As part of the TRAVEL-project (Trainees Enrich Their Apprenticeship with Valuable Experience and Language) the company HPT (Hochwertige Pharmatechnik) is planning to give 8 apprentices the opportunity of a stay abroad during their apprenticeship in the next 2 years. This is HPT’s response to the growing demands on the labour market. The demographic change and the migration from rural areas make it difficult to find motivated and qualified employees and apprentices. Generally the participation in the project should be possible for all apprentices of the company, including both industrial and commercial apprentices. However, it will be of great importance for us that the apprentices already possess a certain level of knowledge. For this reason we expect participants who are at least in the second year of apprenticeship. We are currently training in the following professions (male/female): processing mechanic for plastics and rubber technology, machine and system operator, mechatronic engineer, industrial mechanic, tool mechanic, IT-system electronics technician and industrial clerks.After having completed the first year of apprenticeship the apprentices of the industrial sector have skills in metalworking and in processing of components. Depending on the chosen apprenticeship further specific specialized knowledge is available. The apprentices of the commercial sector in the second year of apprenticeship have already passed some departments and have worked with different programmes (MS Office). With this measure we hope that on the one hand the apprentices will broaden their specialized knowledge and on the other hand will be able to develop their personality. The decisive factor for the success of this measure is choosing the right partner company. We were able to win companies in Finland, Poland, Italy as well as a vocational school in Finland for the project. Depending on the partner company different activities are planned. In Finland KETEK and Kpedu are our partners. In the company KETEK mainly apprentices who are interested in new, innovative plastics as well as other materials can acquire a lot of knowledge. In the company Kpedu the focus is put on becoming acquainted with other training systems and deepening one’s own specialized knowledge. Basically in Finland vocational training takes place in school. Novopack produces machines on demand.This means that at Novopack industrial apprentices can experience the planning and development of a tool or machine with their own eyes. This is mainly supposed to support the process of understanding of technical equipment and machinery. In the company HP Poland also plastic bottles are produced. However under different conditions and for a different market. Here industrial apprentices can take an active part in the day-to-day business and deepen their specialized knowledge. In addition they become acquainted with other working conditions and work flows. The commercial apprentices can be sent to all of the mentioned partner organisations. In every company it is possible to integrate them into the daily routine. If possible, they should be deployed in the collection and processing of data. In addition they are supposed to improve their communication skills (by mail and, if possible, also on the phone).To participate in the project each apprentice of the company can apply for. After the participants have been chosen first of all the country of destination and the expectations as well as the wishes to the project should be clarified. As soon as these details are certain the contents of the stay need to be clarified in consultation with the participant and the partner company. As the participants are adolescents we see need for support in the preparatory phase. However, the participant should be involved in the organisation so that he can already gain first experiences. The participant should benefit from this measure from the professional point of view as well as with regard to his personal skills. With the stay abroad and becoming acquainted with different working conditions the participant should learn to appreciate his own apprenticeship and return to his own company with new ideas. By dealing with new situations and colleagues, also in another language, both social skills (problem-solving, ability to work in a team, ability to accept criticism), intercultural skills (developing tolerance towards other customs) and foreign language skills should be developed. Due to the growing demands on the labour market we want to lay the foundation for a successful first step into professional life with this project. In the long term we hope that with this modern and future-oriented organisation of the apprenticeship the company will become more interesting for young employees.

