Supporting the mobility of vocational school students in the European labour markets by addressing the skill gaps is possible thanks to the unification of educational standards and the introduction of commonly available compensatory tools (such as digital open educational resources). The answer to these needs is carried out in an international project E- STEPS (E-Skills Training on Employability Practices & Solutions). The experience of project partners associated with skill and professional development of young people and adults as well as their excellent knowledge of the issues facing vocational education resulted in the development of innovative project that will allow the digital integration for learning, teaching, training and youth work as well as the development of a European area of skills and qualifications along with improvement of the competencies of adult educators. E - STEPS project is being implemented in the international teams ensuring professional, interdisciplinary and high quality collaboration. The E-STEPS project envisages increasing the mobility of vocational school students from five EU countries by developing their knowledge and skills in the area of soft employability skills and the development of a European area of learning by improving the quality of teachers / educators. The project will directly involved 500 students, 100 teachers and a number of representatives of educational institutions. During the project, students will undertake a course on soft employability skills (6 competencies) implemented in two stages - workshops in groups of 10 people supported by an e-learning platform and as part of self-education, completion of which will lead to a final contest – the winners of which will participate in a conference actively disseminating the results of work in the project. The activities undertaken in the project involve the creation and testing of innovative tools in the form of an e-learning platform and a set of educational materials (guides, e-learning courses, face-to-face workshops programs and reports relating to the evaluation of the effectiveness of vocational education in the context of the needs of the youth labour market). The project is intended to provide the scope for the exchange of experiences between the beneficiaries and organizations to strengthen the personal and professional potential of all participants (international and national conferences). Implementation of the project will be undertaken using a variety of communication channels (social media platforms, instant messaging, online softwares), and the principles of effective management and partnership programs implementation. Results of the project will include a report on the analysis of the needs of vocational education, an innovative, multi-lingual platform with workshop guides containing practical exercises, guides for educators, case studies of young participants and interviews with partners collaborating at international meetings. The results will be disseminated at conferences and communicated to all stakeholders using available communication channels. The project involves creating permanent changes in the teaching of students on vocational courses - enhancing their professional capacity and personality by developing soft skills that will help to increase mobility in the labour market and enable them to obtain a satisfactory occupations. Teachers covered by the project activities will benefit from the innovative tools that will fill an existing gap in vocational education for the related soft skills (Career Management Skills; Self-reflection (signature strengths, values, preferences), including self-worth and confidence; Emotional Intelligence; Managing mental health (stress management, resilience); Relationship building and networking). By participating in the study and analysis of the needs of vocational education, teachers will get the opportunity to compare their experiences in relation to the other partner countries. The project also supports directly the needs of all of the participating entities, allowing them to develop and update experience as well as providing an opportunity to develop both professionally and personally.
The goal of these activities was both to expand their personal development opportunities and to increase their employability in European and non-European labor markets. In addition, the E-STEPS project also performed activities aimed at developing the competencies of the youth work staff (educators) by providing attractive tools to develop soft competencies, but also by exchanging experiences, developing manuals that will support the staff during their work with young people. We also wanted to respond directly to the needs of the participating organizations - allowing them to develop, make their offer more attractive, update their experience, and give the cadres involved a chance to exchange experiences and develop professionally.
The E-STEPS project was created to support the competitiveness of vocational school students in European labor markets and to compensate for their competence gaps, as diagnosed by the consortium. The project responded to the need to introduce universally accessible tools for developing knowledge of soft skills and knowledge of labour markets. The aim of the project was to support the need of young people studying in vocational schools to develop soft skills such as mental health management, career path management, relationship building, self-reflection and emotional intelligence, and knowledge of labor markets in Bulgaria, Spain, Poland, Slovenia and Italy.