Our goal was to create a motivated staff whose members are open to innovation and new partnerships. We wanted to increase our teachers’ commitment, their sense of professional responsibility, positive attitudes and enhance their life-long learning. To achieve this goal and prevent burn-out we needed to find international training courses where the participants had the chance to learn up-to-date teaching methods and the multi-national working environment might improve their intercultural competencies and adaptability. The trainings provided access to online applications, virtual platforms as well as digital teaching materials they could implement in their teaching practice to encourage efficiency and innovation. Both colleagues and students can benefit from their experience. In addition, we aimed at preservation of our school prestige, and we are convinced that a school is more appealing where traditional values are accompanied with modern methods used by motivated teachers.
Firstly, the reforms of the system in the vocational sector force the schools to compete for students. To increase our competitiveness we need an open-minded school management and teachers who are able to think globally and convey European and national values, and are able to combine traditional and innovative teaching methods. Secondly, a smart classroom has been set up in our school that requires a methodological upgrade, the development of digital competence, and expects the teachers to learn the use of digital platforms suitable for cooperation and adaptive learning. Finally, we have had student mobilities in vocational projects in Germany for years, but we lack the same opportunity for English projects. We needed the international courses in order to find English collaborators. Also, international relations require the improvement of language skills of all participating parties, so we found it essential to increase the number of applicants for the methodological courses.