AgriTrain Train the Trainer for a Sustainable Agriculture Building upon the experiences made with the earlier project AgriSkills (www.agriskills.eu), this project proposal aims at making trainers more aware of the relevance of sustainability for agriculture. Besides innovative concepts of vocational training for sustainable development, there is a need for stronger emphasis on sustainability in agriculture. It is not planned to produce additional new content, but rather to develop thinking in terms of sustainability as an integral part and underlying theme in vocational and private behavior alike. The aim and focus of our project is the implementation of learning for sustainable development in the training of vocational instructors (teachers at vocational schools and company in-house trainers) in the fields of agriculture, horticulture and related areas by the development of curricula on school and company level. Further education programs and a strategy for broad dissemination shall also lead to advanced and ongoing discussions on the implementation of “Vocational Education and Training for Sustainable Development” (VETSD) in educational structures. For this purpose, special programs for further education will be created. They will be available for teachers and trainers on an individual basis thus strengthening the learning place cooperation between schools and company in-house training. A guideline VETSD for both, participants and as a basis for a wider qualified discussion at structural level on VETSD is planned. The dissemination of results is achieved by various multiplier events as well as by the associated partners. The results will be available on the project website www.agri-train.eu and on the websites of the partner organizations. In the preparatory phase training and continuing education for in-school and in-company trainers in the partner countries are analysed, in particular with respect to the embedding of aspects of sustainability. In the implementation phase this demand analysis also serves as an orientation aid for ranking curricula according to European standards (EQF). In a strategic partnership with universities and colleges, a chamber of Agriculture, Workers Union affiliated Educational Institution, a company the following two intellectual outputs will be generated: I.O. 1 – Curriculum – Training for Trainer in the Field of Sustainable Development Exemplary development of three modules of further-education for trainer with the following topical foci: • soil science • water management • health and safety All three modules are to meet “VSTD” criteria and will be developed along the lines of “regular” curricular teaching content. The modules will include the development of employability skills, will employ a set of diverse teaching and learning methods, and will make extensive use of state-of-the art information and communication technologies. Agriculture is very much shaped by European regulations. The impacts of these regulations have to be integrated into education and training. For this purpose, innovative approaches will be developed in cooperation with the partners. I.O. 2 – Guideline for Vocational Training in the Area of Sustainable Development Guidelines are to be developed in order to facilitate the comprehensive dissemination of (VETSD) educational materials and intentions. The guideline is based on the development of a strategic vision on VETSD within the project. This vision of VETSD is to reflect and delineate the contentual positioning of sustainable development and agriculture and will also be the basis of a checklist that provides orientation concerning the integration of aspects of sustainability in teaching- and learning materials in the project. The guidelines are intended for school and in-house instructors and for the dissemination of VETSD among the stakeholders. Trainings The modules of continuing education and the guideline will be tested trans-nationally in short-term training modules. The tests will be evaluated and the data and insights provide a basis for final revision of curricula. Target-groups Instructors (in-house and school) from the fields of agriculture, horticulture and related sectors. Trainees in the fields of agriculture and related vocational areas, who participate in further education programmes. Dissemination strategy The various multiplier events will generate new aspects (training of trainers, European context) to enhance the discussions about VETSD at the systemic level. In cooperation with national and European social partners, it is intended to influence training regulations and programmes in the long term. The results of the project will be published electronically /print-media. In addition, results will be disseminated: • on local level by offering educational modules • on regional and national level by discussions and events and • on European level by all the discussions in the committees the social partners are part of
AgriTrain Training trainers for sustainable agriculture The project AgriTrain grew from the experiences of the previous project AgriSkills in which an educational package for more sustainability in agricultural animal production in the form of a project week for trainees was developed. In an analysis of involved partners’ needs, it was determined that in addition to new educational approaches for Vocational Education for Sustainable Development (VETSD), such as the one developed here, trainers and educators (teachers at vocational schools and company in-house trainers) must also be sensitized to sustainability in agriculture. The aim is not to add new contents to the curricula, but to teach sustainable and systemic thinking such that it becomes part of professional and private acting with competencies of design and action being trained accordingly. The aim of the AgriTrain project was to implement VETSD in the training of educators and trainers by means of the development of a training curriculum and guideline and additional supporting materials. The strategic partnership of universities, a chamber of agriculture, a trade union educational institution and a company (GER, ES, BG, AT) collaborated in 6 transnational meetings (4 face-to-face and 2 digital) on the project’s implementation and outputs. The following intellectual outputs were elaborated by the partnership: Training- Curriculum - Training for trainers in the field of sustainable development. The curriculum was jointly developed by all partners. It is therefore applicable in all involved partner countries. It covers subject-specific contents and methods for fostering sustainable development in agriculture, in particular on including and implementing processes of in practice- and action-oriented learning. The thematic focus is on three main topics of agriculture: soil science, water management, and occupational health and safety. In addition to pedagogically sustainable forms of learning, a pedagogical concept and five case studies for implementation in daily school and work life - based on the three core topics and the use of ICT - are presented. The studies show practical examples in the form of learning situations. The learning situations were collected from the partner countries and can be transferred to different geographical locations and situations. The application of the curriculum was tested, analyzed and adapted in two short-term trainings. Guideline - Vocational training for sustainable development The guideline was developed to provide a theoretical framework and to supplement the curriculum. A study of ESD in a European context shows the diversity of this cross-sectional task of vocational education in agriculture. A common guiding principle of ESD for the project is provided and indicators to measure and describe ESD are identified to show the teachers and trainers possible actions and approaches of evaluation and reflect on topics of sustainability. The checklist also helps to reflect, evaluate and adapt the theoretical and practical implementation of vocational ESD in order to promote sustainable and systemic competences among the learners. Digitization in information and communication technologies also plays a major role and the guideline compares the situation in different European countries. In addition, the guideline contributes to the discourse on vocational ESD and aims to be a multiplier instrument in educational work. In addition to the training curriculum and the guideline, further complementary teaching materials were developed, including an explanatory video on "Agroecosystem Resilience", as well as posters and tools to be used with the video. The target group for the teaching materials are teachers and trainers in agriculture, who deal intensively with the topic of ESD and want to develop practical and theoretical lessons. All materials are freely available: www.agri-train.eu The educational materials were tested and evaluated in two transnational short-term trainings with teachers and trainers of the partner organizations. The experiences were incorporated into the final version of the curriculum and guideline. As a consequence of the pandemic, the dissemination strategy had to be completely re-planned. It included numerous multiplier events in which several new aspects (education and training for trainers, European context) were added to the discussion on ESD. In cooperation with the national and European social partners, training regulations and curricula are to be influenced on the long-term. Thus, changes will not only be achieved on an individual level but also in institutions and in entire educational systems.