As well as meeting quality assessment criteria, there is a new emphasis on European and national priorities for Comenius partnership applications.

The European priorities are outlined below.

In addition, the UK and other countries may apply national priorities. It is therefore important for your partners to be aware of any national priorities applied by their National Agencies.

European priorities

• Partnerships addressing the theme of Intercultural Dialogue
• Partnerships which take specific measures to:
• Promote languages, whether early language learning, multilingual comprehension, and/or CLIL* (Content and Language Integrated Learning)
• Help persons with a disability or other special needs take part in the project
• Make sure that males and females have equal access to the project

*CLIL involves the delivery of the curriculum through the medium of foreign languages, for example, using Spanish for the teaching of mathematics

• Exceptionally, in 2007 priority will be given to:
• Good quality renewal applications from existing partnerships
• New applicants who have not yet participated in a partnership

National priorities

Across Comenius in 2007, priority will be given to applications which demonstrate the activity will widen participation from disadvantaged or marginalised groups, including pupils from ethnic minorities and socio-economically or geographically deprived areas, travellers, looked-after children and pupils with special needs.

2007 national award priorities for Partnerships