Digital Skills Pathways for Youth across Europe Erasmus Project

Project Title

Digital Skills Pathways for Youth across Europe

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 youth

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2014

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Youth (Participation, Youth Work, Youth Policy) ; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Labour market issues incl. career guidance / youth unemployment

Project Summary

The area of digital literacy is a new and evolving concept within society and there is a growing recognition that schools are not preparing our youth with these core skills.

The aim of the project was to provide teenagers across Europe with opportunities to develop a range of digital literacy skills; to provide them with a virtual space to showcase their work and to network with peers; to expose them to the wide range of possible careers in this evolving sector and to identify pathways they can follow into further education and future employment in the field of digital media.

Project objectives were:
1. Set-up and run a ‘Creative Lab’ in each partner country engaging a group of youth learners and their tutors. Evaluate and assess youth’s needs and skills in terms of the digital media. Introduce them to the variety of digital media jobs through meetings with business representatives.
2. Produce a structured Digital Pathways Programme that develops a range of digital skills that can be delivered in any informal learning setting across Europe.
3. Develop CPD Materials for Digital mentors so they are empowered to lead and facilitate the learning workshops.
4. Organise Workshops and study visits to partner countries for digital mentors.
5. Validate the Digital Pathways Programme and CPD materials for Digital mentors with youth learners across all partner countries, placing a strong emphasis on young people creating and sharing their work and ideas online.
6. Provide youth across partner countries with meaningful career guidance engaging representatives from the industry, schools and parents.
7. Disseminate the project outcomes across EU member States.

The project assisted 57 teenagers in Ireland, Germany and Poland developing their digital competences outside of the school setting and developed a robust teaching model that supported young people’s learning in an out of school setting, in their community. The focus of the project was on young people creating digital artefacts and in the process developing skills – both technical and soft skills. There is evidence that schools across Europe struggle to provide such learning opportunities so there is a real need to provide them in non-formal learning spaces. Based on that the following two outputs were developed over the two years of the project aimed at youth organisations, tutors and learners:

1. Digital Pathways Programme
The programme consists of: a set of learning modules, a set of ‘taster sessions’ and a set of digital artefacts. The structure allows young people to work together and develop digital skills in areas such as film making, game development, animation and social media. During these ‘taster sessions’ they have a chance to explore some specific areas of digital media, as well as engage with people from across the digital media industry. In this way, young people can link their ‘fun’ out-of-school activities with the real world of work.

2. CPD materials for Digital mentors.
The project developed a set of CPD materials for Digital Mentors to support them in preparation and delivery of Digital Pathways programme. The CPD materials provide guidance on developing strategies and approaches that have already proven successful in engaging young people with digital media. The materials showcase how Digital Mentors can support young people to learn and develop digital media skills in collaboration with their peers, both in face-to-face settings
and online.

The project outputs are freely available in English, German and Polish languages through the project webiste: www.digitalpathways.eu

The target groups for the project were:
• Youth organisations
• Youth education providers
• Youth tutors and practitioners
• Digital media industry representatives
• Policy Makers
• Research Bodies and Experts

Digital Pathways has involved partners from Ireland, Germany and Poland. In Ireland, the project has been coordinated by H2 Learning and involved the Digital Hub Development Agency (DHDA) and the National College of Art and Design (NCAD). In Germany, the project has involved MFG Baden-Württemberg mbH, Public Innovation Agency for IT and Media while in Poland the project partner was the Krzyzowa Foundation that implement various projects, including artistic, educational, civic and sports and training for the youth, teachers and youth leaders.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 203172,23 Eur

Project Coordinator

H2 LEARNING LTD & Country: IE

Project Partners

• FUNDACJA KRZYZOWA DLA POROZUMIENIA EUROPEJSKIEGO
• Digital Hub Development Agency
• MFG MEDIEN-UND FILMGESELLSCHAFT BADEN-WUERTTEMBERG MBH
• NATIONAL COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN