Expand your Frontiers in High Technical Skills and Public Speaking is a Project dedicated to increase to public speaking competences and reduce public speaking phobia among VET trainers and other teaching professors. The COVID-19 pandemic phenomenon and its ongoing second wave has disrupted nearly every aspect of our lives. Even before the onset of the crisis, public speaking competences of youth was a constant challenge. Now, unless urgent and effective action is taken, young people are likely to suffer from the severe and lasting effects of the pandemic. This has been particularly hard on young women, young migrants and youth in low-income countries. Young people care about the future and their place in it. Epidemiological surveys and statistical manuals of psychopathology (DSM-5, ICD 10) recognize that social phobias has a prevalence of 7% across general population and 13% of had at least one episode. Social phobias affect significantly the work of educators which faces different audiences and public situation in the daily work, reducing significantly their performance at work and satisfaction for life. Morever, to practice a public speaking situation with a real audience is very stressful for educators with social phobias, it involve a serious risk for the psychological condition of the educators or also discourage their involvement in future work in education. Our project has the goal to increase the competences of VET trainers and reduce their public speaking phobia through the Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT), an innovative approach that has been demonstrated to be effective for reducing phobias through gradual exposition to phobic stimuli. We have planned this project, after intensive and extensive research of this problem, having considerable academic and practical experience in this field, accumulated cognitive and organizational resources. Now, having consulted with all Partners and taking into consideration national peculiarities, we will try to combine most effective ICT methods with an emphasis on VR technology and necessary offline training in order to bring back and advance public speaking competencies for young people in need. The partnership is composed by 6 organisation from France, Italy, Romania, Russia, Portugal and Turkey. The partnership includes 2 associations, 2 VET chools, 2 SMEs. The partnership will produce 3 Intellectual Outputs in 7 languages (EN, IT, PT, RO, FR, RU, TK) open and accessible 24/7 for the following goals - increasing public speaking competences - decreasing public speaking phobias O1 - Manual - a 300 pages manual translated in 7 languages designed to help VET trainers and all target groups to improve their skills in public speaking and reducing anxiety. professions. O2 - E-learning Platform - a web-based Platform including 10 hours of public speaking lectures, translated into 7 languages about public speaking techniques, phobia reduction techniques, stress and anxiety management, exercises for increasing the attention. O3 - VR System - an immersive VR system which simulated scenarios of public speaking at increasing difficulty allow self-evaluation of psychological states and gives tailor based suggestions on phobia and anxiety management The participating organisations will moreover organize: - 5 transnational project meeting, including 5 brief workshop dedicated to experts - 6 multiplier events (120 participants) - at least 12 multiplier events (200 participants expected) During the project's implementation: - at least 30000 people will be informed about projects results - at least 3000 people will access to intellectual outputs - a dissemination plan involving VET centers, school educators, policy makers, decision makers, association representative of professionals included in the target group, press will be involved at broad level in order to promote the adoption of the intellectual output at local, regional, national and international level - a massive plan of online communication will be performed through the joint action of several channels: official website of the project, e-mail services, autoresponders, social media marketing An impact study will be performed in order to measure the desired outcomes - increased competences and resilience of VET trainers - reduced negative states of educators (phobia, stress and anxiety) - effectiveness of the model in VET centers, Schools and Educators The Impact Study will be used in order to promote the adoption of the intellectual output and possible transferability in all fields of education. The Sustainability Plan ensures that all functionalities and materials will be kept open and accessible to all after the EU funding. Moreover, it includes several strategies to extend the content with: exploitation strategies in other countries, extension of project's content, transferability in different sectors.
