In all EU countries, the implementation of vocational orientation (VO) at the school-work Interface have a great importance, on the one hand to reduce the drop-out rate (about 20% of all started trainings/apprenticeships) due to false professional ideas, and on the other hand to occupy increasingly free training places with potential apprentices. The young people mostly don't know the jobs of the future and what changes due to digitization are acting in the different professions. As a result, job profiles in some professions are shifting massively, or completely new professions such as e.g. merchants in e-commerce - a cross-industry apprenticeship for the growing online retail trade, e.g. in Germany are arising. In addition, apprenticeship professions, which are apparently unattractive for potential trainees due to the lack of information on digital changes, are becoming more in the focus of the vocational orientation. In many cases, the advising and supporting specialists for vocational orientation (such as e.g. teachers, social education workers, vocational consultants in chambers) lack the necessary knowledge regarding the changes in the working /professional world, which is attended by the increasing digitization. The many changed challenges and requirements for trainees are often not sufficiently well-known and thus cannot be passed on to the direct beneficiaries of the vocational orientation (the young people). Numerous apprenticeship professions, especially in the industrial-technical and craft occupational field, but also in other fields such as the health sector and the commercial occupational field, are at first glance unattractive to young people. Often, digitization creates new challenges, that mix craft skills with information technology skills, so that the requirements profile completely is changing. The reason for this often lies in the lack of information about the changed challenges. Here, vocational orientation concepts or measures must be implemented that focus on the practical testing of these changed professions. In order to achieve this, will be develop in the project targeted and needs-oriented training modules (IO1) for the specialists for VO, which will focus on the changes and new requirements of digitalization and empower the specialists to covey the professional changes due to digitization in the professions qualitatively better to the young people. The modules will be tested during the project in each partner country in order to optimize them and to train multipliers for the sustainable use. For the sustainable implementation of the qualification modules, will be developed a guideline for Europe (IO6). Furthermore, should be developed for specialist for VO five new occupational field-specific VO measures (IO2) especially in terms of the aspect of digitization and which specifically take into account the new challenges and requirements in the professional world because of digitization. This includes overarching topics such as questions about data security and protection, cloud computing and digital learning, but also domain-specific changes such as digitization trends in craft and industrial-technical professions or in the commercial professions and nursing and health professions. Furthermore an overview of all training professions (IO 3) should be worked out, which provides information on the new requirements with regard to digitized work processes per core training profession and that can be used as a basis for consultation and career choices of young people. Here we want to work together very closely with national authorities of VET in order to develop not duplicate structures. In order to ensure an EU-wide comparability of the VO measures, it is necessary to develop quality standards for VO measures (IO4). The basis for this are the quality standards from the BOQua project. These should be further developed and adapted to VO measures. Furthermore, for the actors who carry out the VO measures the success of the VO measures should be made verifiable and transparent by means of an assessment instrument. Thus, in case of non-success, adaptations in the VO process of the individual adolescent can be promptly initiated or the measures, e.g. against the background of regional peculiarities, can be optimized or adapted. The aim of the project is to prepare the specialists of vocational orientation for the changes in the world of work and professions through digitization. Due to the changes in digitalization (or new digital technologies), the image of some professions can be change a lot. Recognizing this and preparing it for the target group of young people can lead to shifts in the career choices of the young people.
With the project should be achieved: 1. Specialist in vocational orientation (VO) such as teachers, social workers or specialists in employment administration / chambers should acquire the necessary know-how and skills to carry out vocational orientation with a focus on the changes in the work/professional world due to the increasing digitisation up to date. The aim is to ensure that the skilled workers can acquire up-to-date knowledge and are able to update it themselves in the future. 2. That young people in the career choice process can acquire vocational field-specific and in an EU-wide comparable way the necessary information on the changes (new requirements and challenges) in professions due to digitisation and be optimally advised and accompanied on this focus by specialists for VO. It should be achieved that young people acquire the necessary information on profession profiles and the influence of digitisation on them, and that they can make a future-oriented career decisions and not interrupt training because of a lack of information about where digitisation plays a role in the professions and which ones requirements are placed on them.
The BOQua digital project was applied for on the one hand to update the knowledge and skills of the specialists for vocational orientation (VO) and on the other hand to develop new measures and instruments for VO for young people in the career choice process. Because the VO has so far primarily considered general topics related to professions, but digitisation is playing an increasingly important role in the world of work /professions and professional profiles, professional requirements and challenges are changing as a result, the focus of the project is on the topic of digitisation. However, the VO specialists should not only update their knowledge of the professional changes in selected vocational fields due to digitisation, but also get to know digital teaching methods, sources and new instruments in order to be able to advise and accompany young people up-to-date in the VO. Furthermore, the newly developed professional-specific VO measures and a training prfession overview, in which digitisation is taken into account and placed in the foreground, should help young people to receive all the infos they need to make a final sustainable career choice.