Educational programme to monitor the Mini Transat 2023 regatta
A teaching idea for monitoring an oceaN regatta
The Museu Marítim de Barcelona and the Fundació Navegació Oceànica Barcelona have been running a unique educational programme for the school community to monitor the Mini Transat ocean regatta since the 2021-2022 academic year.
Staged every two years, the Mini Transat is a single-handed sailing challenge, where men and women compete as equals on board a boat measuring a mere 22 foot in length overall. This regatta is a genuine self-improvement adventure, which turns its participants into role models and idols for the pupils.
This ocean regatta is the guiding principle behind an educational programme that creates the ideal framework for developing a meaningful learning experience for pupils in the final years of primary education into secondary education. Children and teenagers get involved in a real life project, where learning is motivating, contextualised and globalised.
The Regatta in the Atlantic and the classroom
The Mini Transat departs from Les Sables d’Olonne (France) at the end of September, stopping over on the island of La Palma and finishing on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. A carefully chosen group of sailors participate in the educational programme “22 days in 22 feet, solo Atlantic adventure” (originally in Catalan, 22 dies en 22 peus, aventura en solitari a l’Atlàntic). Schools can sponsor a sailor, helping them learn about the thrills and challenges of this voyage.
Students follow the progress of the sponsored sailor from the classroom during the Atlantic crossing, studying educational topics such as food, meteorology, climate change, salinity of the sea, life on board and technology. You can find the experiences from all the editions on the Instagram account @22dies22peus.
New educationaL challenges to explore the sea, human beings, and sailing
The educational programme includes 9 challenges grouped into three core themes:
Planet Sea: This introduces students to the environment in which the regatta takes place, the sea, and how it affects sailing.
Human Being:This brings us closer to the experience of the sailors during the regatta and the relationship that human beings have historically had with the sea.
Sailing:This section shows how technology helps sailors during sailing.
Challenges are designed based on a series of questions that students have to answer through their work in the classroom. This is a flexible approach that can be adapted to each group’s needs..
An eriching project
Teaching staff rate their participation in this educational project very positively, emphasising how relevant the challenges are to the curriculum and their practical application in the classroom. Since the regatta is a real event, students become more motivated, as it provides an attractive, exciting and hands-on experience which promotes the values associated with the sea and sailing, leading to an improvement in learning.
As a result of the work carried out over four months, apart from the sponsorship of the sailors, the students’ curiosity and emotions are stimulated, giving them the opportunity to share the adventure of the sailors first-hand. This learning experience not only enriches learning, but also encourages young people’s passion for the sea and sailing.
It is a great experience for the students, as they are introduced to a world they did not know previously. They really liked learning about the sailor’s experience. (IE Mar Mediterrània).
It is a fantastic project to learn about the sea, the sailors and their values. For example, you need to be physically and mentally prepared, be part of a team to progress confidently, to know that fear should not paralyse you, dreams should be pursued and fought for… All in all, it’s a GREAT LEARNING EXPERIENCE FOR LIFE. Overall, the project has been a very successful cross-cutting experience. (Escola del Mar)
Testimonials
The sailors also gave their evaluations of participating in the education programme:
PILAR PASANAU
I am very happy to do my bit. I can see in the answers of the young and older children what it has meant for them to participate in the education programme. In all the schools where I have done the closing I’ve been personally thanked by the teachers and management. It has been a very rewarding experience for me. Raising awareness of the sea and ocean sailing from my point of view and in the first person has been a way to take the youngest children sailing with me… so that they could find out what it feels like when you sail in the middle of the ocean, how you have to prepare yourself and everything you can learn for later. Then, we can apply all this to life.
FELIP MOLL
I think this programme is essential and it should try to bring this culture a little closer to new generations.
CARLOS MANERA
It was a pleasure to take part in this project with the schools. I remember the impact Gerard Marin’s figures had on me, for example, when I was little, and the excitement they conveyed. The children have been super involved, really done an incredible job monitoring the competition, and the teachers have too of showing and doing the activities, both for the sailing part and for the values that are transmitted. It is very rewarding for me to see and feel the children’s excitement and share it with them. It has been a pleasure to be part of it. Many thanks to all those who have made this project possible.
The experiences
2021-2022 ACADEMIC YEAR
Over 2,100 students from 32 schools took part in the first ‘22 days in 22 feet, solo Atlantic adventure’ programme.
Students’ curiosity and excitement was stimulated through their work, which gave them the opportunity to experience the adventure first hand. A virtual exhibition of the completed projects showcased the students’ efforts and dedication.
2023-2024 ACABDEMIC YEAR
The second edition of the programme gathered more than 4,000 students from 64 schools from all over Spain, who followed the race dubbed the ‘Himalayas of the sea’ in real time.
When the project came to an end, a closing ceremony was held where the students were able to interact with two of the sponsored sailors while an exhibition was organised at the Museu Marítim to showcase the work done.