As part of this staff management plan HIVSET choose to stimulate staff members actively to take part in European and international learning and improve their competences linked to their professional profile in a sustainable way and to valorize their learning outcomes into our school. The needs analysis of our school resulted in the selection of the following areas for quality improvement: - better understanding, approach and ability to cope with the diversity in the school and improvement of our class management. - implementation of the quality approach in the school teams and in our teaching. - insights on new teaching and learning to tackle the challenges of the future for the school and improvement of our pedadogical plan. Within the reference of our European development plan, we selected the following learning activities:number and profile of participants 6 teachers went on a staff training through selected courses from out the structural European training offer- 'Finnish lessons in education', Profile: 1 teacher post-secondary BSO & 1 teacher OKAN- 'Meta learning & thinking skills', Profile:1 teacher BSO secondary and 1 coordinator 'care'-'Teaching for tomorrow', Profile: 1 teacher BSO secondary en 1 coordinator other langauges speaking in post secondary education12 teachers and staff members went on job shadowing at a partner school in Europa: - in Finland on coaching, entrepreneurship and diversity in the classroom. Profile 2teachers post secondary BSO (care & childcare) and 1 coordinator learning on the job. -in the Czech Republic on e-learning and knowledge building in the digital learning context Profile: 1 teacher TSO (Health & Social sciences) - in France on tackling diversity at school and the follow-up of students within a digital learning context. .Profile: 2 teachers TSO (Health & Social sciences) , 1 teacher OKAN, 1 pedagogic coordinator secondary education and 1 general director - in Ireland on tackling the challenge of competence-based teaching and assessment of competences .Profile: 2 teachers BSO (Health Care) en 1 coordinator skillslab. 4 teachers and staff members went on teaching assignment in a partner school:* 2 teachers in Spain with teaching on cooperative learning and team dynamics.Profile: 2 teachers BSO (childcare & care for elderly), in Spanish.- In Romania on 'appreciative approach' and coaching of staff members. Profile: 1 coordinator 'training for mentors' & 1 general directorResults & impact:-The participating teachers have improved their competences linked to their professional profile but have also gained European added value in quality, diversity and dynamic teaching.- The participating staff members/school leaders increased their capacity to build an international opening of the educative curriculum.- This project had a positive impact on the improvement of the teaching at school getting a boost of innovative and qualitative instruments.- Our students gained in 'learning offer' from the quality improvement of the teaching, and in 'well being' by more respect for diversity at school. All this together has helped the school in preventing from early school leaving.

The rationale of this project, based on an analysis partly by CEDEFOP, and the needs identified by the partnership :1.The contribution of work-based learning to supporting youth employment and economic competitiveness is widely recognised. Despite this and the fact that work-based learning in VET has proven to be effective in terms of providing students with skills applicable to the labour market and helping to reduce the risk of youth unemployment, VET and WBL does not have a very good reputation regarding professional growth and career guidance, intellectual challenges and attractive career opportunities.2. In the countries of the partner organisation WBL as part of VET is under transformation and VET providers and stakeholders need support on how to innovate the existing work-based learning practices, seen as a success factor for good governance of WBL. 3. All participating organisations in this project recognise that collaboration and partnerships between school and company/workplace will enhance quality in areas as career guidance, curriculum design and professional growth and wil result in better value for the involved organizations. But all of them feel the need for more more research of innovative models of networking and partnership between school and labour market.4. Already at the end of 2008 the European Council decided that 'career management skills play a decisive role in empowering people to become involved in shaping their learning, training and integration pathways and their careers'. On national as well on regional levels there are promising schemes and projects. However, these projects have in common that the cover only individual aspects and stages on the path of working life.This partnership project has adressed these needs through development, transfer and/or implementation of innovative practices at organisational, local, regional, national or European level through the realization of the following objectives:- Enhancing the professional growth and career guidance of the staff members and those involved in training and education (VET) by increasing the quality of international knowledge exchange and continuous training, including new pedagogies, e-learning and the use of Open Educational Ressources in different European languages. (adressing needs 3 & 4)- Fostering the quality, relevance and implementation of the learning offer in training and career guidance of work-based learning (WBL) by developing new, innovative and empowering approaches and supporting the dissemination of best practices. (adressing need 1 & 2) - Improving the level of key competeces and skills with particular regard to their relevance for the labour market of the social sector and their contribution to a cohesive society, in particular through enhanced cooperation and networking between the world of education and the world of work. (adressing need 3)As a most tangible result of the project we deliver 2 toolkits : 'professional growth & career guidance in VET' & 'Tools for quality and empowerment in WBL'. These toolkits gather the best practices and tools of the project partners and learnings coming out of the learning events in the partnership. Joint to these toolkits the partnership deliver also guidelines for trainers. All the tools and instruments are promoted for free access to the public on European seminars, through the website of the partnership and the European Dissemination Platform.The partnership started with a clear dissemination plan approving the value of ownership of the idea of the project and the involvement of key actors of the target groups, resulting in an extended impact on the end users and stakeholders in the field of the project on regional, national and European level. The project is placed in a perspective that goes beyond the project period. Its results are integrated in the management of the participating organisations and, through European seminars and multiplier events, the mainstreaming effect in the European civil society is guaranteed.

