In line with the strategic framework for the Education & Training 2020, in the last years an effort is being made by different EU-Member States to introduce financial literacy in the formal training programmes of the National Qualification Frameworks (NQF). Information, educational/training materials and counselling on financial literacy are being provided throughout a variety of channels. However, low-skilled adults aren’t normally addressed by these programmes or channels of dissemination. Besides, despite some games focused on financial literacy already available in the market, most of them are usually designed for a younger population and address the same topics, such as: daily budget management, savings, overcome debts, taxes. Euroinvestment project aims at designing, testing and providing a game specifically tailored and addressed to low qualified adults, fostering their knowledge and competences in key competences of financial literacy such as: compound interest and risk diversification, exploration of vulnerability and influence in the credit, savings and investments, among others. A consortium of six organisations from three different countries (Portugal, Spain and Cyprus) joined to design and implement Euroinvestment a project that will provide: i) Strategic plan for financial education of low-skilled adults in Europe – report on the gaps and needs on financial education for low-skilled adults in the consortium countries, based on the European and National Frameworks developed within this theme; ii) Euroinvestment model game – Fun, interactive and didactic game that will respond to the needs and gaps identified, as well as an online platform to host the game and the project’s main results and achievements; iii) Euroinvestment – Playing by the rules – handbook to enable the independent use of the game by low-skilled adults and training providers, as well as to deliver deeper theoretical information on the topics and themes presented in the game. The main target-groups of these outputs are low-skilled adults; adult education providers and professionals; financial experts. These groups will be reached through several dissemination actions, such as six multiplier events and six workshops. The first three events will be used to present the strategic plan and game, while the other three events will present the handbook. A training event for partners’ staff will be organised to test and give feedback on the tools developed, as well as to train staff members to organise further workshops in each country. Hence, six workshops will be delivered to adult training providers to explain the game and how it can and should be integrated in their own courses and trainings, based on the game and on the handbook developed. Euroinvestment will have direct impact on 120 stakeholders through the multiplier events, 60 adult training providers on the workshops and 60 individuals through questionnaires related to the development of the intellectual outputs in. However, it is also expected to reach around 2000 persons through the social media networks, events, platform, e-mail and other dissemination channels used in the project. With the results of the project, low-skilled adults will be able to play the game and retain all its benefits and knowledge in an independent way, being supported by the guidebook. Also, training providers will have inputs to integrate these tools in their courses and explore them with their trainees, based on the handbook and workshops developed. Project’s results and outputs will be available with free access in the Euroinvestment platform for at least 3 years after the EU funding.
European countries are investing efforts in introducing topics of financial literacy in formal training programmes/offers, often in the framework of the National Qualification Frameworks and several side initiatives (informational based) are also set in place to foster the understanding of financial literacy topics. However, those programmes and initiative target the younger generations very much. Euroinvestment offers educational resources addressing low skilled adults involved in formal and informal training initiatives (including RVCC processes) overcoming an existing gap in the provision of quality and appealing educational resources, flexible enough to be used for several purposes. A consortium of six organisations from three different countries (Portugal, Spain and Cyprus) joined their efforts to design and implement Euroinvestment project for a period of 26months. Our results were designed and produced with the involvement of end-users (more than 400 individuals, both low skilled adults and adult trainers, tutors and other professionals were involved in the activities), covering relevant topics to improve adults financial literacy levels such as managing income and financial resources; make informed saving options or borrowing decisions; plan adequately for retirement; understanding the impact of interest rates when buying goods or services; etc. The resources developed are populated with stories and exercises that reflect real-life situations that users can face and thus mirror their reality and they, while using, can understand immediately how to use the concepts in practice and, through that, improve the way they manage their finances and income. The following outcomes are available: - Strategic Plan for financial education of low-skilled adults (EN), mirroring the specific needs of low skilled adults on financial literacy and how they deal with their finances and management of their income, including their willingness to use ICT-based educational materials, and ending with a roadmap for the development of the other resources of the project. Partners have also designed a booklet that presents the strategic plan more simply and intuitively, and easy to share with the stakeholders, which was translated into national languages (Portuguese, Spanish, Greek) + Catalan. This IO has 2 main benefits: it is a helpful tool for adult trainers and adult training providers who are looking for games that enable a more didactic teaching approach for concrete themes; it will be extremely relevant as a support tool for the development of more adjusted educational solutions for adults, presenting suggestions and recommendations for approaches different from the traditional teaching-learning models. - EuroInvestment Game is composed of 3 blocks of educational materials, consisting of 15 mini-games, covering 3 main topics: Risk & Credit, Money & Transactions, Planning & Management. The 15 mini-games were designed to support formal/informal training initiatives addressing low-skilled adults and the increase of their financial literacy skills levels. The games have different levels of complexity, aligned with the topics presented, from beginner to intermediate and expert. All the games are open to any user without registration and can be used with the support/guidance of a trainer or autonomously by adults. Although developed in English, the games are subtitled in Portuguese, Spanish, Greek and Catalan. - Euroinvestment Play by the rules, includes 2 Handbooks– one for Trainers, aimed to explain what the games are about, linked with the framework of competences, and how can they be used in training offers for adults, including formal and informal training, and one for Trainees aimed to support the adults as independent users, enabling them to use the games outside any training setting, more as a guide for users). The guides were translated into each partners language (Portuguese, Spanish, Greek) and in Catalan. - A training course for professionals working with adult education, consisting of a flexible training programme that can be implemented face-to-face, at distance or in a mixed approach to training further professionals working with low skilled adults (trainers, teachers, tutors, RVCC professionals), on the relevance of teaching financial literacy topics, how to best use and explore the Euroinvestment mini-games in formal and informal training contexts. Further, the high relevance of the materials produced and their possible flexible uses, allows for their use outside the scope of adult education, enabling its use in regular school education with young students, in regular VET offers, and also outside the traditional learning units of a financial literacy competences framework. The results were found as very relevant for adult education (formal and informal contexts), but users also expressed that the games and the handbooks can be used in regular VET offers with young trainees and in school education.