The Improving Skills project was promoted by EFTA - School of Professional Training in Tourism of Aveiro, Lda., Constituted in 2006 and currently the only school in the region dedicated exclusively to the areas of Tourism and Leisure and Hospitality and Catering. EFTA promotes a professional and academic qualification of excellence and stands out today as a Vocational Training School of reference.With this new project, EFTA pursued its clear objectives in the educational project and strategic plan of internationalization and training / employability, tourism and leisure dynamism and organizational learning.The participants of this project were 16 trainees for 11-week Curricular Internship and 6 newly graduates for a 14-week Professional Internship from EFTA Level 4 vocational training courses in the areas of Tourism, Catering and Hospitality. The mobility period included the sending of 4 companions (1 per flow of participants) for 4 days.The 5-day shadowing program allowed 6 faculty members to be sent with peer training and bridge-building missions with which EFTA schools can engage in dialogue and exchanges on a permanent basis .The countries of destination were: Austria, United Kingdom, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain.In terms of certification all participants received the EFTA Certificate, Certificate of Internship and Europass-Mobility CertificateThe main NEEDS of the target audience were: Creating opportunities for audiences with problematic socio-economic situations Reversing trends in school drop-out and failure Strengthening social and personal skills Creating curiosity by knowing and contacting other peoples and cultures Improving mastery of languages and raising awareness of other languages Qualify and certify human resources in the tourism and leisure sectorThe general OBJECTIVES were:- STIMULATE TRAINERS TO BE INVOLVED IN THEIR OWN TRAINING- GUARANTEE A QUALITY TRAINING THAT GOES TO THE MEETING OF TRAINERS AND SOCIETY- CREATE COOPERATIVE NETWORKS THAT THINK / AGE ON TRAINING AND EMPLOYABILITYThe registered IMPACTS were:Students and alumni:- Continuation and completion of courses by the students (currently in the 12th year)- Former students in the labor market- Facilitator of integration in the national and international labor market- Reinforcement of the taste for the professional area through the learning of new techniques and knowledge in general- Recognition of the importance of constant technical and professional updating- Cultural interest fostered by multiple trips- Greater ease in contact with other cultures, greater openness, tolerance and acceptance of diversity- A greater taste for learning and, by sharing their experience, transmitting the same taste to other trainees / young people- Recognition of the internationalization experience as positive in the development of their personal and professional competences- Proficiency in a language other than the mother tongue- Development of skills in the interpersonal relationshipStaff:- Increased pedagogical competence of the faculty and more motivation to invest in the level of quality and excellence- Increased work capacity and increased involvement in the dynamization of school activities- Greater sense of belonging to the EFTA community- Increased ability to work in teams (face-to-face and distance) and in interdisciplinary and intercultural environments- Greater evaluative capacity on the work developed- Contact with practices and trends of tourism and leisure at European and international level who have practical effects in the classroom, with students- Improving language skills- Greater proximity to other cultures, greater ability to tolerate acceptanceEducational Community:- Motivation and enthusiasm for participation in future mobility programs- Cultural curiosity- Ability to work at intercultural level- Domain of the instruments and mechanisms used with the ERSMUS +- Recognition of the competences and capital gains of the teaching and non-teaching staff in international project management- Impact on strengthening self-esteem, by recognizing impacts on work done- Development of skills in the interpersonal relationshipSchool Community:- Contribution to the strategy put forward in the EFTA European Development Plan and consequently to the removal of identified needs- Teachers learn to trust their students- Reducing dropout rates- Creation of new dynamics in school management

EFTA - Escola de Formação Profissional em Turismo de Aveiro, Lda, was constituted in 2006 and since then has sought to establish a direct relationship with the region in which it operates and is by qualification that provides vocational students secondary and the contribution to the number of qualified technicians in the region that the EFTA fulfills its mission to promote the improvement of living conditions of the surrounding region and improvement of its services.In 2014 and 2015 the EFTA promoted the School Challenge Project under the Erasmus + program, intending thereby contribute to meet the various needs identified in the school community, the municipality and region in which it operates.Thus, the general objectives for this project was inserted in the development of some of the objectives of the EFTA educational project:Develop students' taste for knowledgeReduce the dropout rate and school failureImprove performance and educational outcomes of studentsDevelop strategies that encourage improved management of the teaching processDiversify training offerPromote the improvement of skills of teachers and non-teaching staffProvide the updating of skills of training, promote the sharing of experiences and compare educational practicesImprove the process of school and vocational guidanceDisseminate school and all its initiatives among companies in the region and society in generalParticipants and destinations of this project were:- 15 students of the 11th year of the courses of Tourism (6 students), Reception: Front-office (3 students), Kitchen / Confectionery (5 students) and Restaurant / Bar (1 student)- Destinations: Spain, France, UK and Italy- 5 former students of the courses of Tourism (2 ex-students) and kitchen / Confectionery (3 ex-students)- Destinations: