Focused, Interested, Tolerant – F.I.T. for Europe Erasmus Project

Project Title

Focused, Interested, Tolerant – F.I.T. for 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 : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Labour market issues incl. career guidance / youth unemployment; Key Competences (incl. mathematics and literacy) – basic skills; EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy

Project Summary

Background
A study (DZHW) has shown that about a third of all bachelor students end their studies early and do not graduate. Almost half of these take up vocational training after a short time. A large proportion of university dropouts cite ‘lack of motivation’ as the cause. These figures roughly match those of early drop-out rates in the project partners’ countries. The early dropout and the rapid transition to a training relationship can be an indication that many young people are not yet sure what career path they want to take. This coincided with our observations and increased the need to provide a more consistent and better career orientation in schools. This professional orientation should not only refer to national opportunities, but should also focus on European educational and occupational alternatives. At the same time, key competences such as assertiveness, willingness to cooperate, tolerance, self-confidence and readiness for lifelong learning were central.

Aims
Today’s environment of young people is often characterized by a material life orientation, unreflective media use. This leads to passive consumption. This attitude of passive consumption is reflected in the sluggishness and unimaginativeness many young people display when it comes to planning their future careers. F.I.T. for Europe’s goal was therefore to promote self-initiative and motivation, to develop key competences and to actively shape a professional perspective in Europe. The prerequisite for this was that the students were motivated to study the educational systems and opportunities in their own country – but also in other European countries. This resulted in a strengthening of intercultural skills and possibilities for young people’s professional futures.

Number and profile of participants
Our project group consisted of four partner schools. The ‘NFSG’ in Bulgaria focuses on business and project management. The training of MINT competences forms a focal point at ‘Limbazu Novada Gimnazija’ in Latvia. Dr. Nassau College, Quintus in the Netherlands is at the forefront of integrating modern electronic learning environments into the classroom, while the Unter den Eichen grammar school focuses on cooperative language learning.

Methodology
All project activities were published on our homepage www.fitforeurope.net. The contents ought to make students sensitive for the importance of a tolerant, committed and reflective way of life. The different opportunities concerning academic studies and professional education in their partner countries were introduced by way of field trips, talks and lectures as well as digital presentations (the results are stored in Twinspace). The GooleMap created in this context is only available to the participants of the project due to copyright reasons. Conducting surveys by means of evaluation sheets before and after each mobility was supposed to document students’ knowledge of the partner countries concerning culture, education and everyday life. A wide variety of learning approaches and methods ensured that different learner types were being addressed and that students received encouraging ideas to help them shape their future careers.

Results
Students presented country-specific modules regarding academic studies and professional education, did research on the training systems of the participating countries and introduced their own educational systems. Job interviews and application-relevant workshops (e.g. etiquette workshop) were being conducted, and relevant vocabulary and idiomatic phrases were recorded in a transnational education dictionary. The focus and content were selected by the students themselves. In a final school-specific art project, the memory of “Fit for Europe” and thus the European idea were recorded. Students also kept record of their emotional as well as professional experiences in a joint project booklet which is available to all schools in a digital version. In addition to the presentations and training courses, visits to different universities and businesses delivered insight into the diverse educational and professional landscape of Europe. The acquired knowledge was permanently anchored on a cooperatively operated homepage (see above) and on the school homepages to guarantee long-lasting learning effects.

Benefits
Students realized that they are able to influence their future careers and broadened their academic and professional perspectives beyond the national labor market by showing interest and being proactive. Ideas and incentives to prepare for the European education and employment market were intended to expand students’ options in those areas and to support creative ideas for the formation of their individual transnational future. Connecting and cooperating with students from different nations led to mutual understanding, tolerance and the appreciation of other cultures, thus ultimately strengthening the European ideal. Within this context firm connections beyond the project developed, and regular communication increased the foreign language skills of all participants. Besides increasing the ability to cooperate, working on projects together also enhanced the professional and systematic usage of digital media.

Project Website

http://www.fitforeurope.net

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 116051,49 Eur

Project Coordinator

GYMNASIUM UNTER DEN EICHEN UETZE & Country: DE

Project Partners

• NATSIONALNA FINANSOVO-STOPANSKA GIMNAZIYA
• Limbazu Novada Gimnazija
• Stichting Openbaar Voortgezet Onderwijs Noord- en Midden-Drenthe