The aim of the project is to develop teacher skills in adult education that are necessary in working with different groups of adults, and to improve and expand the offer by using innovative approaches. The main objective of the project is to make the Curriculum called „Expert for Coordination of Education and Employment“ by applying the principles of lifelong learning as well as flexible learning methods in different areas of education and training. Globalization, huge planetary scale mobility, significant social and economic diversity and the emergence of vulnerable social groups, migrants, asylum seekers and the Roma require efficient response to these and many other questions and challenges. High unemployment, social exclusion, religious and ethnic inequalities and differences, further marginalization of certain social groups remain major social and economic issues in almost all countries regardless of their current level of development and status. This project is intended for the staff of partner institutions and silent partners: analysis showed that no partner country has a vocation that is the result of this project, which is of great importance due to the need for linking education and the labour market in relation to the secondary target group of asylum seekers, migrants and the Roma. This has initiated the idea to create an innovative curriculum for educating and training employees of educational institutions to increase their skills in working with migrants, asylum seekers and the Roma, thus also contributing to the inclusion of secondary target groups in the processes of education and employment. A careful selection among the 43 applicants singled out 6 partners to participate and notably contribute to the realization of the project as a whole: SPOLECNA AKADEMIA NAUK (SAN), a private university from Poland; Faculty of Educational Sciences from Croatia, Osijek; INFOR ELEA, an Italian consortium of 250 public and private institutional and economic partners; Slovo 21, a non-governmental and non-profit organization from the Czech Republic; MBM Training and Development Centre Ltd., an international company from the United Kingdom and Vilnius "Židinio", a gymnasium for adults from Lithuania. The key activities of the project are as follows: development of a curriculum „Expert for coordination of education and employment“ consisting of 4 modules, with all partners involved in the development of each individual module and at the same time each partner is holder of a particular module; training of teachers on the basis of the designed curriculum, production of teaching materials in compliance with all andragogic standards; research and analysis of project progress and quality; evaluation; visibility and dissemination through announcements in printed and electronic media and organization of the final conference. The methodology that will be used throughout the project is the application of different teaching and learning strategies based on andragogic principles and modern methods of interactive communication. Online presentation and training, which will be applied and used by all partners in the joint creation of an international curriculum, is just one of the innovative elements of the project. Dissemination and visibility will be provided by communicating the key results of project activities (research and analysis, designed curriculum, teaching literature, promotional material) on the project website. The primary criterion of accomplishment will be the training of 12 participants from partner organizations and 88 participants from silent partner organizations. Ultimately, the project results will bring sustainability and be available to other interested parties through the commercialization and validation of the curriculum in all partner countries and at a later stage in other countries, and the establishment of an EU certificate for this innovative vocation based on the new curriculum. In this way we will achieve the first objective of dissemination and exploitation of project results through its implementation at both national and EU level. The second objective will also be achieved, contributing to the implementation and creation of national and European policies and systems. Partner organizations will disseminate the project results to adult education institutions, economic operators, target groups and other stakeholders. They will also be support for further project sustainability, such as, national certification of the curriculum, establishment of a European certificate and project continuation in the form of new projects.
Globalization and mobility, economic diversity and the emergence of vulnerable social groups, migrants, asylum seekers and the Roma, require effective responses to many challenges.High unemployment rates, social exclusion, religious and national inequalities and differences, further marginalization of particular social strata remain major social and economic problems in almost all countries irrespective of their current development and status. The main objective of the Project was to contribute to the enhancing of synergies between education and the labour market by designing innovative programmes in the field of adult education with the aim of strengthening partner organizations. The objective has been achieved through the development of an innovative curriculum for the new occupation,accompanying pedagogical materials and training of 2 persons in each partner organization (except Osijek). The objective was also achieved by research and analysis as the third intellectual outcome, the purpose of which was to obtain relevant data on the position of the secondary target group in the eyes of employers in partner countries and on issues underlying their employment. The Project involved 6 partner organizations and the Open University Koprivnica as the coordinator. INFOR ELEA, Italy, a consortium of 250 legal entities engaged in the development and acquisition of entrepreneurial skills for employers, the unemployed and employees. Slovo 21, the Czech Republic, a non-profit and non-governmental organization with a wealth of experience in implementing education and cultural programmes for migrants and the Roma. The Vilnius Židinio Gymnasium for adults, Lithuania, has extensive experience in adult education and in applying new technologies in education. Spoleczna akademia Nauk, Poland, a private university with valuable experience in creating programmes for disadvantaged adults (migrants). MBM Training and Development Center, UK, an international non-profit organization that provides educational programmes for individual jobs and develops innovative UK programmes that affect community development. The Faculty of Educational Sciences from Osijek is engaged in the development of lifelong learning programmes and in encouraging the mobility of teaching staff. The main activities were related to 3 intellectual outcomes: 1.Designing a curriculum for the profession: Expert for the coordination of education and employment - each of the partners has been the carrier of a specific module according to their profile of activities, while other partners have been actively involved in providing constructive advice and supplementing the subject matter, accordingly. 2.Designing pedagogical materials that accompany each curriculum module. Each partner who worked on the module was responsible for the accompanying pedagogical materials, and all other partners actively participated in providing suggestions and supplementing the subject matter. At the same time, each partner contributed with extensive scientific and professional literature for supporting the contents of each module. 3.Designing the third intellectual outcome-research and analysis. The main purpose of the research was to obtain data from surveyed legal entities and respondents on employment issues of target group members in general and in surveyed legal entities in partner countries. The analysis of the results showed, according to the specificities of partner countries, a relatively wide range of data that allows further use. The results from 287 completed questionnaires provide valuable data that can have impact on policies, as well as strategic and action planning in the field of education and labour market issues in the widest sense. Within the framework of educational activities, a presentation of each module was held for 2 persons from each partner organization who passed an online knowledge exam and received the certificate “Short term expert for the coordination of education and employment”. The Project's long-term benefit is in the strengthened staffing capacity of partner organizations through their education and taking exams based on the programme in order to be able to continue to work easier and access a secondary target group for the purpose of linking it to business entities in the capacity of employer. They will be able to detect the needs of the labour market more easily and in cooperation with the secondary target group and employer find a solution through the development of new curricula tailored to the specific needs of the employer. The Project's impact is visible in new contacts at local, regional, national and international level. Brochures were published O1, O2, O3 in all the languages of partner countries and the intellectual outcomes were uploaded on the Project's website and on the dissemination platform. The outcomes are the basis for further expansion of the consortium with the aim of upgrading the existing outcomes and creating new projects.