UK and Italy- 6 staff: Chef restaurant / bar, Educational Advisor of Class and Trainer of Tourism Area, Chef EFTA kitchen, Educational Guidanceof Class and French teacher, Coordinator of courses and the Director of EFTA- Destinations: France, Italy and LuxembourgThe activities planned for students and recent graduates, included a language course week before departure and an internship program (curricular / extra-curricular) during the week of mobility. Staff for the Job-shadowing mobility was for 1 week.For all participants, preparation and information sessions were held, as well as follow-up evaluation after mobility.The impacts identified in the participants and the community were:STUDENTS AND EX-STUDENTS- Further integration of trainees probabilities and former graduates in the labor market after the end of the course / mobility- Enhanced language competence in the use of everyday life and in the professional field- Reinforcement of personal skills: greater feeling of autonomy, responsibility and entrepreneurship- Openness to other cultures and nationalities- Increased competence in intercultural contact- Increased taste for learning and for sharing their experience, transmission of the same like the other students / young peopleTEACHERS- Contact with other realities, renewing and recycling knowledge acquired over the years of work- I like the professional field and recognizing the need for continuous training- Recognition of the need for constant updating and technical professional- Recognition of international experience as positive the development of their personal and professional skills- Higher pedagogical competence of the facultyEFTA COMMUNITY - Increased ability to respond to the needs of the county and region, through continuous participation in mobility projects bringing to the EFTA which is best done abroad- Update methods and teaching techniques- More competent Teachers and updated, able to contribute to the motivation of learners- Reduction of levels of school leavers, by motivating students to participate in new mobilities. It appears that every year the number of students interested in participating is higher- More efficient school managementThrough this project, participants had access to the Europass mobility, certificate of the host entity, EFTA certificate and in the case of students and ex-students, language course certificate

Through this project, EFTA sent 12 students with 4 chaperones, 6 former students, 4 staff members to carry out training programs, distributed as follows:- 12 students from the courses of Tourism, Restaurant-Bar and Kitchen-Pastry - these mobilities had the duration of 98 days and took place from May 28 to September 2, 2017- 6 former students of the Tourism, Bar and Restaurant courses - these mobilities lasted for 98 days in the case of Italy and 99 days in the case of Austria and ran from 13 September to 19/20 December 2017- 2 staff for Sweden - lasting 7 days, from 15 to 21 October 2017- 2 staff for Belgium - lasting 7 days, from 11 to 17 March 2018- With the mobility of the students were sent 4 accompanying teachers who remained in the destinations 7 daysThe GENERAL OBJECTIVES of the project were:1 STIMULATE TRAINERS TO BE INVOLVED IN THEIR OWN TRAINING2 GUARANTEE A QUALITY TRAINING THAT GOES TO THE MEETING OF TRAINERS AND SOCIETY3 CREATING COOPERATIVE NETWORKS THAT THINK / AGE ON TRAINING AND EMPLOYABILITYThe impacts achieved with this project were:Students and Alumni- Greater probability of integration into the labor market after the end of the course / mobility - the alumni who participated are currently employed within their training areas- Bet without fear on new horizons, with better labor prospects, especially at international level- A renewed taste for contact with other cultures and nationalities, therefore, they have more competence in intercultural contact- They currently have a greater taste for learning, for sharing their experience and for transmitting that same taste to others- Recognition of the need for constant technical and professional updating (continuous training)- Recognition of the internationalization experience as positive in the development of their personal and professional competencesStaff- Increased pedagogical competence on the part of the teaching staff- Increased work capacity by increasing their active involvement in school dynamism- Greater proximity to the EFTA mission, values and identity- Increased ability to work in teams (face-to-face and distance) and in interdisciplinary and intercultural environments- Adoption of habits of continuous evaluation and systematic review of procedures and training contents- Use of mobility and globalization as instruments to convey sensitivity to languages and interculturalityEFTA- Reaffirmation of EFTA values: quality, transparency, mobility, equal opportunities, diversity, citizenship- Greater capacity to respond to the needs of the county and region- Updating of pedagogical methods and techniques for improving training references- Improvement in the process of improved school and professional guidance- More competent and up-to-date teachers capable of motivating trainees- Reducing dropout rates- More efficient school management- Establishment of a wider network of contacts at European level- New international partnerships between EFTA and tourism and leisure organizations- Validation of ECVETs established for this program- Europeanization of EFTA, contributing to its promotion as a national and international referenceInternational Partners- Consolidation of the network at European and regional level- Improvement of vocational guidance skills and recognition and certification of skills,- Improvement of language skills at technical level in English- Knowledge of new working methods and techniquesAll project activities were carried out and fulfilled in full, with high quality and with visible results for the participants and organizations involved. Once again, the quality of programs developed by EFTA and which have already been the subject of a good practice award is again confirmed.All activities were duly certified through the Europass Mobility, EFTA host entity certificate and certificate.

