Developing Expertise in Learning and Training Assessment in the workplace Erasmus Project

Project Title

Developing Expertise in Learning and Training Assessment in the workplace

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 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Quality Assurance; Enterprise, industry and SMEs (incl. entrepreneurship); Recognition, transparency, certification

Project Summary

Companies can no longer solely rely on classroom-based instruction or linear training by watching someone perform a task and then repeating it. They require to build effective teams and solve problems in a fast paced environment in a collaborative fashion. Work-based learning must follow suit and this raises the question of how apprentices/trainees are supported, mentored and assessed in the work-place. Similarly there is a need for employers to recognise how trainees are engaged in today’s VET centres in teaching and learning in order that there is a ‘joined up’ approach. between the two.

The objective of the DELTA project was to increase the skills of tutors in company to be able to host, train, monitor and assess the apprentices/students and design a process to facilitate the participation of SMEs in the dual VET system (or any other scheme of hosting students in companies).The project aimed to promote a training culture amongst companies, especially SMEs, through awareness raising activities and utilising the experience of companies with a prior experience of hosting VET students and showing the beneficial results for the organisation.

Three key Intellectual Outputs were identified as key to support the project objectives:

IO1/ The DELTA Digital Portfolio – where trainees can demonstrate to employers their skills and how they learn in their VET centre
IO2/ The DELTA Toolkit is a set of documents and materials aimed at companies in order to assist them in the process of hosting a VET student, including the assessment of the student and the impact the hosting has had on the company.
IO3/ The DELTA Collaborative Apprenticeship Schemes for SMEs. This output is intended for those companies which are too small or too specific to be able to take apprentices (eg because they cannot dedicate personal resources or because they cannot cover all the curriculum to meet the needs of the apprenticeship).

During the project, we engaged with large numbers of target groups and stakeholders with direct engagement with over 500 students and learners, over 600 companies and 1,400 teachers and stakeholders. The project carried out 130 dissemination events which reached 4,000 people face-to-face and over 10,000 online.

When we look at general impacts, we have found that at least one vocational school in Sweden that the Swedish partner engaged with, plans to strategically implement digital competence portfolios via the materials developed during IO1, for all their students. This will be further developed with a follow-on project approved during the 2019 call by the Swedish National Agency. At least four vocational schools in Sweden who participated in the digital competence portfolio work are implementing the porfolios as a result of the DELTA project. In addition, the results of working with IO2 and IO3 have given the partner new knowledge that can be developed if the conditions and demand change for apprenticeship education. They have noted interest from a Swedish ESF Project for the construction industry’s skills supply, especially for vocational training of new arrivals, where shared apprenticeship has not yet been tested.

From our Spanish partner, the methodology of the DELTA digital portfolio has been integrated in the curriculum of the subject “career guidance” (which is mandatory in all VET programmes in Spain) in several schools in the Basque Region. Moreover, other schools in secondary education have included it as an activity and some other schools are using the same methodology in the subject “entrepreneurship” to present the simulated companies created by the students. Regarding IO2 and IO3, they are being used as part of the key documents that are giving form to a training programme for VET teachers that is being developing, together with the Ministry of Education of Spain and the Basque Country.

In the UK, staff involved in the project are using the materials and they will also be further distributed internally for use across all departments. The digital portfolio work is especially interesting to our Employability teams who are going to be using the materials in their courses specifically for those who are furthest from the employment market. Initial results of assisting these learners who may otherwise struggle to categorise their skills on a traditional paper CV, have shown promise whereby they feel more comfortable presenting their skills in a digital and visual format, including video.

Quantitate indicators from the project are also positive and higher than expected with 26 teachers directly involved in project activities and 110 involved via cascading events. Over 40 digital portfolios were developed by learners over the project duration and the project has led to a follow on project successfully submitted to the Swedish NA during the 2019 call, concentrating on digital portfolios.

For more information, the project website can be found at www.deltaproject.eu

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 234456 Eur

Project Coordinator

DUNDEE AND ANGUS COLLEGE & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Discovery Flexibles Ltd
• Kleinon SRL
• ASOCIACION DE CENTROS DE FORMACION TECNICO PROFESIONAL DE INCIATIVA SOCIAL DE EUSKADI HETEL HEZIKETA TEKNIKOKO ELKARTEA DE DURANGO (BIZKAIA)
• Amledo & Co AB
• PIXEL – ASSOCIAZIONE CULTURALE
• IHK- PROJEKTGESELLSCHAFT MBH