Learning by entrepreneuship Erasmus Project

Project Title

Learning by entrepreneuship

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: Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education; Cooperation between educational institutions and business

Project Summary

This partnership project included 3 vocational institutions. At the very beginning of the project, because of some changes in one French organisation (CFAIE), they decided to leave the project. Despite this decision, we carried on out activities and the French partner decided to develop the marketing department.
Because of the competences of our German partners and the teachers involved in the project, we finally decided that they would work in the communication departement and develop a flyer and poster to promote the product of our mini company. The concept was that the French partner which had experience of such a project would develop the company itself, being the mother company and the German partner would be a subsidiary.

The French partner and coordinator of the project is a technological lycée and a center for apprentices in Normandy ; the German vocational school is located in Lower Saxony. Their students are either full time students or apprentices. They have developped commercial, marketing, sales, economics and management cursus which explains the topic of our project : the creation of a mini company. The core of the project “Learning by entrepreuneurship”, a process widely developped in our Region through Epa-Normandie (Entreprendre pour Apprendre) is dedicated to vocational schools so that students are enhanced to discover the world of companies concretly. Our aim is to allow young people from the same cursus to share work methods and to widen their competences to reach the level needed by the diploma but also to acquire some soft skills which could be an added value on their CV to enter the world market. Our wish is also to creat a mini company on an international level.
Our project was expected to be carried out during two years. As the mini company contest takes place every year. We decided that two periods would be defined. In 2018-2019 we developed one company and we would take into account the first experience, the positive and negative aspects so that we can improve our project and find solutions to problems. As the German partner wasn’t used to such a topic, it was necessary to give them some more information.
In France 6 teachers and 60 young people were involved. In Germany 3 teachers and 10 students participated to the activities. The French students had to write their CVs to be placed in the different departements such as Administration, accountancy, communication or production. Every week, during two hours, the students develop the project. It was quite different in Germany as they didn’t have a special time in their timetable. The French and German students and their teachers met once in Germany to decide about the roles, their needs, an agenda and deadlines. As we were in a process a contest, it was necessary to follow a precise agenda. The students in charge with communication could meet their foreign collegues and then communicate together. In the meantime, the teachers were in contact too to carry out the project. Most of the time, we had contact per mail or sms even per phone to solve the difficulties. The first project was a great success. The product was made and sold and the German team realised a poster and a flyer to promote it. Moreover we were the winner of the Regional contest. Nevertheless the German team could not come to France, their venue was postponed several times. An impact for our students was that some of them applied a business school and were accepted.
On the second period, things were more difficult as we separate the students into two groups in France. So we had two companies. It was very difficult for us to start with the project and the topic.
There were also other teachers in the team who didn’t know much about the topic. The communication with the German was difficult. We invited them to come to France at the beginning of the school year so that we could discuss more easily about the agenda, deadlines and responsibilities but they couldn’t come. The students they wanted to integrate in the project were new students. In fact it seemed that we were back to the beginning of the first experience.We finally created a new mini company called “Biogabulles” and decided of a product a biosoap. The name and logo and description of the product were sent rather late to the German team. It was difficult for them to go on with the project as it was planned.
When we, finally, found some solutions to work together, the COVID-19 was every where and we couldn’t go on. So the second part of the project couldn’t go to the end.
Nevertheless, thanks to the first experience, in 2020, we apply for a new project and the impact of the first one is that we are now more aware of our weaknesses. We decided to chose students who are really interested in the project and involved. We decided to work on a one-year project. Because of the Covid-19, many of our European partners, even if they were interested in such a project didn’t want to join. A Spanish partner accepted.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 19984 Eur

Project Coordinator

Association La Châtaigneraie & Country: FR

Project Partners

• BBS Cuxhaven
• AIDAMCIE CFAIE