SPEAK project explores the propitious potential of public speaking and entrepreneurial skills, in order to achieve high ranking results, conceivable for the adults in the process of personal and professional development through enhancement of advanced communication and entrepreneurial skills, with a specific focus on public speaking ability. This will be achieved by designing an innovative methodology regarding the transition of non-formal skills in the field of advanced communication and entrepreneurial expertise, the methodology will be established on the foundation of the Non–Formal Education and competence-based approach to the development and consolidation of freshly accomplished skills. The cross-sectorial aspect of the consortium plays an important role in the designing and development of the innovative methodology, considering the fact that the process of innovation will require diverse entrepreneurial expertise background, in order to deliver a redesigned methodology that is accessible for the social operators and adults to achieve higher efficiency in terms of dispatched results. The project complements the focus on public speaking skill with additional attention to entrepreneurial and communicative impairment. SPEAK deploys an intervention on the development and promotion of an innovative methodology on skills-related transition and takes in consideration the adults learning cycle dimension through a systematic assessment that will be based on educational, integrational and creative factors. As part of the development process, the non-hierarchical nature of the co-creation is adopted entailing a peer-topeer process of co-operation between a group of creators in the achievement of an innovative methodology that effectively delivers public speaking and entrepreneurial skills to adults. The strategy points to challenges which are universal to the different roots of marginalization, among which include; low access to education and employment in the labour market, income inequalities and excluded people as compared with the mainstream population. Skills/qualificationrelated barriers hampering socio-economic exclusion of marginalized adults, are compounded by visible and hidden forms of social stigma surrounding marginalization, as discordant with societal bias in favour of “mainstream” identities, laying at the roots of exclusion, apathy, discouragement and refrain from engagement, be it educational, social, recreational or occupational- acting as drivers of self-feeding circles. Objectives/Goals -Promote the innovative educational format of speaking skills enhancement, co-creation and peer-interaction; -Contribute to the guidance and methodological support to operators in the implementation of co-creation programmes in public speaking targeted at excluded adults by published materials; -Reduce the social exclusion of disadvantaged adults by creating and piloting a format for educational offer targeted at social operators and organizations for the development of their capacities in employing speaking skills enhancement, co-creation and peer-interaction; Target group SPEAK is addressed to, is an audience of direct targets and indirect targets; Direct Targets -Educators/trainers in the adult field providing or interested in developing their understanding of Communicational and Entrepreneurship; -Entities with outreach to the targeted categories (NGOs, cultural businesses and associations, Arts centres/groups, Organizations providing services for excluded adult people). Indirect Targets: -Disadvantaged people aged especially between 18-35 coming from marginalized urban and rural communities Tangible Results -Educational format based on NFE conceived as a term of reference for stakeholder institutions to put in place a specific educational offer aimed at training operators working with target groups, in order to implement/support co-creation programmes in Public Speaking involving them. -a JSTE successfully implemented in Austria with the involvement of educators/trainers from partner organizations (2 educators/trainers per country/partner). -1 Research Toolkit which will be including the innovative tools and training format. -1 Guidebook, in the form of a physical book and an E-book, providing orientation and methodological guidance for operators in the implementation of entrepreneurial oriented public speaking involving target groups. -1 Web Platform in multiple languages including the innovative educational offer, the research toolkit, the Guidebook for users and the tutorial videos. Furthermore, it will be including E-Modules for the self-development of operators and target groups, in the field of public speaking and communication skill development. -1 Multiplier Event implemented per each Partner with the participation of 60 individuals among the general public, local social operators, educators, target groups and stakeholders per Event. -2 Newsletters and 1 leaflet in all partners' languages
We wanted to achieve the followings by implementing SPEAK project; • Promoting the innovative educational format of speaking skills enhancement, co-creation and peer-interaction, • Contribution to the guidance and methodological support to operators in the implementation of co-creation programmes in public speaking targeted at excluded persons by published materials, • Reducing the social exclusion of disadvantaged people by creating and piloting a format for educational offer targeted at social operators and organizations for the development of their capacities in employing speaking skills enhancement, co-creation and peer-interaction, •Helping individuals in their personal and professional development by teaching public speaking and entrepreneurial skills.
With SPEAK project, we focused on teaching public speaking and entrepreneurial skills to help individuals in their personal and professional development. The project wanted to address issues related to communicative and entrepreneurial impairment. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting financial crisis, there was a high number of unemployed individuals and NEETs, which caused concern among policymakers that an entire generation in the EU may be out of the job market for years. The main issue was the difficulty for European citizens to find reliable career prospects, which poses a significant economic problem. The European Labour Market experienced frequent changes and faced competition from other emerging labour markets worldwide. As a result, there was a growing need to develop alternative skill sets among European citizens to improve employability, socio-educational and personal development. This would have enhanced the value of labour within the European context and encouraged participation in civic and social life.The strategy was to tackle universal challenges that led to marginalization, such as limited access to education and employment opportunities, income inequalities, and exclusion of young people from society.