Apprenticeships at PHE level provide opportunities to build up new skills and knowledge both on and off the job. When they are of high quality, apprenticeships promote a smoother transition from school/PHE institution to work for young people, giving them a good start to their working careers. They do so by providing a good mix of basic competences and job-specific skills as well as valuable work experience. In addition, at apprenticeships such as apprenticeships, internships, etc. are usually able to earn a wage, even if small, while studying. Quality apprenticeships can also provide an attractive learning pathway for youth at risk of dropping out early from initial education. Employers also benefit as they get support to identify and train workers while adding to their productive capacity and can still form their future employees. SAT as ICT innovation is enhancing digital competences in all target groups, giving them a management and measurement tool for ensuring quality of apprenticeship. On systemic level SAT provides transparent and comparative data among different countries to support further development of apprenticeship and relation between PHE Institutions and world of work. The project aims for: • strengthening cooperation between students / HEI / SMEs during the apprenticeships • Quick, easy and efficient way to track the progress of students • A good overview of the role of the student in the apprenticeships for mentors • Quick and easy ongoing evaluation of student progress at apprenticeships for mentors • Possibility of a quick and effective response of organizers to lack of students’ progression • Directly involving the students into quality assessment of the apprenticeship • Keeping the process of apprenticeship progression transparent, comparative and paperless Our QA-transfer, ICT innovation based, data-driven approach to tackling responsiveness to world of work and students is unique, and thus one of the key innovations of the project. The project is sequential: Stage 1: Understand the State of the Art The intention of this activity is to collate, appraise and evaluate evidence surrounding the subject of the output within specific national/regional/international systems. Stage 2: Propose a Management System for Apprenticeships in terms of Indicators and Criteria The consortium will propose specific process-models, as well as relevant indicators and criteria for each of the following processes: placement design, negotiation of the placement agreement, monitoring of placement progress, placement assessment, placement evaluation and certification of learning Stage 3: Propose Technological Methods to Strengthen Management of Apprenticeships Should the processes of apprenticeship-management be conducted entirely manually, it would be extremely time consuming and inefficient, especially were such processes to be conducted at scale. Thus, we will use roadmapping to propose a meta-data standard, ontology and a set of interlocking technologies which would allow for automatic exchange of innformation between VET institutions, SMEs and students. Stage 4: Create a Tool-Prototype for Management of Apprenticeships Based on the work done in Stage 3, the consortium will produce a tool-prototype for use in management of apprenticeships. It will consist of the following components: management of identity, apprenticeship design, recording details of placements, assigning and documenting learning activities during placement, feedback & evaluation, assessment and reporting, database of final credentials. Stage 5: Develop and Implement a Course on Apprenticeship-Management Apprenticeship-management isn’t only about the tools, but about the competences of the persons involved in management of those apprenticeships. We will design a custom-course for SMEs covering the following topics: key features of apprenticeships, integrating placements into strategic workforce planning, gaining the support of colleagues and senior managers, finding the right provider, drawing up an apprenticeship agreement and employment contract, managing, mentoring and supporting your apprentice, assessing performance, integrating apprentices into your workforce. Stage 6: Validation seminars and Testing beta tool in Live Environments Seminars will bring together partners and stakeholders for a half day workshop-style meeting. During the second meetings, a protocol will be applied using a live-case example, and then will subsequently evaluated based on (a) ability to implement the tool, (b) usefulness of the tool in describing relevant information. The project will: • Ensure that learning outcomes which should be achieved through work-based training are achieved • Improve the quality, transparency and comparability responsiveness and of apprenticeships in PHE • Improve efficiency of cooperation between WoW and PHE Institutions • Meet the needs of employers, students and PHE Institutions in the field of ICT support tools
The main attribute of professional higher education (PHE) is their relationship to the world of work through apprenticeships that represent a substantial part of their curricula. When of high quality, apprenticeships promote a smoother student transition from PHE institution (PHEI) to work, enabling a good start to working careers by providing a good mix of basic competences and job-specific skills and valuable work experience. Employers benefit by identifying and training students adding to their productive capacity and forming their future employees but struggle with the bureaucratic burden, lack of direction and support from PHE institutions (PHEI). The key innovation of Apprentice Track (AppT) lies in the unique 360-degree approach to apprenticeship management by creating a quality framework (IO1) developed into a transparent and comparative response and data driven digital tool (IO2), upgraded by a supportive training raising the pedagogical and digital capacity of mentors (IO3). The Apprentice Track (AppT) project: Strengthened cooperation between students, HEIs and SMEs during the apprenticeships through improved efficiency of cooperation thanks to the provision of the AppT Prototype (IO2) as an online digital tool available on any type of devices (smartphone, tablet, and computer) with all information accessible to all stakeholders with just a few clicks anywhere at any time; offering a collection of relevant data on institutional and national level which allows the identification of labour market needs and gaps to improve curricula and policies. The course for mentors (IO3) was implemented to support employers in integrating apprenticeships into their strategic planning, recruiting, management, and cooperation with PHEIs. Gained a quick, easy, and efficient way to track the progress of students and ensured that learning outcomes which should be achieved through work-based learning (WBL) are attained by providing students and mentors with a list of learning outcomes to be achieved (IO1), enabling transparent progress assessment supported with assessment criteria and showing an overall apprenticeship progress grade accessible and visible at any time to each student and their PHEI in the AppT Prototype (IO2). Obtained a good overview of the role of the student in the apprenticeships for mentors by providing mentors with the insight to all agreed documents at any time and place. For each individual student’s agreement, clear description of agreed role, responsibility, and obligations of the student during their apprenticeship is provided. Gained a quick and easy ongoing evaluation of student progress at apprenticeships for mentors by enabling the mentor the instant insight to student’s competences to be achieved, prepared workplan, assessment of progress and at the end of the apprenticeship the compilation and translation into a final student’s apprenticeship grade and report from the mentor in the AppT Prototype (IO2). Enabled the possibility of a quick and effective response of organizers to lack of students' progression through improved responsiveness of apprenticeships in PHE by the AppT Prototype (IO2) requiring adequate input to each procedure, assuring relevance, consistency, and timely insight into the progress of achievement facilitating the PHE supervisor to follow the students’ progress or lack of progress which enables them to act efficiently when identifying student’s poor or no progress during the apprenticeship contributing to timely problem resolution. Involved students into quality assessment of the apprenticeships by providing student direct access to the regular periodic assessment of their progress in the AppT Prototype (IO2) student can react to assessment, discuss it with mentor and understand or object assessment if it is not aligned with the assessment criteria. The opportunity to follow their own progress assessment motivates the student to even better achievements. Kept the whole process of apprenticeship progression transparent, comparative, and paperless through improved quality by defining a transparent, comparable quality framework (IO1) which was set to offer all actors insight into apprenticeship management at any time anywhere in the AppT Prototype (IO2), by collecting periodically relevant statistical data per country and compare results, by enabling the use of the AppT Prototype (IO2) cross boarders providing transparent and comparable apprenticeship management to Erasmus+ students due to its multilingual approach. Met the needs of employers, students and PHEIs in the field of ICT supporting tools and increased the attractiveness of PHE by creating a use-friendly, efficient, and accessible digital tool for paperless apprenticeship management (IO2) and providing supporting training (IO3), the project enabled apprenticeships to be an easy manageable, meaningful, and pleasant experience making its attributes more evident contributing to the attractiveness of PHE.