By implementing the project we hoped to achieve improvements on several levels. We wanted to give students the opportunity to gain certified work experience abroad, acquire work habits and set learning units, to learn to communicate and integrate into international environment, to improve vocational, language and communication skills, to gain healthy self-confidence, which would lead to their personal growth and better position on the labour market. We aimed to improve the quality of education in the fields of hairdressing, joinery, engineering and construction, in both practical training and theoretical teaching. Thanks to new methods and procedures used abroad and applicable in our school, we wanted to strengthen the attractiveness of secondary VET. We believed shadowing and sharing would contribute to strengthening professional competences and skills of educators, as well as improving their language and communication skills. We wanted to create conditions for educators to be more open to motivation and inspiration and to help awaken their desire to innovate their current teaching processes. This would lead to increased professionalism of their work and stronger transitions between formal and informal education and training.
Střední škola řemesel, Šumperk is the largest VET school in the Olomouc region. It was established in 2014 from a merger of two VET schools. Our school offers three-year VET programs in these fields – mechanical and electrical engineering, construction, woodworking, and services. These core fields are pertinently complemented by four-year study programs, which correspond with the VET programs. The main objective of the school is to train, educate and prepare its students to become professionals sought after on the labour market. We implemented the project in response to the needs and visions of our school, which are mainly: improvement of vocational training, increase of the school prestige, strengthening interest and attraction to technical study programs, building long-term international cooperation, specifically developing students´ professional, personal and communicational competences, increasing their chances on the labour market, and supporting the professional development of the staff.