Remote Working Skills for All Erasmus Project

Project Title

Remote Working Skills for All

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 adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Key Competences (incl. mathematics and literacy) – basic skills; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

BACKGROUND
The Covid-19 virus outbreak in late 2019 – early 2020 led to a surge of remote working, where the majority of EU workforce was compelled to work in an out-of-office setting; this comes to a sharp contrast compared to past years, where just 5-10% of EU employees have been working remotely, according to Eurostat. Nevertheless, such a rise in remote working has not been unprecedented; there has been a steady, yet minimal, increase through the years in the numbers of remote workers (esp. in the ICT sector), with a similar spike during the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak and other similar cases of business interruptions. The difference this time is that the increase in remote working due to the Covid-19 virus outbreak has been fuelled by more flexible and decentralised management practices, as well as more widely available technologies. One of the most pressing challenges that emerged has been the possibility of a lasting workplace change, where a greater part of the workforce works out of premises.

NEEDS & CHALLENGES
The prospect of a remote work transition creates uncertainty and distress to workers all over Europe, as normal work patterns, modes of communication, and team dynamics will be disrupted; it is only a small share of the workforce that is already familiar with this mode of work. For most, there is an emerging substantial need to improve relevant soft and hard skills and competences, ranging from digital, social & communicating skills to setting up and running a home office and work routines, and maintaining a work-life balance and healthy lifestyle. This is even more significant for a) low-skilled individuals who lack the necessary digital and organisational skills, and b) those over the age of 55, who increasingly remain in the workforce.

OBJECTIVES
The project aims to extend the supply of high quality learning opportunities that support and reinforce key competences for adults employed or looking for employment in an emerging remote working era. To that end, REMSKA objectives are to:
-Design an evidence-based course curriculum on remote working skills for adults.
-Develop flexible training delivery methods (e-book, MOOC) and innovative open access resources to support individuals in acquiring and developing remote working skills.
– Support self-assessment of key competences for the remote work era.
-Create and provide access to tools and guidelines addressing technological and organizational aspects of remote work.

PROJECT PARTNERSHIP
The REMSKA partnership comprises 6 organisations from 6 European countries (DE, EL, SI, IT, BG, BE) with complementary skills from the worlds of higher (HAW) and adult education (AZM, IAL), workforce representation (PODKREPA), research (PROMEA) and consulting (INNOVELA). The partnership will be further strengthened through the involvement of tow key actors in the field of adult education, namely BIBB (DE) and ZLUS (SI), as associated partners.

RESULTS
The REMSKA project is expected to have the following results:
-A set of evidence-based learning outcomes on remote working skills for adults.
-A curriculum structure (syllabus) as well as a pool of pedagogical resources including educational instructions, learning and assessment materials, as well as a trainer handbook and a learner e-book.
– A Massive Open Online Course comprising the project learning units and contextualised training and assessment materials of the REMSKA course, in their online form, suitable for self-directed and blended training.
– A framework and set of tools for the facilitation of remote work including: a) a self-assessment tool on (prospective) workers’ skills, readiness and attitudes towards working remotely, b) a best practice guide covering both technological and organizational aspects of remote work and a Statement of Support for the validation and endorsement of the REMSKA resources, and c) protocols, guidelines and checklists facilitating remote work practices and processes.

POST-PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY
-European adult education providers are anticipated to uptake the REMSKA learning units and material to update the content of their training offerings, in order to address existing occupational needs regarding skills and competences pertaining to remote work.
-Learners will access the REMSKA MOOC and e-book for non-formal self-directed learning, motivated by adult education providers, employers and other stakeholders, such as career counselling bodies, employment centers, employee’s associations, and activities, to support continuing education.
-The best practice guide covering technological and organisational aspects of remote work will provide all interested parties with insights on how to improve their remote work practices and address the emerging occupational skill needs.

Project Website

https://www.remskaproject.eu/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 296105 Eur

Project Coordinator

HOCHSCHULE FUR ANGEWANDTE WISSENSCHAFTEN HAMBURG & Country: DE

Project Partners

• Innovela sprl
• IAL Nazionale- Innovazione Apprendimento Lavoro s.r.l Impresa Sociale
• CONFEDERATION OF LABOUR PODKREPA SDRUZHENIE
• HELLENIC SOCIETY FOR THE PROMOTION OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGIES ASTIKI ETAIRIA
• Andragoski zavod Maribor – Ljudska univerza
• Economic Policy Institute