NEW VET Second Newsletter
NEW VET Project
The project “Network fostering the European Work-based learning system for VET providers” (NEW VET), co-funded by the EU Erasmus+ (KA3) programme, aims to foster partnership and cooperation among VET providers to become effective actors in supporting VET reforms at national and European levels.
NEW VET enhances the quality of national VET systems by promoting the effective implementation of EU recommendations and tools. The project also raises awareness on the Work-Based Learning system aspiring to make VET a more popular and attractive choice.
The NEW VET Share Your Story Contest 2020 has aimed to raise awareness of the opportunities available through Vocational Education and Training. VET learners,
teachers/ tutors and in-company mentors from the NEW VET partner countries, ie. France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Slovenia were encouraged to share their VET experience to win an electronic device (tablet or laptop). 98 stories have been submitted and the best ones have been selected based on previously set criteria focusing on the story relevance, quality of content and impact.
The Share Your Story Contest 2020 is a great demonstration that talent truly abounds in VET. It is a delight to be celebrating the people behind this talent and their considerable achievements in the field of VET. Congratulations to all the winners. A new deadline for the 2021 edition will be announced next year and you are cordially invited to participate in the 2021 edition.
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GREEK FACEBOOK LIVE EVENT
ITALIAN FACEBOOK LIVE EVENT
SLOVENIAN FACEBOOK LIVE EVENT
During the VET Skills Week 2020 project partners organised national collateral events in order to raise the attractiveness of VET system to learners and their parents, teachers and companies. All the collateral events were registered on the official EU platform to further increase the visibility of national initiatives.
NEW VET project partner, Šolski center Nova Gorica, from Slovenia organised a 5-day Hackathon of Green Technologies and the Internet of Things event that took place at the Nova Gorica School Centre, where 4 teams of students and their mentors were looking for solutions to the challenges posed by local companies.
The best-rated team was Green me, which solved the challenge presented by a company Business Solutions, regarding the garbage generated by tourists when visiting our
country. The problems that arise in this area are numerous: from the increase in illegal dumps, littering of roadside space, pollution of the rural environment to overload of the municipal waste system in seasonal periods, especially in summer, and a lack of understanding of waste separation among tourists. The Green me team under the mentorship of computer science professor Edi Medvešček consists of students of the Secondary School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Nova Gorica: Aljaž Starc, Miha Mirt and Matej Bunc and a student of the Secondary Technical School Nova Gorica: Tjaž Valentinčič, successfully presented their solution.
We can say without hesitation that all the ideas were great and that we are very proud of the participants and their mentors, as the journey and the experience they gained during this event are their biggest victory.
On 11 November 2020 there was an online national awards ceremony where all participating teams from the Hackathon of Green Technologies and the Internet of Things as well as the participants of the Share Your Story contest 2020 attended it and the winners were awarded.
NEW VET project partner, IHK-Projektgesellschaft mbH, from Germany arranged a workshop on “How vocational training gives your soft skills a new boost” with 17 students of the VET school Lise-Meitner-OSZ in Berlin. The aim was to make them and also future interested people aware of the numerous benefits of a VET pathway in terms of strengthening soft skills. Due to practical working phases in a company, learners acquire or improve their soft skills, for example, communication and collaboration inside and outside the team or with customers. Above all, soft skills make working life easier and trust and contacts can be built up more effectively.
After a short introduction to the NEW VET project and the high relevance of soft skills for the labour market nowadays, the VET students could test their soft skills. Afterwards they evaluated the results with two trainers. Some found out their strengths in finding solutions, other in cooperation, again others in leading and motivating others. A second part of the workshop included an energizing training on the skill “cooperation”: By combining movement, colours and competition, the students learned a lot about themselves whilst also enjoying the training.
Originally, it was planned to also include the winners of the Share your Story Contest 2020 to the workshop but due to the distance requirements at school, they could not take part. However, on the 20 November 2020 we celebrated the awards online. On this occasion we learned from two VET learners the reasons for choosing a dual training path, highlights of their 3 years training and what advice would they give to other trainees who are also aiming for a dual training program? Watch their statements here.
GERMAN YOUTUBE LIVE EVENT
The 2nd Steering Committee meeting, initially planned to be held in April 2020 in Le Puy en Velay, France, was postponed and transferred online due to the COVID-19 lock-down restrictions across Europe. The online meeting took place on 13 May 2020.
During the meeting the project partners:
- Monitored the project activities especially as regards WP2 Quality Monitoring and WP6 Project Communication and Dissemination.
- Launched new project activities especially as regards WP4 Empowering the Multilevel Cooperation and WP5 Spreading the Attractiveness of the VET System.
- Discussed the effects of the COVID19 emergency on project activities, especially as regards delays of project activities and outcomes caused by lockdowns and travel
restrictions.
The 3rd Steering Committee meeting, initially planned to be held in September 2020 in Berlin, was organized online on 21st September 2020 due to the travel restrictions imposed by the COVID19 pandemic.
In the third project meeting, NEW VET partners gathered and discussed online important issues regarding the severe ramifications caused by the pandemic in the second project semester (May – Oct 2020). The Project Coordinator highlighted the financial impact of the pandemic emergency and suggested possible solutions (budget for travels, awards for share your story contests etc.).
Another urgent matter was the awards for the winners of the “Share your story contest” that have to be changed with the support and advice of EACEA. The trip to Berlin for attending the European Vocational Skills Week has been replaced by an electronic device (laptop or tablet) for attending the activities online.
European Vocational Skills Week 2020 – Session Reports
European Vocational Skills Week provided a showcase of the benefits of vocational education and training (VET). Over five days, we heard from learners, teachers, high-level politicians, training providers and many other VET stakeholders from around Europe and beyond, they launched the Pact for Skills and presented the Awards for Excellence in VET. Click here to find the summary reports for each session.