<< Background >>EFTA - Escola de Formação em Turismo de Aveiro, is a private secondary education institution, founded in 2006. Its mission is to promote excellent academic and professional qualification, based on values of honesty, rigor, transparency and sustainability, and to contribute to the development of society focusing on tourism and leisure.For this project, the focus was on encouraging different skills of the participants:-In students and recent graduates: greater taste for learning; ease of integration and knowledge of the labor market; acquisition of professional, linguistic and transversal skills; horizons, self-confidence and a greater sense of European citizenship and participation.-On the staff: reinforcement of motivation; updating and improvement of pedagogical and language skills; greater ability to work in interdisciplinary and intercultural teams and environments.For EFTA, it was important to reaffirm its values and identity and to increase its capacity to respond to the needs of the municipality/region, based on the updating of pedagogical methods and techniques, the improvement of the school and professional guidance process and more open and efficient.<< Objectives >>The “EFTA - Around Europe” project aimed to:-Know new training references applied to the European context, with a view to facilitating mobility with ECVET certification and complementarity between schools with different areas of specialization-Promote the development of good practices, based on realities experienced at European level and innovative experiences implemented by schools-Promote local/national and European partnerships, deepening them with a view to the continuous training of students and integration into the labor market (employment centres, Eures network, companies)-Debate and reflect on pedagogical practices and approaches for the implementation of new theoretical and practical content (group work, empowering students to define their skills profile)-Develop strategies to link language learning to cultural learning and integration into society-Motivate students to learn new languages, inside and outside school, during and after their professional courses, and link it to other learning activities-To deepen project management skills, make the actions taken more complex and implement structural changes in terms of school management and training<< Implementation >>With this project, we intend to continue to promote mobility, already understood as part of the regular offer of the school by students who value mobility and aspire to be able to participate. The following activities and mobility were developed:- Implementation of 10 curricular internships (between 98 and 105 days) for: Italy, Spain, Austria and Slovenia- Implementation of 2 extracurricular internships (62 days) for Slovenia- Implementation of 1 advanced planning visit (2 days) to Slovenia- Implementation of 4 job-shadowing programs (3 days) for France and the NetherlandsThe advanced planned visit mobility took place in February 2020 and aimed to ensure a good preparation of student mobility, in terms of logistics and training.Regarding job-shadowing mobility, partner schools were found through the European Association of Hotel and Tourism Schools. In these mobilities the skills were explored: curriculum development and project implementation, import/adaptation of school organization strategies and the teaching-learning process organization system that allow new solutions to the needs identified in the school.<< Results >>The results of the EFTA Around Europe project were:Students and Recent graduates:Integration into the labor marketBetting on new horizons, with better perspectives and motivationGreater competence in intercultural contactPromotion of continuous trainingInternationalization as an enriching experiencePromotion of linguistic and cultural diversityGreater proximity to European and global realities and policiesSTAFFGreater pedagogical competence and work capacityGreater proximity to EFTA's mission, values and identityMore motivation to invest in terms of quality and excellenceAdoption of habits of continuous assessment and systematic review of procedures and training contentExploration of European and international tourism and leisure realities, practices and trends for the classroomUse of mobility and globalization as tools to raise awareness of languages and interculturalityEFTAReaffirmation of EFTA valuesMore competent and up-to-date teachers, capable of motivating studentsReduction of absenteeism levelsMore efficient school managementNew international partnerships between EFTA and tourism and leisure organizationsValidation of the ECVET established for this program

Accredited projects for mobility of learners and staff are implemented by organisations holding an Erasmus accreditation. Each accredited project represents a step in the implementation of the organisation's long-term Erasmus Plan.