"The project ""competence through European Mobility"" organized by Georg-Kerschensteiner-Berufskolleg in Troisdorf, Germany, targets prospective car mechanics in their third and last year of training and aims at improving above all personal, intercultural and foreign language skills thus enhancing their future chances on the labour market.Our project partner is a huge Danish vocational college situated in Viborg, Denmark, offering a wide range of training courses in the technical field and therefore an ideal partner for our project.The mobility involved the participation of eight German trainees in a two-week mobility with our partner organization in Viborg, Denmark. The trainees took part not only in lectures and classes but also in practical training units in the school-based workshops. Apart from learning and working together, the German trainees also participated in cultural and freetime activities.By participating in the above mobility the trainees had the opportunity to acquire skills and knowledge that are relevant for coping with work situations throughout Europe. Apart from improving their foreign language and intercultural skills the project above all served to expand and develop personal competencies among the participants and thus will increase heir chances of obtaining a qualified job as a motor mechanic later on. A training agreement set up for each participant before the journey granted controllability of the learning goals and gave the trainees the necessary orientation. After returning to Germany each participant was awarded the Europass Mobility which will be an asset for future applications.The success of the mobility was ensured by an experienced teacher accompanying the participants throughout their stay in the host country and allowed him to monitor the learning progress and intervene in case of difficulties. The above mobility opens up new perspectives enabling the participants to gain crucial experience, personally as well as regards their language skills. On return to Germany, the majority of the particpants confirmed an enhanced motivation for work and reduced inhibitions to communicate in a foreign language (English). Furthermore, about half of them can now imagine working in another European country. To sum up, by the above project we were able to raise the awareness for the benefits of European mobility not only with the trainees of our college but also with the local enterprises of the Rhein-Sieg-Region thus paving the way for further learning mobilities in the future.Both with regard to youth unemployment as well as lack of qualified workers the programme Erasmus+ provides new perspectives in terms of work and can further contribute to think and act as Europeans."

The Project ProFAdeM (professionalisation of future practitioners through European Mobility) targeted trainees in the field of auto mechanics as well as future early years teachers in their second or third year of training who were about to graduate. All of them had gained first professional experience in their respective fields of work and were thus able to better assess newly acquired knowledge and skills and compare them with existing ones. The respective mobilities, split into several flows over two years, were an integral part of the respective training courses enabling the participants to absolve certain training units abroad. Here we mostly relied on existing cooperations with receiving organisations in Denmark (auto mechanics) and Ireland (early years teachers). The 12 participants of this project integrated in existing work procedures using their previously acquired knowledge and skills, they got to know new and different approaches to work and above all gathered experience working in international teams using their foreign language skills (English). The two-week mobility for automechanics included getting to know the partner school with its premises. Task-based learning together with Danish trainees in the school-based workshops as well as training placements in selected local garages allowed the participants to actively compare the host country´s training system and way of work to the education in their home country. The whole mobility was monitored by an experienced teacher who also evaluated progress made during the project.The mobitities targetting future nursery school teachers consisted of four-week placements in different day nurseries and Montessori preschools in Dublin, Ireland. Here the participant was given the opportunity to actively participate in the daily routines of the childcare setting, to implement pedagogical processes, to explore observation and documentation procedures and to carry out a little project under the supervision of an experienced practitioner. In all cases we could observe an increased motivation concerning the future job as well as increased personal, social, intercultural and language skills facilitating the professionalisation process and thus opening up career prospects within multicultural Germany or other European countries. Our long-term objective to increase acceptance of European mobilty as a means of professionalisation on the part of the training companies as well as the trainees has clearly been enhanced by the above project. Reactions on the part of the participants indicate an increased awareness of European mobility as a means of professionalisation making it an option for a greater number of trainees and apprentices.

Walther-Lehmkuhl-School and its ERASMUS+ project partners aim at consolidating their positive experiences and institutionalizing the established process procedures. This naturally implies that divers partners from all participating project countries coordinate and supervise the main strategy and the different process phases continuously. Additionally, the partner schools and companies visit each other regularly and organise strategy meetings with all partners in one of the participating countries annually or twice a year. The team work of the different partners, the evaluation and, if necessary, the adaptation of process development to unforeseen situations also contribute to project professionalization.The medium-term aim of the WLS is to become a certified European School. The working title for this project is „OTTER+“. Together with our partners we aim at exchanging working process knowledge concerning the skilled workers and to inform all participants about European technical trends.30 trainees in their second or third apprenticeship year are involved in the project OTTER+. The practical training sequences in Danish, Polish and German companies last three weeks. The trainees are faced with different practical training methods based on the different apprenticeship and special field systems. Essentially, the project aims at integrating the trainees into the working process by giving them the opportunity to carry out specific tasks. WLS and the dual training partners send and receive apprentices of the following professions: mechatronics technician, industrial mechanic, electronic technician for company engineering, electronic technician for machining and transmission systems engineering, layer for tile, slab and mosaic, bricklayer, carpenter, painter.Our school partnership, its matching process of professional requirements, our mutual profile paper and the regular reciprocal visits of the participating schools and companies concentrate on knowledge concerning the working process of the skilled workers and on country-specific and regional-specific manufactoring technology.The three weeks‘ stay in another European country enables the apprentices to practice a constructive handling of cultural diversity establishing a new professional and interpersonal value system. This intercultural skill will increasingly become one of the key qualifications in the personal development of young people globally. This process can be enhanced by practical individual experience and reflection. Soft-skills such as self-reliance, self-confidence, personal and social responsibility are also very important.For this purpose we prepare our participants by answering specific questions. For instance we wrote our detailed information brochure, which we published in 2015. The participating trainees and companies can inform themselves about the project in general and about concrete financial and organisational aspects such as costs, travel insurance, arrival and departure, accommodation and meals, free time activities, distances and means of transport to the participating companies and schools etc. Subsequently, an intercultural training of the German, Danish and Polish apprentices takes place. Our intercultural exchange programm enables the young people to practice openness and tolerance towards people with different cultural backgrounds. The programme reduces problematical aspects such as fear of contact, reservation or prejudice on the one hand and on the other hand encourages the development of connecting elements based on historical and cultural similarities. The intercultural competence won during the exchange programme enriches the trainee on the professional as well as on the social level. The different activities of our WLS intercultural one-weekend-workshop that we created in 2015 are also getting implemented by our project partners. Regarding public relations and press activities we informed the departments and colleagues at our school as well as the local (Neumünster), regional (Schleswig-Holstein) and foreign (Danish, Polish) press about the programme and can report satisfactory media coverage. We also presented the project by using diffent means of publicity: congresses, guild conferences, presentations in large industrial concerns, information brochure, IB.SH etc. Our public relations activities are interconnected with our acquisition of trainees and companies. An early promotion (posting our new information brochure with a reply form for the companies, information posters in schools and companies etc.) has facilitated the acquisition. Our professional and informative presentation of the European exchange programme has been enriched by our transparent strategy and documentation.

