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Hello!

I am Samuel López, a Spanish Master's Degree student in Research and Intervention in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences at the Universitat de València (UV). I am writing these lines to share what was for me a unique learning opportunity thanks to a FORTHEM individual short term mobility that I did at the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ (JYU) at the beginning of March 2022. I hope my words can encourage you to take advantage of the opportunities that FORTHEM offers us, the experience is worth it!

Why Finland and why Jyväskylä?

The answer to this question comes from a long time ago. To be precise, in 2012. Yes, ten years ago! Back then I was lucky enough to be an Erasmus student in Tampere for 10 months. This allowed me to discover a unique country like Finland, experiencing first-hand a different education system, and discovering many of the socio-cultural aspects of Finland that I think are unique. Like your passion for nature, the general respect for things, the silence compared to the noise in Spain, or the value you give to physical activity and sport. What can I say to all of you who have had an Erasmus experience? As the well-known phrase says: "home is where the heart is". That's how it was and is. A part of me stayed forever in Finland waiting for my return...

Since then, as we say in Spain, "much has rained", but my commitment to the promise I made to myself has remained intact. Therefore, I have always been committed to international mobility as a way of life. And as time went by, I received the fantastic news that the University of Valencia became a member of FORTHEM together with six other universities (now eight more), JYU being among them. Thanks to this alliance and the possibilities it offers us, I knew about the FORTHEM short mobility call, and I decided to apply for it with the support of Dr Hanna Vehmas from the JYU. The application process was successful and I was finally able to return to my beloved Finland.

What I did during my FORTHEM short mobility?

allow the candidate to propose a personal project to be carried out at the host university. In my case, my mobility had three lines of action. Two of them I was able to carry out as planned and one does not like I expected. Nevertheless, the experience was wonderful. Let me summarise them as follows:

· First, I met with FORTHEM student representatives from JYU for exchange of good practices: during my mobility I was able to meet with Ville Härsilä, JYU student representative in FORTHEM, and member of the Student Union of the JYU. One day we met for lunch and the next day I visited the offices where JYU students representatives meet. During our conversations we exchanged views on how we see the situation in FORTHEM and possible areas for improvement in the short term. We both agree that there is a wide range of opportunities at FORTHEM for all students to take advantage of.

· Second, I participated in two JYU Sport Science degree lectures: thanks to the mediation of Ilari Konttinen, a former JYU student who did an individual FORTHEM mobility in Valencia in October 2021, I was able to attend two practical lessons. The first one, entitled "New ball games", was taught by Prof. Timo Laakso. The second one, "Dance classes", was taught by Prof. Mariana Siljamäki. I actively participated in the sessions. It was very useful for me to make comparisons about the way of teaching and learning of the courser at JYU and who is at UV.

· Third, one of my mobility objectives was to meet researchers from JYU to exchange research insights. Although initially due to logistical issues I was not able to do this, I was afterwards able to interact with JYU faculty during the Sport Winter School held in Vuokkati. In the future I would like to be able to do a research stay at JYU.

What support did I receive from the JYU FORTHEM office during my FORTHEM individual short term mobility?

From all the FORTHEM JYU staff I can only say good words. They were very attentive to my arrival, and I was able to meet some of them for coffee and lunch for two days. They also gave me some indications about the different areas of the university (such as how to use the services at the JYU main library - photo on the right), and I had productive conversations. Furthermore, they gave me a welcome gift of JYU!

I especially want to thank Ms. Sanna Väisänen and Ms. Agnés Stojcsics for all their time. They were very attentive to me during my stay at JYU. Without a doubt, it is very fortunate to be able to count on all the FORTHEM staff at JYU to be able to carry out this type of mobilities with their support.

Finally, I was also able to meet Dr Tamás Péter Szabó (chair of the FORTHEM Lab Mission Board), whom I am also grateful to for facilitating the reunion knowing how heavy his workload is.

Personally, I would love to apply, when I become a teacher in Spain, the way of assessment that you have in Finland. It focuses on students' reflections on what they have learned rather than on the examination of memorised content. I think that should be the direction.

What is the balance of your FORTHEM individual short term mobility?

An international experience always adds up. It involves going out of your comfort zone to understand cultural aspects that are not always like your own. For this reason, this type of experience allows us to learn and learn new perspectives that we can apply on our return. In this case, as I have said previously, Finland is a very special country. The respect of its inhabitants for nature and, in general, for everything is something I admire. Living this FORTHEM short individual mobility has allowed me to get to know the Finnish education system a little more closely. It has been very positive. Personally, I would love to apply, when I become a teacher in Spain, the way of assessment that you have in Finland. It focuses on students' reflections on what they have learned rather than on the examination of memorised content. I think that should be the direction.

Leaving aside the academic side of my experience. I loved discovering Jyväskylä as a city. Thanks to Ilari Konttinen, I was able to attend an ice hockey game, a basketball match, have a city tour, as well as a full Finnish sauna experience, and I was also able to skate on the frozen lake! This kind of experiences add up and help to make us realise that the world is bigger and that we have to learn a lot of things from each other. Therefore, I recommend everyone to take advantage of the mobility opportunities offered by FORTHEM.

I close this interview with some pictures (in the beginning of the page) where you can check how I enjoyed the experience. Thanks again to FORTHEM and the JYU for the opportunity.