"BACKGROUND The tourism industry is a key sector of the EU. It is, in fact, over 10% of EU GDP (including the linked industries) and employs 9.7 million people and 1.8 million companies. In our country, the industry has, as a whole, about 191.000 businesses and, on 31st December 2015, 886.000 employees, while in the two regions covered by the project (Sicily and Calabria), between 2015 and the third quarter of 2016, employment in the tourism sector has recorded an average increase compared to 2013-2014, by 3.8% in Sicily and 2.7% in Calabria. The data and projections show, however, on the one hand, the expansion of the sector and the tourist attractiveness of the two regions and, on the other hand, emphasize the need to provide trained young staff, highly qualified and able to respond positively to new and high competence requested by the local labor market. OBJECTIVES In line with the objectives of the EU 2020 Strategy and ET 2020, WORK AWAY offers young participants the opportunity to test and deepen their curricular competencies: professionalism in the specific sector of TOURISM, soft skills, cultural knowledge and language skills. These general objectives are pursued through a mobility experience which consists of an internship abroad of 1 month for 96 STUDENTS attending CLASSES IV and of 3 months for 80 newly graduated of the 8 participating VET Schools (Technical Institutes for Tourism and Hotel and Catering Schools). The project also promotes the exchange and transfer of good practices in VET by relating our VET system with the training and employment system to other European countries and contributes to the consolidation of the ECVET System. ACTIVITY 1. Transversal Activities: management and coordination; Dissemination and exploitation of results; Follow up; 2. Mobility Preparation: Plan of communication and cooperation; Recruitment and selection of participants; preparation of participants; Learning plan definition; 3. Mobility Realization: Internship in the company; Monitoring and tutoring; Project feedback and experience of mobility; Assessment, certification and validation of skills acquired. METHODOLOGY in 4 PHASES 1. MANAGEMENT PLAN AND MONITORING: the project is coordinated by IIS ""Moncada"" in close collaboration with other 16 partners of the Consortium. The Plan is based on the EQAVET quality system and includes specification on: financial arrangements, timing, names of managers / representatives of each organization, responsibilities, roles and tasks, project phases with related milestones, risk management procedures. 2. PLAN OF LEARNING AND EVALUATION: the learning and evaluation plan contains specific references and commitments on transparency and recognition of competences in an ECVET-compatible framework. The documents are: Learning Agreement and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The quality of the experience of mobility is controlled through regular evaluation questionnaires filled out by participants, mentors and tutors. 3. PLAN OF COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION: it provides for the involvement of all participants in the partnership with effective tools and rules to maintain a high level of interest on the project. 4. STRATEGIC PLAN FOR DISSEMINATION AND EXPLOITATION: includes phases and methods to be adopted by all partners to disseminate and exploit the project and its results all over the duration and behond. EXPECTED RESULTS a. The development of highly specific and innovative skills in the tourism and catering sector; b. More competitive and greater employment opportunities in the labor market for the participants; c. The development and innovation of VET systems. IMPACT The project includes a significant impact on the VET Systems through: learning outcomes achievement of participants to mobility; skills acquired from the staff involved in the project; recognition of skills in an ECVET-compatible framework. It represents also an added value and development opportunity for the participating organizations, which will consolidate a new training segment to complete the technical and vocational education and answer the demand of enterprises of high professional skills. LONG-TERM BENEFITS In the long term, thanks to the dissemination tools developed and to the size and importance of the consortium, it is expected to have a multiplier effect both regionally, and at national and EU level and the orientation of public policies on the base of the results of the project, using in addition, as a standard model, all procedures and best practices developed within the Project."