In the NaturiWab2 - students and staff abroad project, 49 students from the natural resource and environmental sectors had opportunity to do part their studies abroad. At the same time, a mobility period for 17 staff representatives was made possible. Student mobility durations ranged from 12 to 81 days and staff from 4 to 5 days. There were 40 receiving partners in the project, from 20 countries. The short periods were mainly adult students´ periods. Some of the host organizations in the project are long-term partners of the network's educational institutions, some new cooperations were created during the project.The project was implemented by the Naturi network, which includes five Finnish natural resources and environmental VET providers (Kpedu, Sakky, Sedu, Ysao and Kao). The applicant organization and coordinator was the Central Ostrobothnia Vocational College. Since 2005, the network has implemented 8 expert and student mobility projects, which have resulted in a number of good practices and a flexible collaborative model.This project responded to the need for natural resource and environmental students to develop their professional skills and general working life skills (key competences for lifelong learning) through international mobility periods. Networking enabled the sharing of ECVET-related know-how among the Naturi educational institutions and the acquisition of new foreign partners. Memorandum of Understanding and Learning (later Training) were learning and collaboration agreements in use.Government policy says that organisations should take a digital leap in their actions. We have done it in training, evaluation, guidance, training marketing, etc. In this project, we strengthened the use of electronic systems and applications for internationalization; we transferred ECVET forms to student information management systems and informed about the NaturiWab2 project's activities in Facebook, blogs, Twitter and Instagram. In communication, guidance and reporting, we utilized various digital tools such as WhatsApp and Skype. In network communication, we deployed the Office365 Group, where we shared the materials and where we went through all the project discussions.Our main goal was to provide added value to a student's degree by sending him abroad to increase his internationalization skills. Through the project, we strengthened our relations with our foreign partners and increased our network. In line with our goal, we sent more and more adult learners to the world, as well as increasing our staff's expertise by involving them in this project.As a result of the project, the professional skills, language skills and cultural knowledge of students and staff increased. From the international experience they have gained, students benefit in many ways in their lives..Staff members can use the benefits in development work of their organization in addition to their personal interests.With the experience of the project, It is easier for the student to cope with the future in an increasingly international working life - and it is easier for the teacher or staff representative to guide and steer students for that.

"Kristiansund upper secondary school's vision is to be a provident and future oriented institution that gives its students a broader perspective on the outside world, and international skills and competences for a globalized labor market. In order to offer our students an education that meets the needs of both global and local businesses, there is consequently an increasing need for a continuous skill development for both students and staff through new, international impulses. For students in vocational education, this is often the last step in their formal education before entering employment. Hence, it is very important that these students get the opportunity to gain international professional experience within their vocational directions while they are still in training, as the threshold for relocating abroad will be much higher once they enter full-time employment. The main objectives of this project were to provide both students and staff with new and relevant knowledge, to decrease the school's dropout rate, and to give our students a stronger Nordic and European identity. This project consisted of two main parts. 5 students from the department of ""Restaurant and food processing"" had work placements in the town of Aalborg, and 3 students from the department of ""Healtcare and youth development"", had work placements in the town of Horsens. The accompanying persons were selected from faculty members in the two departments involved. In addition to practical arrangements and follow up's of the Norwegian students, the accompanying persons also spent their time learning about teaching methods at the Danish partner schools. Kristiansund upper secondary also received 8 school leaders from the French region of Versailles for two weeks in 2015, which led to many new ideas for future projects in France. It was a goal that both the students and staff who participated in the project would acquire increased knowledge within their area of expertise, and better understanding of social and professional factors in the European work market. It was expected that the participants shared their acquired knowledge and experiences from the project with their classmates who had not participated in the project. We believe that this created a flow of knowledge that not only embraced the selected students and faculty members, but the school as a whole. The school's experiences from previous projects have shown that the students that have participated in international projects become much more mature than the other students, and that they subsequent to the project implementation contribute to improve the social and professional environment in classes. It was also a goal that the students who participated in the project would establish ties and create professional networks with local students and workers in each country, and that such relationships would be nurtured to extend beyond the project itself. These are contacts can be very useful for the participants in the global workforce they are entering after their education. It is also very important for Kristiansund upper secondary school that the various traineeship companies views it as positive and useful to have a Norwegian student in their company, and that this contributes to new ideas and new ways of problem solving.Kristiansund upper secondary school wishes to create a greater focus on the value of vocational education, by showing the students, parents and the local businesses that vocational occupations are also interesting and innovative, with an international relevance and importance. And the fact that our Danish partners and placement firms were a part of this project, also contributed to dissemination on a Nordic and European level."