SmartZine based resources for soft skills development of graduates for work and life Erasmus Project

Project Title

SmartZine based resources for soft skills development of graduates for work and life

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 : Partnerships for Digital Education Readiness

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Labour market issues incl. career guidance / youth unemployment; Overcoming skills mismatches (basic/transversal)

Project Summary

In an era of advanced technology, human interaction is become less and less frequent. Tasks like doing your grocery shopping, managing your finances, making travel arrangements, accessing information, and communicating with people has all moved to the digital realm. This has led to a reduction in face-to face communication with people on a daily basis. This move may have had little impact on Baby-Boomers, Generation X and Y who grew up in periods of little or none of the technology available today, who sent letters instead of emails and played board games instead of video games. Those generations have adapted and moved with the technologies around them. However, it seems the impact of a more technological driven society has been quite different for Generation Z. Often deemed “digital natives”, Gen Z (born between 1995 and 2010) have grown up in an environment where technology is readily available, high speed internet was the norm and social media platforms are the primary form of communication. As this generation begins to join the workforce, it is becoming apparent that they often lack the soft skills required to be effective in the modern workplace (Tulgan, 2018). By soft skills for employment, we are referring to skills like emotional intelligence, leadership and persuasiveness, analytical and quantitative skills, curiosity and learning desire, contextualizing skills, communication and interpersonal skills, problem-solving skills, teamwork, ability to perform under pressure, positive attitude – all skills that professionals today may take for granted, but that could be real obstacles to employment for young people today.

Research presented in ‘Gen Z @ Work’ (Stillman & Stillman, 2017), states that 37% of Gen Z’s believe that technology has weakened their ability to maintain strong interpersonal relationships and develop people skills. Through the Workplace Preparedness Study, commissioned and published by McDonalds in 2018, employees of the fast-food chain who participated in the study stated that they valued the soft skills of their colleagues more than their hard skills. The study engaged over 6,500 employees in McDonalds, and they rated the soft skills of problem-solving (95%), teamwork (94%), verbal communication (94%) and being on time for work and having good attendance (94%) as being the most valued soft skills for colleagues to have. This survey also found that in the majority of cases, Gen Z learners only gain these skills through their first job and cannot learn and cultivate these skills through school and social settings.

Roles and opportunities in the jobs market are evolving, the importance of hard skills has shifted. Although hard skills are still necessary, the importance of soft skills is becoming more and more visible in the labour market. A survey, called the Global Talent Trend Survey, conducted by LinkedIn (2018), found that 82% of organisations said that soft skills are more crucial to the success of their company than hard skills. However, 62% of Gen Z’s think hard skills are more important than soft skills for employability (LinkedIn, 2018). This survey also showed that 61% of organisations believe Gen Z employees will need extra support in the development of their soft skills in the workplace.

The SOFTee project aims to support Gen Z learners to develop their soft skills, under these 5 categories. The EduZine format of the resources in themselves will support young people to develop some of the key skills they require to support their employability; however when focused on the targeted subject of developing their soft skills, these activities will be developed to create authentic and deeper learning experiences for Gen Z learners, which will appeal to their interests in seeking truth and authenticity in their experiences, while also supporting them to enhance their transversal skills that employers value. As such, through these innovative learning resources, the SOFTee project aims to bridge the gap between Gen Z and the needs of the labour market by increasing their soft skills.

By the end of the project life-cycle
– 64 VET tutors will have completed the in-service training developed and be engaged in the Community of Practice established and facilitated through the SOFTee MOOC
– 64 VET tutors will have integrated the Compendium of Interactive Infographics and SOFTee EduZines into their soft skills development toolkit of resources
– 800 digital natives will have engaged with the SOFTee EduZines through the interactive infographics developed and distributed
– 100 VET professionals, representatives of workers, youth workers, academics and policy makers from the VET sector will have attended the SOFTee Final Conference in Poland where the full suite of resources will be presented.
– SOFTee National Campaigns will be held in Ireland, Cyprus, Germany, Latvia, Greece, Croatia and Italy and each event will be attended by a minimum of 25 key stakeholders

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 232789 Eur

Project Coordinator

WYZSZA SZKOLA BIZNESU I NAUK O ZDROWIU & Country: PL

Project Partners

• LATVIJAS UNIVERSITATE
• Callidus ustanova za obrazovanje odraslih
• FUTURE IN PERSPECTIVE LIMITED
• Polygonal
• NEOPHYTOS CH CHARALAMBOUS (INSTITUTE OF DEVELOPMENT LTD)
• Hauptstadtallee 239 V V UG (Skills Elevation FHB)
• SOCIAL YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CIVIL NONPROFIT SOCIETY