In the new strategy (2018-2022) of SAMIedu Vocational College emphasis is laid on international relations and especially on the skills of the staff and students to work in international environment. This strategy goal will be achieved with own resources of the College and supported by Erasmus+ Mobility project, international project of European Comission as well as by education export project financed by ESR. Erasmus+ mobility periods are regarded as a practical tool for internationalizing the college, working against racism and improving the language skills and life coping skills. These are especially important in our small town, Savonlinna, where there are not many possibilities to meet foreigners and practice language skills in natural situations in winter. In summers the town is an international tourist attraction. Hopefully some of the students stay in this region to improve the international knowledge of the companies. However, most of the students end up in bigger cities, where the international relations are part of everyday life and international know-how is a requirement for employment. In SAMIedu we constantly work for equality. In addition to the principle to divide the mobility grants among all fields of vocational education evenly we want to offer exchange periods to students, who haven’t had any previous possibility to travel. Students who get income support are also supported with a 350€ grant of our college. Also students studying in preparatory education are sent with their teacher to a familiarization period abroad. In this project we intend to send more male students by laing more emphasis on marketing and using efficiently the new network partnerships, which have been gained through our previous logistics, forestry, metal and vehicle technology projects. Several foreign student groups of these fields will work in the workshops of SAMIedu college in the school year 2018-2019. We’ll also send students studying competence-based vocational qualifications to exchange periods, e.g. datanomes, masseurs and restaurant cooks. These students are mainy adults with families, that’s why we offer them also short exchange periods of 32 days. Further we are starting co-operation with the apprentices of Savonlinna Works Company. They can get acquainted with the tasks of an assembler in the factories of the partnership network in Europe for 2 months. This co-operation has been planned on the need of the company. In this project a large variety of digital equipment is used. Students will report their experiences in the blog www.moprosamiedu.blogsport.fi and they will be mentored in WhatsApp by teachers. In this project we’ll further put effort into developing the coaching and the students will collect video material for marketing of exchange periods and our college. From this material we’ll make augmented reality using Thinglink and 360' cameras. OLS language tests and courses are partly carried out as contact coaching. We’re going to use more effectively the coaching material made in previous projects like the language and culture coaching of European Pathway Project. (http://eurooppalainenopintopolku.fi/index.php)

Our vocational school has been committed in the European mobility for its learners since 2000. The first partnership started with Finland (Savonlinna). Then it spread with Spain (Teruel), Sweden (Tibro, for a year), Denmark (Skive), and since 2013 with Germany (Beckum). Thanks to the mutualisation of its means, the partners of our partners eventually became our partners : indeed, Denmark was already the partner of Finland before it became our own partner, and Germany was already the partner of Denmark before it became our own partner in 2013.Our school is recognized in its surroundings and has many partnerships with some firms of the region in the fields of woodwork and boat-making. Some of them (which welcome our student for work placements) belong to international companies.Each year, between 8 and 12 students of Terminale Bac Professionnel from the three specialities (cabinet-makers, computer-aided joiners, carpenters) are selected to go on training periods in firms abroad.The teachers of each speciality of Bac Professionnel take in charge the professional part and the preparation of the students' files; documents. They exchange the technical documents with their foreign partners and realize some of the administrative tasks before the students go abroad.The English teachers take in charge the linguistic preparation of the students. They organize the contacts with the foreign partners and the companies which welcome our learners, as well as the monitoring of the students during their training abroad. One of them launches the project and federates the school teams.The administrative manager deals with the material logistic (transport, boarding, payments...) and the relations with institutional partners (Poitou-Charentes Region...).All the members of our staff are definitely convinced that work placements abroad are very positive for our students who become aware that they are European citizens. They also find jobs more easily than other students.

"The aim of the project was to maintain and develop the quality and effectiveness of student mobility in logistics and transportation sector in the participating Finnish vocational colleges. The national network consisted of 5 vocational colleges in Eastern Finland (LOG-EF network): SAKKY - Kuopio, YSAO - Iisalmi, PKKY - Joensuu, Esedu - Mikkeli and SAMI - Savonlinna. LOG-EF network had implemented international projects with good results also before, and these results were used as a foundation for this mobility project. International partner schools in this project were from Denmark, Norway and Croatia.The target group of the project was all logistics students of the Finnish colleges: both youngsters and adults, including also the students in apprenticeship training. Most of the participating students took part into two week long training modules in Denmark and Norway. Content of the training was professional: for example in Norway ""First aid and social regulations"". Some of the students carried out their practical training (4 weeks) abroad, in Denmark and Croatia. Training was organized in local transportation companies and offered an valuable experience of working in other European transportation company. All the participating students gained knowledge, competences and skills of international tranportation that they could not achieve in their own home school or even in their home country. Also a lot of teachers participated to mobilities, some of them only guiding students through their mobility experience - some having their first touch and understanding to international mobility and vocational training in foreign colleges. Concerning staff most important aim was to involve new teachers to international activities.As a result of this project many Finnish logistics students had a chance to gain professional skills abroad. The staff of colleges was as widely involved to the project as possible. Mobility was reciprocal: colleges from Denmark and Croatia sent their students to Finland via this international mobility network. The established network for international cooperation will continue to work together also after this project. All are sending students to each other's colleges via other mobility projects. Some of the colleges are also planning to apply a common strategic partnership project together later on."

