EduFor: School Association Training Center of five municipalities. Beyond teacher training, EduFor are involved in many national and international projects:
Completed Projects (http://www.edufor.pt/index.php/edufor/961-erasmus-plus-2).
Ongoing Projects (http://www.edufor.pt/index.php/edufor/962-erasmus-plus-3)
The STEM Academy is a project to connect the four areas of knowledge (STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) in an interdisciplinary learning curriculum (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G-GUccC1J8 , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOGomqcfSHo)
We have articulated teaching of music in all school years.
Our Gym Class is an award-winning class that participates in national and international events (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bB8cEWT1Mo)
We streamline several activities such as: The Open Day, in order to make known the educational offer of VET courses (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEBQ7JRNmAA);
- National Reading Week,
- Internet Safe Day,
- Reflection Cycle on Human Rights,
- Maths Olympic;
- Wanted Project (entrepreneurship),
- Healthy Food Week,
- Sports Competitions,
- European Youth Parliament activities (have been presented in international sessions in Poland and Germany), etc.
In adult learning, we have two national projects:
Esr@D that enable students to make the secondary degree by e-learning; our school is one of two with this national project.Qualifica Centre: they are organized on the basis of three steps of intervention, diagnosis, counselling and guidance to inform the adult of the locally existing education and vocational training opportunities and lastly referral to the appropriate pathway (https://eaea.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/portugal_country-report-on-adult-education-in-portugal.pdf)
The AEM, are approximately 269 teachers, 83 staff and 2223 students.
For the adult students we have approximately 100 in Esr@D project and 400 adults in the Qualifica Centre.
Our Mission is to provide to the attendants the means to build knowledge, acquire skills and internalize universal attitudes and values. At the same time, it must form conscious, responsible, autonomous, enterprising citizens, open to dialogue, capable of interacting and intervening in reality and responding to the emerging needs of society.
The role of the school must complement the personal and social formation, started in the family, necessary for working life.
The AEM’s vision, must affirm itself: as an organization with high academic standards, sanctioned by the external evaluation of students, placing it among the top five schools in the district; as an institution with a strong sense of identity and belonging, inclusion and equity, which creates a climate of trust and well-being, and in particular the values of responsibility and work; and, finally as a framework recognized for innovative educational practices that foster expectations and experiences that result in challenging student proficiency standards.