We have recognized that social phobias have a prevalence of 7% across the general population, with 13% having experienced at least one episode. These social phobias significantly impact the work of educators, who often face different audiences and public situations, leading to reduced performance and life satisfaction. We took on the challenge of addressing this issue, knowing that practicing public speaking with a real audience is particularly stressful for educators with social phobias, posing serious risks to their psychological well-being and potential future involvement in education. Through our innovative approach of Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT), we have demonstrated the effectiveness of gradual exposure to phobic stimuli in reducing phobias and anxiety related to public speaking. The need analysis we performed in the participating countries allowed us to gather valuable information from various sources, including scientific research about VRT applied to phobias, access criteria for education professions (specifically VET trainers, school teachers, and university professors), epidemiological surveys, and policies related to education professions. This comprehensive analysis helped us identify common needs among our target groups, which include primary groups such as VET trainers, school teachers, university professors, educators, and speakers, and secondary groups comprising psychologists, students, and policy makers. We discovered that VET trainers face challenges due to the lack of defined formal criteria for their profession. High school teachers and university professors, on the other hand, enter their profession through public selection, which may not always consider social skills. Moreover, public speaking skills are often learned on the job without proper training, leading to increased stress and reduced performance. The growing education sector presents an opportunity for participating countries, who share a common issue with high percentages of young NEETs. Psychotherapy offers methods for reducing social phobia, but they often involve systematic desensitization, which can be risky, stressful, and discouraging for educators, and difficult to organize and manage. In contrast, Virtual Reality provides an immediate and controlled environment, facilitating the application of psychotherapeutic approaches to reduce social phobias. Our successful partnership produced three Intellectual Outputs in seven languages, open and accessible 24/7, with the clear goals of increasing public speaking competences and decreasing public speaking phobias. The 165-page Manual, available in multiple languages, is designed as an action guide, offering practices and exercises to improve speech quality and support access to teaching and training professions. It includes a model of competences for effective public speaking, described using the EFHTSPS terminology and under EQF recommendations. The E-learning Platform, also translated into seven languages, provides 10 hours of public speaking lectures covering various techniques, phobia reduction methods, stress and anxiety management, and exercises to engage the audience. The platform can automatically report improvements. The immersive VR System allows participants to simulate public speaking scenarios of increasing difficulty, enabling self-evaluation of psychological states and offering tailor-based suggestions for managing phobia and anxiety. The project's transnationality is not only essential for adapting the outputs to different contexts but also beneficial for educators aspiring to work at international and EU levels. This broad approach ensures a much larger impact, and we have ensured the translation of outputs into English for exploitation in countries beyond our partnership. In conclusion, our comprehensive and successful project has equipped educators with valuable skills and tools, empowering them to excel in public speaking and fostering their professional growth and well-being.
The project was dedicated to increasing public speaking competences and reducing public speaking phobia among VET trainers and other teaching professors. Despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and its ongoing second wave, the project effectively addressed the challenges faced by youth in public speaking competences even before the crisis. Urgent and effective action was taken to prevent young people, especially young women, young migrants, and youth in low-income countries, from suffering severe and lasting effects of the pandemic. The project utilized Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT), an innovative approach, to increase the competences of VET trainers and reduce their public speaking phobia. The VRT method, based on gradual exposure to phobic stimuli, has been proven effective for reducing phobias. The partnership, consisting of six organizations from different countries, including associations, VET schools, and SMEs, successfully produced three Intellectual Outputs in seven languages. These outputs were designed to help VET trainers and target groups improve their public speaking skills and reduce anxiety. The outputs included a 165-page manual, an E-learning Platform with 10 hours of lectures on public speaking techniques, phobia reduction techniques, stress and anxiety management, and an immersive VR system for simulating public speaking scenarios and providing tailor-made suggestions for phobia and anxiety management. Throughout the project's implementation, the participating organizations successfully organized transnational project meetings, workshops, and multiplier events to disseminate the results and reach a broad audience. At least 30,000 people were informed about the project's results, and at least 3,000 people accessed the intellectual outputs. A comprehensive dissemination plan, including engagement with VET centers, school educators, policy makers, decision makers, professional associations, and the press, was executed through various online communication channels. An impact study was performed to measure the desired outcomes, which included increased competences and resilience of VET trainers, reduced negative states of educators (phobia, stress, and anxiety), and the effectiveness of the model in VET centers, schools, and among educators. The results of the Impact Study will be used to promote the adoption and possible transferability of the intellectual outputs in all fields of education. To ensure sustainability, the project's functionalities and materials will remain open and accessible to all after the EU funding. Additionally, the Sustainability Plan includes strategies for extending the content to other countries, different sectors, and continuously improving the project's impact through exploitation strategies.