"The LEO quali-TC Consortium has been existing since 2014, when, on the occasion of the launch of the ERASMUS+ KA1 LEO quali-TC MOBILITY project, the PLAN of INTERNATIONALIZATION and EU COOPERATION was formalized among the partners. The LEO quali-TC Consortium, in its new ""DIGITAL"" role, dedicated to innovation and digitalization of the catering sector, is integrated with 14 new schools in the TOURISM and CATERING sector and 22 new intermediary organizations, located in the territory of 13 Italian regions (North: Piedmont, Veneto, Liguria and Emilia Romagna; Center: Tuscany, Marche, Umbria and Lazio; South: Puglia, Molise, Basilicata, Calabria and Sicily). All highly competent and specific for the purpose of achieving the objectives of the project. Through the creation of a specific path of international mobility for STUDENTS in initial vocational training and JUST GRADUATED young people of the tourism and catering sector, LEO quali-TC&DIGITAL aims, therefore, to create professional figures with technical, creative and relational skills, able to innovate, in a digital key, the professional catering sector and have a greater impact on the final value of the products and services offered by the companies in the sector. Other objectives of the project are: - Strengthen and broaden the transversal competences of the participants and, among them, the knowledge of sectoral languages; -Qualify the training offer through international mobility paths, in order to make it as functional as possible to meet the real needs expressed by the companies; -Qualify students through an international practical internship that makes them more competitive and employable on the local and EU labor market and, in line with the EU AGENDA 2020, strengthen the alternating school and work learning paths as concrete occasions of training and growth; - Making participants able to manage their own preparation and investing it in the creation of innovative activities in the catering sector; -Promote the comparison and transfer of good training practices, linking our VET system with the training and working system of other EU companies. These objectives, in line with the ET2020 STRATEGY, are pursued through a mobility experience in ES, PT, FR, DE, UK and MT of 1 MONTH for 120 students (classes IV) and of 4 MONTHS (within the framework of the ERASMUSPRO Initiative) ) for 80 just graduated young people of the 20 VET schools involved. In summary, the activities envisaged by the project are: 1. Cross-cutting activities: Management; Dissemination and exploitation of results; Follow up; 2. Mobility preparation: Communication and cooperation plan; Selection and preparation of participants; Definition of learning plan; 3. Mobility: Internship in the company; Monitoring; Evaluation of traineeships and projects; transparency of the LOs. From the methodological point of view the project includes: - continuous and active involvement of all project staff figures; accompaniment, tutoring and monitoring interventions; teaching methodologies based on involvement, participation, the high integration between theory and practice, the development of practical skills that can be immediately spent, the validation of acquired skills; - a system of mid-term and final checks to monitor progress in learning achieved by the participants, as well as to evaluate, certify, transfer and validate them in an ECVET-compatible framework; - the preparation of a final report focused on the identification of the effective functioning of the activities and the elements that can be reproduced, transferred and integrated within the Consortium and in other contexts. For the participants the main results expected from the realization of the project concern not only its usability in the employment market, but also its positive influences on the development of human potential through its formal, informal and non-formal learning moments. Finally, it is expected the consolidation of a network of EU stakeholders who can transfer good practices and innovative training models in the tourism and catering sectors, which will allow future collaborations and updating and use of project results on a wider scale. These, therefore, the expected impacts: AT THE END OF THE PROJECT: -development of the specialized skills of the target groups involved (200 young people between students and new graduated); -realization of models and training tools of innovative value. IN THE MIDDLE TERM: - dissemination of the results and training models between the subjects of the relevant macro-sector and of vocational training; - provision of results and training models for institutions and professionals of local / regional territories; IN A LONG TERM: - orientation of the policies of the public partners involved based on the results of the project; - use of procedures and tools developed as a standard model."

"BACKGROUND The tourism industry is a key sector of the EU. It is, in fact, over 10% of EU GDP (including the linked industries) and employs 9.8 million people and 1.9 million of companies. In our Country, the industry has, as a whole, about 192.000 businesses and, on 31st December 2015, 891.000 employees, while in the two regions covered by the project (Sicily and Calabria), between 2016 and the third quarter of 2017, employment in the tourism sector has recorded an average increase compared to 2014-2015, by 3.9% in Sicily and 2.8% in Calabria. The data and projections show, however, on the one hand, the expansion of the sector and the tourist attractiveness of the two regions and, on the other hand, emphasize the need to provide trained young staff, highly qualified and able to respond positively to new and high competence requested by the local labor market. OBJECTIVES In line with the objectives of the EU 2020 Strategy and ET 2020, ASK#PLUS offers young participants the opportunity to test and deepen their curricular competencies: professionalism in the specific sector of TOURISM, soft skills, cultural knowledge and language skills. These general objectives are pursued through a mobility experience which consists of an internship abroad of 1 month for 96 STUDENTS attending CLASSES IV and of 3 months for 80 newly graduated (in the frame of the EU ErasmusPro Initiative) of the 8 participating VET Schools (Technical Institutes for Tourism and Hotel and Catering Schools). The project also promotes the exchange and transfer of good practices in VET by relating our VET system with the training and employment system to other European countries and contributes to the consolidation of the ECVET System. ACTIVITY 1. Transversal Activities: management and coordination; Dissemination and exploitation of results; Follow up; 2. Mobility Preparation: Plan of communication and cooperation; Recruitment and selection of participants; preparation of participants; Learning plan definition; 3. Mobility Realization: Internship in the company; Monitoring and tutoring; Project feedback and experience of mobility; Assessment, certification and validation of skills acquired. METHODOLOGY in 4 PHASES 1. MANAGEMENT PLAN AND MONITORING: the project is coordinated by the VET School ""Chinnici"" in close collaboration with other 16 partners of the Consortium. The Plan is based on the EQAVET quality system and includes specification on: financial arrangements, timing, names of managers / representatives of each organization, responsibilities, roles and tasks, project phases with related milestones, risk management procedures. 2. PLAN OF LEARNING AND EVALUATION: the learning and evaluation plan contains specific references and commitments on transparency and recognition of competences in an ECVET-compatible framework. The documents are: Learning Agreement and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The quality of the experience of mobility is controlled through regular evaluation questionnaires filled out by participants, mentors and tutors. 3. PLAN OF COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION: it provides for the involvement of all participants in the partnership with effective tools and rules to maintain a high level of interest on the project. 4. STRATEGIC PLAN FOR DISSEMINATION AND EXPLOITATION: includes phases and methods to be adopted by all partners to disseminate and exploit the project and its results all over the duration and behond. EXPECTED RESULTS a. The development of highly specific and innovative skills in the tourism and catering sector; b. More competitive and greater employment opportunities in the labor market for the participants; c. The development and innovation of VET systems. IMPACT The project includes a significant impact on the VET Systems through: learning outcomes achievement of participants to mobility; skills acquired from the staff involved in the project; recognition of skills in an ECVET-compatible framework. It represents also an added value and development opportunity for the participating organizations, which will consolidate a new training segment to complete the technical and vocational education and answer the demand of enterprises of high professional skills. LONG-TERM BENEFITS In the long term, thanks to the dissemination tools developed and to the size and importance of the consortium, it is expected to have a multiplier effect both regionally, and at national and EU level and the orientation of public policies on the base of the results of the project, using in addition, as a standard model, all procedures and best practices developed within the Project."

