Teachers for Reactive and Responsive Vocational Education Erasmus Project

Project Title

Teachers for Reactive and Responsive Vocational Education

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Cooperation between educational institutions and business; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Labour market issues incl. career guidance / youth unemployment

Project Summary

BACKGROUND
Vocational schools simultaneously have to meet two opposing requirements: to remain true to tradition, delivering stable, tested knowledge approved by relevant parties in society and the economy; and to equip students with a set of skills and competencies relevant to newly emerging demands. Despite great efforts by national and European policy makers to drive VET schools into ‘rethinking’ their curricula and teaching methods, changes have been slow to keep up with labour market requirements. In most European countries VET qualifications are based on standard curricula that precisely define what is taught, leaving little freedom for teachers and schools to train for just-in-time labour market demands. Most systems also have lengthy and complex accreditation procedures, so the approval of a new curriculum – or even the modification of an existing one – can take a long time.

OBJECTIVES
The main goal of the project was to develop a new methodology which enables leaders and teachers in vocational education to address skill gaps identified by the labour market, which itself is changing at a pace never experienced before. The focus of the underlying methodology aimed at exploiting the hidden pedagogical potential and creativity within vocational schools by establishing collaboration among all relevant stakeholders, i.e. teachers, students and companies alike.

TARGET GROUP: Teachers and trainers of the vocational education

PARTNERSHIP
The consortium comprises 7 partners from 4 countries (Hungary, Italy, Estonia and United Kingdom) with long and collective experience of vocational education, 21st century teaching methods, curriculum and eLearning developments. Each partner added extra value to the developments: Jobsacademy its best practice in working together with industrial partners, AICA (Associazione Italiana Informatica e Calcolo Automatico) its expertise in applying EU standards (like DigComp), CAPDM Ltd. brought its professional competences in designing and implementing online courses, the Estonian VET provider BCS worked in the pilots together with the teachers of the Hungarian Vocational School partners. Last but not least iTStudy Hungary controlled and directed the professional work and added its professional experiences in the 21st century teaching methods, and e-learning developments.

ACTIVITIES
The activities were structured around 5 intellectual outcomes focused on needs-analysis, curriculum, learning content development for teachers, elaborating the innovative “Responsive Project Methodology” aimed at turning VET from being supply-driven to “demand-driven “, piloting all results with the target group, and disseminating the products and experiences online for VET teachers in 4 European languages.

The quality of the results and the effectiveness of the collaboration was ensured by project- and quality management processes, continuous monitoring and evaluation supported by digital tools.

RESULTS AND IMPACT ATTAINED, LONG-TERM BENEFITS
The indicators we reached demonstrate the impact of the project:
560 teachers, 87 students and 25 companies involved into the surveys and the pilots, more than 300 pages published in four European languages (EN, EST, HU, IT) online (curriculum, online course, 2 e-books), more than 100 dissemination activities, 350 external participants on the face-to-face and virtual multiplier events. However, the most important result providing feedbacks about the impact of the project results as a whole, were the two months long pilot projects in Hungary and Estonia.

“We can see now what knowledge we can realistically expect from a newly graduated and job-seeking employee in the indicated area when hiring. I would definitely recommend this form of cooperation to other VET schools and employers because it can help build a living relationship between them.” (Employer)

Long-term impact
The beneficiaries of the project results in the long term are VET students, industrial stakeholders, the employers and even VET schools. The VET schools establishing responsive projects make a step towards the demand-driven vocational education, the students completing the mini-course and conducting project work on real problem will have better chance for staring start their professional carrier successfully, and the companies have better chance for finding employees with vocational and soft competences they need.

The feedbacks received from the target group and beneficiaries clearly demonstrate that the Reacti-VET products contribute to equip VET students with the skills and competences to thrive in the evolving labour market. While the project was designed in 2018, its objectives are now-days even more relevant than they were at that time, and included into the strategies for the next period of 2021-2027.

Project portal: https://reactivet.itstudy.hu/ (dissemination platform for visitors)
E-learning platform: https://rvet.itstudy.hu/
Contact:: maria.hartyanyi@itstudy.hu

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 360350,06 Eur

Project Coordinator

iTStudy Hungary Számítástechnikai Oktató- és Kutatóközpont Kft. & Country: HU

Project Partners

• AS BCS KOOLITUS
• CAPDM Limited
• SZÁMALK-Szalézi Technikum és Szakgimnázium
• Fondazione Istituto Tecnico Superiore per le nuove tecnologie per il made in Italy – Jobsacademy
• Veszpremi SZC Oveges Jozsef Technikum és Kollegium
• AICA ASSOCIAZIONE ITALIANA PER L’INFORMATICA E IL CALCOLO AUTOMATICO