The context and or background to the DEAL Project is the deficit in entrepreneurship digital skills identified by the EU Commission, the associated unemployment statistics (See below) and the opportunity presented by digitalisation, especially in the area of developing self employment - entrepreneurship opportunities in particular for the older, rural female worker. DEAL supports especially vulnerable target groups who are preparing for the unavoidable impact of digitalisation. External global drivers of change such as rapidly changing technologies, globalisation, climate change and urbanisation will have significant impacts on enterprises nationally and at a European level. - 44% of EU Citizens do not have basic digital skills - of that 44%, some 42% are unemployed PROJECT OBJECTIVES The target 150 participants will in the main be recruited from low income, older rural and females cohorts. The objectives of the project are to these recruits in a specially designed education and training programme which will provide them with the necessary knowledge, information and competence to have the necessary self-confidence to take advantage of digitalisation for the purpose of developing self-employment entrepreneurship opportunities. Dissemination and Valorisation of the project products and results are key objectives with a target of over 150,000 set. PROJECT ACTIVITIES The activities of the DEAL project will include: 1. Leading and Managing all aspects of the project including: a. Reporting and Financial Requirements b. Communications c. Quality Assurance d. Risk Assessment and Remedial Actions e. Dissemination and Valorisation 2. Developing a user-friendly Open Educational Resource Platform for the purpose of hosting our proposed Education and Training Programme and Associated Resources for the benefit of the Target Group 3. Mapping Dynamics and Trends of the Silver Economy and Active Aging for the purpose of ensuring, through the production of a comparative Country Map, using a common methodology, of the existing and emerging dynamics and trends of the silver economy and active ageing, so as to ensure that the currency, relevance and practicality of the proposed education and training programme responds to the actual and not some perceived needs of the Target Group 4. Training and Resources Toolkit for the purpose of imparting relevant Skills, Knowledge and Competence to the Target Group. 5. Producing a DEAL Operational Manual and Position Paper to enable other Organisations and Users to understand, operationalise and benefit from the Projects outcomes and outputs into the foreseeable future. PROJECT METHODOLOGY There will be a number of methodologies employed in the DEAL Project including: 1. A democratic inclusive partnership style to Project Management 2. An adult education pedagogic approach to programme management, design, development and delivery, which respects the knowledge and experience and actual circumstances of the learners and puts their needs at the centre 3. A common methodology and framework for mapping purposes 4. A technological methodology that places ease of navigation, information retrieval and accessibility to the fore having in mind at all stages the need to build digital and entrepreneurial self confidence in the learner 5. A methodology committed to the free flow of information and resources on a continuous basis into the future so as to benefit people and organisations not originally involved with the Project. KEY PROJECT RESULTS AND IMPACT ENVISAGED · Successful delivery on time and as originally described · Full compliance with the Funding Agency’s requirements · A cohort of trained individuals, drawn from the target group who will have the knowledge, skills and competence, as well as the self confidence to develop self employment opportunities through entrepreneurship. · A relevant Education and Training Programme (in the area of Digital Entrepreneurship and Self Employment Opportunities) and associated Resources freely available to all · An Operational Manual and Position Paper making the results and outcomes of the project truly transparent and available for further exploitation FINALLY THE POTENTIAL LONGER TERM BENEFITS -A reduction in the number of EU Citizens who do not have digital skills - An increase in the number of EU Citizens self employed through their own efforts as a result of having benefited from the education and training programme originated by the DEAL Project - Specific groups such as women, rural dwellers and older people will yield particular benefits from DEAL as the project supports these cohorts to address the very specific challenges they face.
Taking account of DigComp 2.0 & EntreComp. EQUAL Ireland wanted to tap into the expertise of partners so as to develop a tool in rural regeneration, enabling economic empowerment and the development of human potential. It proposed to design and deliver a user friendly OER platform with a particular focus on meeting the needs of older/female adult learners marginalised by lack of Digital Skills. EQUAL Ireland wanted to create a concrete, non-intimidatory, easily navigable, OER designed to attract learners by showing them the tangible benefits that could accrue to them by engaging with the project. It wanted to open a portal for adult learners to a process of acculturation where Digital Literacy and Digital Entrepreneurship would become the norm. It wanted to maximise dissemination through multiple channels and MEs. The implementation of DEAL with its relevant Modules and appropriate content would form the project capstone. Validation with a target of 150 participants would provide the necessary Quality Assurance to futureproof sustainability. Finally, the Operational Manual and Position Paper would provide a vademecum for policymakers to valorise mainstreaming and optimise replicability.
EQUAL Ireland (EI) specialises in the fields of Community Development and Social Enterprise. Learners are often marginalised living in remote environments. EI seeks to develop delivery methodologies which shift the dial in terms of impact focused approaches. Covid 19 heightened these issues. In the DEAL preparatory stage seminal documents were considered, many pointing to the need to address the Digital Skills deficiencies. The OECD International Assessment for Adult Competencies (PIAAC) finds that 42% of adults in Ireland are below Level 1 in Digital Skills proficiency. DESI (2019) confirms that human capital shortcomings in Digital Skills present significant economic barriers in Ireland, Italy and Spain. Salient statistics state that 44% of EU citizens lack basic Digital Skills and 42% are unemployed. Add to this the urgent need and EU priority to upskill and adapt to changing economic circumstances EI envisioned the project with partners having skills sets to provide cutting edge delivery based on heutagogic self-directed learning principles. This would serve to fit in with overall EU priorities and empower Lifelong Learning. Finally it would meet 3 key EU priorities, Digitalisation, Entrepreneurship and Active Ageing.