IKER CALLADO // UNIVERSITY OF THE BASQUE COUNTRY // STUDENT
»Above anything else, I'm most proud of the people I've met on the three experiences I've had with ENLIGHT.«
Iker Callado, a graduate in Psychology and Master of Teacher Education from the University of the Basque Country, has seamlessly blended his academic expertise with a passion for inclusion. Recognized at the 2024 ENLIGHT Inclusion Awards for supporting the educational success of children under public guardianship, he’s also honed his teaching and equity skills through ENLIGHT BIP courses. Beyond academics, Iker brings his leadership to the field as a coach for Bilbao’s famed feminine football team, the “Athletic” lionesses, embodying inclusion in every arena.
Iker at the Teaching & Learning Conference 2024
Hello, Iker. I would like to start asking you know how you first heard about ENLIGHT
IKER: We received an email from the university explaining the Erasmus+ BIP programmes and the option to participate. I found it to be a super interesting initiative with which I could experience what Erasmus is (although in a very condensed way) and train in topics related to my studies with a transdisciplinary approach, and a way of working in groups with people from different place
Tell us a bit more about your participation in ENLIGHT activities…
IKER: I am very grateful to the UPV/EHU because I have been able to participate in two Erasmus+ BIP programmes.
The first was on equity, at Comenius University in Bratislava. It was an incredible experience because I went without knowing anyone and there I was able to meet very nice and pleasant people. We had a week with workshops, talks and different activities that were really interesting. All this in a fantastic city that we had time to visit and enjoy. The last day we made work groups with people from different universities to carry out the final project, which we developed online for 4 months with a tutor from the teachers who participated in the course.
The second was about teacher education. Before going we had to prepare a presentation about the educational system of our country, the Basque Country, and there the representatives of each university would present theirs. There were also group discussions on inclusion and teamwork on this topic along the week.
Finally, in October 2024 I was able to attend the ENLIGHT Teaching & Learning Conference held at the University of Tartu. It was a really interesting conference but more special was the reason I was going to the event. The University of the Basque Country submitted the work I do in the IkasLagun programme -together with doctors Joana Miguelena and Aintzane Rodriguez- to the Inclusion and Sustainability awards, and I went to the congress as one of the winners of the Inclusion award.
ENLIGHT is an alliance that goes far beyond some courses, it is the union of different countries, different people and different ideas to create works, projects, collaborations... to enhance human qualities and make the world and society a better place.
What benefits do you feel ENLIGHT has brought you?
IKER: I have improved a lot in my ability to work in a team, to have a more open mind to different realities, cultures,... to have a more critical thinking. I have had a substantial improvement in interdisciplinary work, I have been able to deepen and talk about very relevant and topical issues at a European level, to have a more global thinking, to see the differences and similarities that we have between us. And it has also given me a sense of belonging, now I think that if I go to any of the cities of the alliance I will feel at home.
Has your participation in ENLIGHT changed your perception of collaboration/research/education?
IKER: Before I participated in ENLIGHT I was much more closed, I couldn't imagine working so easily with people from other places because of the differences I thought there might be in the methods and ways of working.
But after the first time I participated in an ENLIGHT programme, I felt very comfortable working with colleagues from other universities, and the second time I was much more relaxed and motivated.
What is your biggest takeaway from your experience with ENLIGHT?
IKER: Above anything else, I'm most proud of the people I've met on the three experiences I've had with ENLIGHT.
I even have a nice anecdote that I would never have imagined would happen. I was in Bratislava in September 2022, and at the congress in Tartu in October 2024 I met the director of the ENLIGHT BIP programme I took in Bratislava and she remembered me. I was very happy that after all this time she remembered me, having been there for only one week. The directors of the Ghent programme also came to greet me, and they even made me participate in a workshop they gave to tell about the experience I had with them.
How would you describe ENLIGHT in two sentences?
IKER: ENLIGHT is a collaborative learning environment that promotes critical thinking, interdisciplinary work and seeks to strengthen positive values such as inclusiveness, multiculturalism, language and cultural diversity.
I have improved a lot in my ability to work in a team, to have a more open mind to different realities, cultures,... to have a more critical thinking.
If you were to recommend ENLIGHT to a colleague, what would you say?
IKER: ENLIGHT is an alliance that goes far beyond some courses, it is the union of different countries, different people and different ideas to create works, projects, collaborations... to enhance human qualities and make the world and society a better place.
What is the best book you read/listened to in the past year?
IKER: Normally what I read are scientific magazines or applied books on fields that interest to me. But a couple of months ago I read Bizitza eskukadaka (Life in slaps) a book written by Ainhoa Tirapu in the tenth edition of letters & football by the Athletic Foundation. The book summarizes her life, the life of a female professional football goalkeeper who has to combine sport with another job due to the conditions that the players had before. She talks about her constant struggle she has had to face for being a woman and how progress has been made in the rights of female football players.