The project "Zagraj w przedsiębiorczość!” ("Play the Entrepreneurial Game!") is a response of schools located in poorly developed regions of EU member states to the rapid changes that take place on the labour market. The current tendencies show that we evolve towards abandoning stable, linear career in a specific field for implementing numerous diversified projects. In order to meet the demands of dynamic environment and equip students with knowledge and skills, which they will find useful for next decades of their adult life, schools need to develop their competences which are essential for self-fulfillment and self-development, for being active citizens and for social integration and employment. The main objective of this project is to create coherent environment which will shape key competences, that is : communicating in a native language; communicating in foreign languages; mathematical competence and basic technical and scientific competences; computer skills; the ability to learn; social and civic competences; a sense of initiative and entrepreneurship; cultural awareness and expressiveness. The project target groups are students aged 16-19 and teachers from partner schools: I Społeczne Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. Unii Europejskiej w Zamościu (Poland), Evangelische Fachschule für Sozialpädagogik Schwäbisch Hall (Germany), Daugavpils 3.vidusskola (Latvia), Agrupamento de Escolas de Mangualde (Portugal), 1st EPA.L Orestiadas (Greece). In order to achieve the main objective, we set ourselves the following specific objectives: to enhance entrepreneurial, computer and linguistic competences and the ability to learn, to strengthen cultural awareness and expressiveness of the project participants in professional situations, to equip teachers with innovative teaching methods that will lead to shaping key competences while teaching various school subjects. Besides, the project partners will create digital educational platform with ready substantive and teaching tools that could be shared and students will gain knowledge of social economics and entrepreneurship, which will in turn reduce their fear of setting up and running business activity. There are planned several activities to be implemented under this project: 6 mobilities (4 of them are short-term exchanges of groups of pupils, 2 are staff training events) and 38 local and virtual activities including dissemination events. The above include artistic, film and knowledge contests, student and teacher presentations and publications, online contest (including “Doing Business”), meetings with business people (e.g. speed dating form), professional portfolios, creating school career space or “Entrepreneurial Mindset” dictionary. There will take part at least 100 students and 40 teachers in the above activities. The project will equip the participants ( both students and teaches) with key competences that are essential to function on the labour market. It will use experiments, observations and attitudes of the target groups according to empowerment principle. It is based on teaching through experiencing, experimenting, gamming and a flipped classroom method. It will create teaching and educational situations that create favourable conditions for creativity, inventiveness and entrepreneurship. It promotes creative approach to solving problems and will provide schools with knowledge and tools enabling them to adapt teaching methods to changes in the environment. It also adjusts solutions worked out in partner schools and countries to educational practice in one’s own institution. It will expand educational offers of schools and use ITC technologies in teaching. As the project will be implemented in the international environment, it will strengthen ties among partners and will create an opportunity for regions with low level of entrepreneurial dealings and their local communities to prosper. During the implementation of specific project activities there will be used stimulating methods of learning and teaching, such as: teamwork, simulations, role-playing, discussions and debates, feature and out-of-classroom games, educational games, elements of the escape room, field trips and workshops. The project will provide schools and all interested parties with tangible results, which could be easily adjusted to changing conditions (e.g. school career space, games, on-line courses). A great of them will become a part of school educational and teaching programmes.
The project "Play the Entrepreneurial Game!" is the response of schools in economically underdeveloped regions of European Union countries to the rapid changes seen in the labour market. Trends point to an evolution away from stable, linear careers in one field towards pursuing multiple and varied projects. In order to meet the demands of a dynamic environment and equip students with knowledge and skills sufficient for several decades of adult life, schools need to shape the competences necessary for self-realisation and personal development, for students to be active citizens, for social integration and employment. The aim of the project was to create a coherent environment shaping key competences, i.e.: communication in the mother tongue; communication in foreign languages; mathematical competence and basic competences in science and technology; digital competence; learning to learn; social and civic competences; sense of initiative and entrepreneurship; cultural awareness and expression. This aim was fully achieved; this was possible through the following specific objectives: to increase entrepreneurial, IT, linguistic competences and learning skills; to enhance participants' cultural awareness and expression in professional situations; for teachers to acquire innovative working methods leading to the training of key competences in the teaching of various subjects; for partners to acquire a digital learning platform with ready-made content and methodological tools; to provide students with knowledge of social economy and entrepreneurship and to reduce fears related to setting up and running a business. The target groups of the implemented activities were students aged 15-19 and teachers from partner schools: 1st European Union High School in Zamość (Poland), Daugavpils 3.vidusskola (Latvia), Agrupamento de Escolas de Mangualde (Portugal), 1st EPA.L Orestiadas (Greece). The project involved 5 physical mobilities (3 short-term pupil group exchanges, 2 short staff training programmes) and, due to COVID-19, 2 virtual mobilities (as equivalent to short-term pupil group exchanges). In addition, 38 activities (local and virtual, including dissemination) were carried out. Among them were: competitions (art, film, knowledge), teacher and student publications and presentations, online courses, meetings with entrepreneurs, professional portfolios, creation of a school career space, Entrepreneurial Mindset dictionary. At least 210 students and 47 teachers participated in the activities. The project equipped the participants (teachers and pupils) with the key competences necessary to function in the labour market; during the implementation the experiences, observations and attitudes of the target groups were used in accordance with the empowerment principle; experiential learning, gamification and the flipped classroom method were used; teaching and learning situations were created that foster creativity, initiative, entrepreneurship; promoted a creative approach to problem solving; provided schools with the knowledge and tools to adapt the way of education to changes in the environment; adapted solutions developed in partner countries and schools to educational practice; enriched the offer of schools; used ICT technology in teaching. The project has strengthened contacts between partners and created opportunities for community development in underdeveloped regions. During the implementation of individual project activities, active learning and teaching methods were used: group work, simulations, role-play, discussions and debates, role-play and city games, educational games, escape room elements, field trips, workshops. The project has developed sustainable outcomes that are freely available to all interested parties. They can be flexibly adapted to changing conditions. Many of them have become part of the educational and didactic programme of the establishments.