All mobilities and activities planned for the project were completed successfully: 1) ERASMUS PRO - three students, (2 boys and 1 girl), electrical engineering technicians and electronics technician after completing their third year of high school went through three months of professional training in companies in UK. 2) 14-days mobilities for twenty-five 3rd grade students who had their practical training in companies and school workshops in Denmark, Spain, Slovakia and UK. That experience is important for better educational results and gaining additional practical competences. 3) Mobility of five teachers who took part in job shadowing in partner schools in Finland, Portugal and Estonia, which is essential for their further professional development.The participants in the mobility were third-grade students in the following fields: electrical engineering technician, IT technician, mechatronics technician, electronics technician and road traffic technician. Electrical engineering technicians have completed compulsory professional practice during mobility period, which is a prerequisite for them to enroll in 4th grade.Other fields - IT technician, mechatronics technician, electronics technician and road traffic technician do not have foreseen professional practice as a part of their new experimental curricula, but through mobility they had the opportunity to get insight into real working environment.The school has verified the professional practice and work experience that students acquired during mobility period as a professional practice conducted in the Republic of Croatia for electrical engineering technicians, and for other fields as part of learning outcomes from specific vocational courses or additional knowledge through Europass Mobility and ECVET.All participants were under the age of 18 and it was their first experience in working in a company / school in a foreign country and communicating in English. For the purpose of assessments of participants' progress and satisfaction with mobility, but also as assistance in completing the work diary or helping with any difficulties during the mobility period participants were in 80% accompanied by teachers. Their task was to be in constant contacted with participants, their mentors at workplace, and to make visits to the participants in the workplace / school workshop.The following results were achieved:•better educational results,•increased initiative for self-employment and entrepreneurship•improvement in knowledge of foreign languages,•greater cross-cultural awareness, •promotion of vocational education in our region•networking with colleagues of similar interests and ambitionsThe second activity of this project included teachers who teach in vocational fields. In the period of mobility the teachers visited partner vocational schools in Finland, Portugal and Estonia.The following activities were carried out:•introductory lecture on the Finnish / Portuguese / Estonian education system,•visit of the company of students’ work placement,•observing of colleagues' lessons,•analysis of lessons,•meeting and agreement on future cooperation,•short workshops•awarding of certificates.The following results were achieved:•improved competencies of participants in teaching,•better understanding of education in different countries,•better quality of work with practical contents,•increased motivation and satisfaction in work•personal contacts with colleagues from other countries, which can lead to future cooperation on new projectsThis project also fulfilled some of the strategic goals of the school internationalization:1. Mobility of students, teachers and professional associates (both as sending and as receiving institution)2. Partnerships with domestic and foreign educational institutions, companies and social partners3. Effective management and implementation of international projects4. Recognition and evaluation of acquired knowledge and skillsThe project was carried through in cooperation with some old but also new partner organizations thus expanding the network of partner institutions.

The cooperating partners in the project are teh Maltese Charity Service Károly Róbert Vocational and Technical School for Commerce, Catering, Economy and Tourism, the Finnish Savonlinnan ammatti-instituutti, the Polish Zespól Szlól Gastronomicznych Nr 2 Prof. Odona Bujwida, the Spanish zaragoza Dinamica, the German Constantin-Vanotti-Schule and the Austrian Höhere Bundeslehranstalt für witschaftliche Berufe, the Italian IPSSEOA COSTAGGINI RIETI and also the Polish Zespół Szkół Przemysłu Spożywczego.Our institution has been striving for innovation and dynamic development, providing the most up-to-date knowledge possible. There are vocational classes, technical classes and professional training in the field of commerce, catering and tourism. It regurarly takes part in competitions to widen the limited financial sources, to maintain and widen the existent international contacts. In this sector it is a very important annd indispensable opportunity for the students from the point of view of getting foreign work experience and increasing further chances in the labour market. That is why our school wants to keep providing the possibility of forign work placement for the students, which represents added value over professional initial training and so increases its recognition and popularity in our region.The cooperating partners parcitipating in the project are all vocational schools, whose training profile is consistent with that of ours. The collaboration with these partners is not newly formed as during the past years some culturaal exchanges and several Leonardo projects were carried out together among which tehre were some exchange programmes and several student placements. Our institution are English, German and in a minor extent Italian. Forign work experience is of great importance from the point of view of further job pissibilities, so our school wants to provide it for as many students as possible every year. The Europass Mobility document proves the accomplishment of the foreign practical training for the Hungarian participants and supervise the realisation of the learning goals. The sending institution organises travel and insurance.Having a running project this year gives the opportunity of keeping in touch continuously with the project partners either by personal contacts or by correspondence. Monitoring visits also help supervising the programme. The participant of the project are catering students of 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th classes who spend 4 weeks by working in international environment.The cmmon topic of the project are catering student in all the 6 mentioned countries is bioculture, the study of ingredients and their way of use. Through the comparioson and dissemination of consumption habits a picture will be formed of cultural and gastronomical tradition of these countries, which can be very useful in school life for professzional reason as well as for spreading European mentality among students. By working the student can take an insight into the culture and the customs of the countries. They have to use a foreign language to get on at their workplaces and in their everyday activities, which could be motivating for language learning. They will become more independent and self confident.The program is realised within 1 year: 2014/15.