An eTwinning Project led by ITS has been recognised as good practice with a Quality Label by the Maltese eTwinning National Support Service.

"A Bite of History: Culinary and Cultural Exchange" ran between February and May with the participation of two partners from Italy - I.I.S. Caterina Caniana in Bergamo and Convitto Nazionale Statale "R. Bonghi" in Lucera - and one from Poland, the Zespół Szkół Technicznych in Mielec.

This was the first time that ITS took part in eTwinning which is part of the Erasmus+ programme of the European Commission. One hundred and two students aged 16 to 19 and teachers from the four partnering countries took part, with 16 from the ITS Foundation course.

The aims of the project were to bring together vocational schools specialising in Tourism Studies. Students learned about the hospitality background in each country, with special emphasis on culinary and cultural similarities or differences, while using digital tools to research and communicate.

Maltese students' recipes included traditional Maltese dishes such as pastizzi (cheesecakes), timpana (baked macaroni), bigilla (tic bean dip), aljotta (fish soup) and figolli (Easter almond bake), among many others. These dishes were quite a novelty for most foreign students, especially the Polish, while the Italians recognised the influence of Italian cuisine on the Maltese one.

Students used digital tools and e-learning to research, create and share their country's traditional recipes with the foreign partners. They, in turn, cooked some of the recipes prepared by the foreign partners. ITS students were under the supervision of ITS lecturers Martin Debattista, who directed the project and taught them how to use digital tools, and Albert Picco oversaw food and beverage.