Vocational Education and Training for sport workers- Innovative Program for building personal and social skills Erasmus Project

Project Title

Vocational Education and Training for sport workers- Innovative Program for building personal and social skills

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 vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

The main objective of the project is to promote professional development of sport workers through innovative VET. Through this project sport workers gained valuable professionals skills leading towards their empowerment, inclusion, and respect for diversity. The project achieved its objectives by: developing curricula for all sports workers (coaches, recruiters), piloting these curricula directly on sport workers in soccer trainers among partner countries, and broadly disseminating these curricula to sports workers in the partner countries and beyond. The project involves partners from North Macedonia, Greece, Italy, and Austria.
The aforementioned curricula being one of the main results of the project were specifically designed for vocational education and training in sports, through custom made process. They are suitable for innovative VET education, for all professional sport workers. This means that they contain a minimum of narrative information and a lot of practical exercises and examples which convey the specific educational messages. The custom made curricula had been defined during the project, based on thorough analysis of the current state, as well as discussion and exchange between the partners. The custom made curricula address the following basic areas: 1. HR skills, and 2. Social Values. These broad thematic areas had been specified and the curricula had been developed based on a thorough assessment of needs. The curriculum that was developed is unique combination of state-of-the-art education activities and teaching strategies stemming from soft skills training and NLP coaching (total coaching, based on applied psychology).
The project activities focused mainly on the following work: 1. Conducting an assessment of the specific training needs of workers in sport, 2. Developing two broad curricula, one of which in the area of life-skills, and the other in the area of social values, for sport workers, 3. Testing and refining these curricula through short term training for sport workers, 4. Implementing these curricula, 5. Broadly disseminating these curricula among sport workers.
All of the project work was conducted in close cooperation between the project partners. The partners communicated frequently during project implementation for purposes of coordination, curricula work, planning of training, etc. The project produced 4 intellectual outputs (IOs):

IO 1 – Curricula on HR skills for Sport Workers
This curricula is focused on developing HR self-management skills (examination of self-image and its effects on behavior; set goals and keep track of personal progress; identify everyday decisions and how they may be influenced by others; analyze problem situations, and consider the consequences of each alternative solution before making decisions; reduce stress and anxiety, and look at personal challenges in a positive light).
IO 2 – Curricula on Social Values for Sport Workers
These curricula are focused on developing social skills (effective communication and avoiding misunderstandings, initiate and carry out conversations, handle social requests, utilize both verbal and nonverbal assertiveness skills to make or refuse requests, and recognize that they have choices other than aggression or passivity when faced with tough situations).
IO 3 – Communication strategy with visibility plan for the project activities
The communication strategy is a very important document that has been made available to the project partners and wider public, since it enables efficient and effecting implementation of the projects, risk management and it is enriched with visibility plan, which professionally promotes the project results to the wider public. The approach that was used to develop this very important document is innovative and creative, thus brings closer to true realization of its objectives.
IO 4 – Training needs assessment study
This study served as base for the development of the core intellectual outputs of the project. The study was performed by all project partners together and its outcomes will be discussed during a transnational effective workshop in order to agree on the needs of the sport workers as professionals and how these needs meet with the values and skill available in HR. The development of the TNA understood:
• Collection of materials and data by experts and completing a comparative study on practices and sports
• Development of actors’ skill-set needs for sport workers
• Assessments of educational providers outputs of skills
• Developing projection document for current and anticipation of VET outputs and needs

In conclusion, the project successfully promoted and implemented an innovative concept of education on empowerment and diversity for professionals in sport.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 140295 Eur

Project Coordinator

Zdruzenie na gragjani Makedonska asocijacija za covecki resursi Skopje & Country: MK

Project Partners

• Fußballakademie Burgenland GmbH
• Sinergie Education Srl
• Football Federation of Macedonia
• KENTRO EREVNON NOTIOANATOLIKIS EVROPIS ASTIKI MI KERDOSKOPIKI ETAIREIA