"The ""LEO quali-TC"" Consortium is existing since 2014, when, on the occasion of the launch of the ERASMUS+ KA1 project ""LEO quali-TC MOBILITY"", the EUROPEAN INTERNATIONALIZATION AND COOPERATION PLAN was formalized. The Consortium LEO quali-TC, in its new ""STRATEGY"" role, dedicated to the innovation of the Tourism and Catering sector and the implementation, at national level, of the ECVET System and of the good practices developed by the Consortium not only through previous Mobility projects, but also through the KA2 actions of development of innovation, it has been integrated with 5 new schools of the TOURISM and CATERING sector and 8 new intermediary organizations, located in the territory of 6 Italian regions: TUSCANY, LIGURIA, PIEDMONT , VENETO, LAZIO and SICILY. All highly competent and specific for the purpose of achieving the objectives of the project.Through the creation of a specific path of international mobility for STUDENTS in initial vocational training and JUST GRADUATED (NEODIPLOMATI) of the tourism and catering sector, ""LEO quali-TC STRATEGY"" aimed at creating figures with technical-professional skills, creative and relational, able to innovate the tourism and professional catering sector and affect the final value of the products and services offered by the companies in the sector. The main objectives achieved by the project were, therefore:- Strengthening of the transversal competences of the participants and, among these, the knowledge of the sector foreign languages;- Qualification of the training offer through international mobility paths and contribution to meeting the real needs expressed by local companies in the territories involved;- Qualification of students, in line with the AGENDA EU 2020, through an international practical internship that has made them more competitive and employable on the local and EU labor market;- Promotion of the comparison and transfer of good training practices, which linked our VET system with the training and working system of other EU companies.These objectives, in line with the ET2020 STRATEGY, were achieved, in particular, through a 4-week mobility experience for 98 students atteding the fourth classes and a 3-month mobility esperience for 65 just graduated students, all coming from the 8 VET sending schools involved in the Consortium. Mobility experiences were carried ou in ES, PT, FR, UK and MT. In summary, the activities carried out by the project were:1. Cross-cutting activities: Management; Dissemination and exploitation of results; Follow up;2. Mobility preparation: Communication and cooperation plan; Selection and preparation of participants; Definition of learning plan;3. Mobility: Internship in the company; Monitoring; Evaluation of traineeships and projects; transparency of the LOs.From the methodological point of view the project has foreseen:- continuous and active involvement of all project staff figures; accompaniment, tutoring and monitoring interventions; teaching methodologies based on involvement, participation, the high integration between theory and practice, the development of practical skills that can be immediately spent, the validation of acquired skills;- a system of intermediate and final checks that made it possible to monitor progress in terms of learning achieved by the participants, as well as to evaluate, certify, transfer and validate them in an ECVET-compatible framework;- the preparation of a final report focused on identifying the effective functioning of the activities and the elements that can be reproduced, transferred and integrated within the Consortium and in other contexts.For the participants the main results achieved through the realization of the project have concerned not only its usability in the employment field, but also its positive influences on the development of human potential through its formal, informal and non-formal learning moments.Lastly, the consolidation of a network of EU stakeholders of good practices and innovative training models in the tourism and catering sectors has been achieved, which will allow future collaborations, updating and use of results on a wider scale.These, therefore, the impacts achieved:AT THE END OF PROJECT:- development of the specialized skills of the target groups involved (163 young people between students and just graduated);- creation of models and training tools of innovative value.IN THE MIDDLE TERM:- dissemination of results and training models between the subjects of the relevant macro-sector and of vocational training;- making available results and training models for institutions and professionals of local / regional territories;IN LONG TERM:- orientation of the policies of the public partners involved based on the results of the project;- use of procedures as a standard model."