Die digitale Erfolgsmaschine (Digital engine to success) The project is motivated by the fact that many young people are perplexed by the demands and opportunities of the European job market. In discussions among teachers, managers, and pupils from Valencia and Berlin, it has become clear that pupils from both countries are confronted with similar obstacles. Approximately 30 pupils who are receiving an education in micro informatics and networks from the FLORIDA CENTRE DE FORMACIO, COOP. V in Valencia will take part. These pupils are in the second year of their training. Their first year includes orientation in the world of work. At the beginning of their education at the Florida Centre, many pupils are confronted with negative experiences and/or academic failure. On the one hand, these young people struggle with motivation problems; on the other hand, they retain the hope that this education will open the door to the possibility of university studies. Ten pupils from each group will take part in the exchange. The pupils (approx. 20) from the Oberstufenzentrum für Informations- und Medizintechnik (OSZ IMT; Vocational School for Information and Medical Technologies) in Berlin will take one of the two Spanish courses offered. These courses are offered at the beginning of the introductory phase at the berufliches Gymnasium (vocational-academic secondary school) in order to provide pupils with the opportunity to learn a second foreign language in the last three years before the Abitur (school-leaving exams) if they have not yet done so. What distinguishes the upper academic level of the OSZ IMT is that an advanced course in informatics or medical informatics is required. In this respect, pupils are first and foremost motivated by their interest in informatics. However, here too motivation problems and uncertainty regarding future career prospects appear repeatedly. This often results in the young people feeling alienated from their education, which has negative consequences on their academic progress. From among them, ten pupils from each group will take part in the exchange. Through their work as part of this project, pupils will prepare questions regarding future career prospects, not only for themselves personally, but also for the others who are in a similar situation. This collaborative work and the corresponding ongoing exchange with the European partners will allow the pupils to demonstrate their abilities, and it will both challenge and encourage them to take initiative and responsibility for their knowledge in languages, informatics/technology, and other areas. The goal of the project is to expand the independence of project participants in acquiring soft skills and in attaining information to enter the working world. Even the product – a digital engine to success and motivation engine – and the process of developing it is are aims of the project. Uncomplicated digital access to information, fitting for the IT-oriented lifestyle of many young people, should contribute to reducing pupils’ fear of the new before they enter the European workforce. Content: Imparting and acquiring the basic skills required for pupils to orient and position themselves on the European job market (with respect to the example of Germany and Spain – with the possibility of eventually expanding), and developing and formulating pupils’ own career ambitions and perspectives. The result of the work will be a dynamic website, with features in German and Spanish covering work as well as school and university education. The site will present offerings from companies for the promotion of dual study programs as well as the institutions of the Agentur für Arbeit (unemployment agency), the Industrie- und Handelskammer (IHK; Chamber of Industry and Commerce), the Handwerkskammer (Chamber of Trade), and continuing education programs (always including the corresponding institutions in Spain). In addition to the addresses, contact information, and written information, the videos page will include interviews with representatives of the institutions listed above as well as with young people who have experienced professional success and their tips, including seeking work in the partner country. The vision of the project is that pupils will acquire core vocabulary for topics related to work, training, and (higher) education in Spanish, English, and German as well as guidance in composing resumés and applications in the three languages. The participants will view this project as their personal product and will be responsible for its development and completion. The result will be suitable as a reference demonstrating their abilities. The digital engine to success can then be used for future class work in all participating departments as well as other schools and educational institutions.
Final Report Digital engine to success The main reason why teachers chose his project was a certain degree of cluelessness among students concerning the requirements and opportunities of the European job market. Therefore, motivating our students to deal with aspects of how to choose a career has been our goal . The project has been conducted by The Berlin College of Further Education for Information Technology and Medical Equipment Technology and the Florida Centre de Formacio ; COOP in Catarroja/Valencia/Spain. Both schools offer courses in general and vocational education subjects at grades 11 to 13. Florida Centre de Formacio also offers courses at secondary level (ESO). Participants were students from the 11th grade of our specialised grammar school and students from the fourth grade of ESO which corresponds to the tenth grade in Germany. Gathering and exchanging material about choosing the right career and options for internships, application strategies and study opportunities in Germany and Spain has been on the agenda. The results have been published on a website that can be used as an inspiration or a source of reference. Creating this website required a certain command of programming and language skills. Working in teams consisting of students from Valencia and Berlin, they attended different career advice centres and careers fairs. They put together common application forms, reports about internships, wordlists, created videos, translated interviews, added subtitles. During their stays students also explored the history and the culture of the cities. As a result, this website is available now. Participants have made great progress with regard to their language skills, their ability to work together and coping with problems. They also learned a lot about career options.In addition, these topics have been widely discussed in families and schools, not only by those involved in the project. In the long run, this website will be available to the public and can be used in classes. Contents and translations will be updated on a regular basis. Thus it can be used in the fields of career advice, language practice and infromation technology. All in all, this project has been a highly intense, positive experience of working together with young people from a different European country. The teachers involved in this project will make use of the contacts they made, e.g. by placing students into internships.