Europe has always kept up with innovative ideas. If we choose to hold on to the innovator’s path…we have to focus on people, places and processes.” (European Political Strategy Centre Strategic Notes,2017) Focusing on people, we should have in mind that every person ought to have a better chance in his/her life and receive support if he/she experiences special difficulties. It is a win-win strategy as it promotes personal and professional development of an individual as well as society flourishing. In this context, it is crucial to improve learning opportunities for low-skilled adults, especially from the disadvantaged groups, such as young people and people with special needs, because of their stigmatization and exclusion from the pool of employable people.The skills development will improve their life chances and promote their inclusion. The Count Me In sets up the objectives to1)support development of a quality learning offer in the field of adult education focusing on learning outcomes and learner responsibility and autonomy; 2)promote the use of technology in educational and civil participation processes, 3)provide all interested stakeholders – adult learners, educational centres, civil organisations, decision-makers - with an access to open and innovative teaching/learning tools through the SMART platform; 4)foster the international cooperation of organisations active in adult education and civil participation focusing on active inclusion of the youth and people with special needs. Employing technology can maximize teaching /learning efficiency, encourage active participation of the disadvantaged groups in society processes and, consequently, make them able to better their environment – on personal and community level - transforming it into smart . The concept “smart” is sometimes used as a synonym of “highly technologic” and, thus, “not reachable” by ordinary citizens without higher education…similar to the misconception common some decades ago that high technology could only be available to wealthy people. The constant improvement/miniaturization of electronic components and reduced price have made various elements of high technology (smartphones, computers, etc.) available to the general population. Even basic digital competences combined with imagination can empower ordinary people to design solutions for problems in their environment, making it smarter, conserving resources, and optimizing free time. Using sensors, detectors, analysers, switches - words that have already become common for the general population - along with computers, tablets and smartphones usually used for leisure activities/socializing but can be also of a great help in learning and civil participation processes-can provide efficient and cost-reducing solutions for personal and community’s problems. We just have to raise curiosity of adult learners about the world; help them to understand that they are a main chain in the change process; plant the seeds of the knowledge sharing best practices and working out new creative solutions. When we have done it, the imagination and curiosity of our learners will do the rest. Specific goals of the project are:1)design a SMART platform, an open education resource; 2)design and deploy a training for trainers and an e-course for adult educators in order to improve their digital and professional competences; 3)design an e-course and organise piloting in partner countries targeting young people and people with special needs in order to improve their digital skills and civic literacy to be able to make “smart” changes; 4)improve attractiveness and access of the disadvantaged groups to new career paths in the field of digital technologies and sustainable community development The strategical partnership pursues the creation of an international network where the partners will be able to share information on Smart practices on personal/community levels to find cost-saving tech-solutions. The project will be carried out transnationally as it the most efficient way to learn already contrasted knowledge and, thus, to be able to adapt and apply this synthesized knowledge for future actions on personal/community levels. The developed transversal and longitudinal courses will create synergies between knowledge fields. T The results of the project will remain available beyond its conclusion. The developed SMART platform will provide an open access to teaching and learning materials for both adult learners and adult educators or volunteers working in this field. The ‘Digital Tools for SMART Development" will be available to anybody aiming at improving their digital skills and competences and enter/re-enter the labour market (obtaining a certificate on completion). The teaching and learning materials in English and partner languages developed during the project will also be easily and freely accessible for anybody interested in the topic.
In the post-COVID-10 era, Europe has to keep up with innovative ideas to ensure a sustainable and inclusive recovery. “If we choose to hold on to the innovator’s path…we have to focus on people, places and processes.” (European Political Strategy Centre Strategic Notes, 2017) In the last months, we witnessed the creation of a stronger sense of community and people supporting each other and their communities. Amid the COVID-19 crisis, supporting communities and people and promoting their development is essential. The partners of the Count Me In project focused on improving learning opportunities for low-skilled adults, especially from the disadvantaged groups, such as unemployed young people and adults with special needs to improve their life chances, promote their inclusion, and connect members of a community to support it flourishing. The main objectives of the project were to: 1) support development of a quality learning offer in the field of adult education focusing on learning outcomes and learner responsibility and autonomy; 2) promote the use of technology in educational and civil participation processes, 3) provide all interested stakeholders – adult learners, educational centres, civil organisations, decision-makers - with an access to open and innovative teaching/learning tools through the SMART platform; 4) foster the international cooperation of organisations active in adult education and civil participation focusing on active inclusion of the youth and people with special needs. Employing technology maximizes teaching /learning efficiency, encourage active participation of the disadvantaged groups in society processes and, consequently, make them able to better their environment – on personal and community level - transforming it into smart. Even basic digital competences combined with imagination empower ordinary people to design solutions for problems in their environment, making it smarter, conserving resources, and optimizing free time. The project partners sought to raise curiosity of adult learners about the world; help them to understand that they are a main chain in the change process; plant the seeds of the knowledge sharing best practices and working out new creative solutions. Within the project, the partnership 1) designed a SMART platform, an open education resource; 2) designed and deployed a training for trainers and an e-course for adult educators in order to improve their digital and professional competences; 3) designed an e-course for adult learners and organise piloting in partner countries targeting young people and people with special needs in order to improve their digital skills and civic literacy to be able to make “smart” changes; 4) improved attractiveness and access of the disadvantaged groups to new career paths in the field of digital technologies and sustainable community development The strategical partnership pursued the creation of an international network where the partners were able to share information on Smart practices on personal/community levels to find cost-saving tech-solutions. The project was carried out transnationally in order to acquire already contrasted knowledge and, thus, to be able to adapt and apply this synthesized knowledge for future actions on personal/community levels. The developed transversal and longitudinal courses created synergies between knowledge fields. The results of the project are available on the website www.countmein.eu. The developed SMART platform provides an open access to teaching and learning materials for both adult learners and adult educators or volunteers working in this field. All the teaching and learning materials were developed in English and partner languages and are freely accessible for anybody interested in the topic.