With this project, WLS would like to continue institutionalizing the established and future co-operations with its partners. Therefore a continuous work on all processes and parts of it is provided in the teams of the participating countries.This evaluation and institutionalization as well as the well working teams contribute to the professionalization of our project.In the long term WLS aspires to become the title “Europaschule“.In regard to the name OTTER+, we support an exchange of working process knowledge at the level of skilled work. In this way we make technology trends in Europe accessible to all participants.WLS sent 29 apprentices to Denmark and Poland to take part in the OTTER+ project. The stay at our partners lasts three weeks. Because of the different key aspects of training and education of the apprentices in the partner countries, the working contents and contexts are different concerning following jobs:•Elektroniker/Elektronikerin für Betriebstechnik•Elektroniker/Elektronikerin für Maschinen und Antriebstechnik•Mechatroniker/Mechatronikerin•Industriemechaniker/Industriemechanikerin•Zerspanungsmechaniker/Zerspanungsmechanikerin•Tischler/Tischlerin•Maurer/Maurerin•Fliesenleger/FliesenlegerinThe organizational and working processes of the local receiving companies show big differences in regard to German companies. The main goal is that the apprentices will be assimilated in the working process and that they have to take part in realizing typical work assignments.Successful working and therefore an successful economy is based on sufficient knowledge of qualified employees.This knowledge is not static and so a qualified concept for the training of employees has to think of the demands and the ongoing changes in the specific fields of work. On top to the the mentioned professional theory based knowledge, skills like self-confidence, self-assurance, self-efficacy, autonomy, teamwork, social responsibility and intercultural skill are demanded.Our experiences with our school partnerships have revealed that especially intercultural skills can only be reinforced by practical individual action, experience and reflection.The prearrangements for the participants start early. Intercultural aspects as well as practical demands like arrival and departure, accommodation, meals, local program for leisure, travel insurance, etc. are main topics during our intercultural meetings.By steady and effective communication all project partners are always informed about every step. Helpful is also our process compendium. Based on the common processes a coordinated and reliable organization for all partners is secured at any time. Regular visits of the partner schools are also on the agenda.By being part of the WLS Erasmus+-program OTTER+ young people can learn openness and tolerance against people with other cultural background. Prejudices and fears decrease, common aspects in history and culture become a connective element. This modified attitude affects not only the working process but also social skills in an enduring way.Working three week in European foreign countries is a chance for the apprentices to practice the constructive contact with cultural diversity and different attitudes in the fields of vocational training and cooperation. Intercultural skills become one of the most important key qualifications. Thus, the exchange with transnational enterprises is an important part for greater mobility in the work market.WLS has reported in the press about results like friendships during the intercultural exchange and has informed about the importance of the “Europass”. Our partner did the same. They also reported about the joint project in the local press.The project increases the awareness of the Erasmus+-program in the region.Several information sessions were conducted at the WLS for more transparency. Companies were invited to inform about the exchange program with our partner schools. By this we stay in contact with our regional partners and facilitate the work of Erasmus+ team of the WLS. Feedback from the companies’ representatives as well as the remarks by the participants from WLS and from our European partners are added to the process structure.Our partner schools are regularly provided with the updated structure. The results influence the next exchange, the living common processes and especially the future of our European project.

"Our project is called ,,Strengthening Vocational Education in VA with European cooperation” and it´s objectives are to take VA´s first steps in European cooperation within the Erasmus + program. Our vision is that European cooperation will become a part of studying and working in VA, that students and staff have the opportunity to participate in international cooperation, whether in the case of going abroad or receiving foreign visitors. For the next two years we plan to work in that direction by taking the steps that are decribed in the project. The project has two angles. On the one hand it relates to professional development of teachers with ""job shadowing ""visits to European partners that offer similar trades in education as we do in VA. The other angle has to do with students and is about giving them the opportunity for mobility by doing traineeships in vocational institutes abroad, in the school Mercantec in Jutland in Denmark. That part of the project gives mobility options to five participants; four students and one accompanying teacher. Professional development of teachers will be carried out with three VET school partners in Europe, Mercantec in Denmark, Berufsbildende Schulen 1 Goslar - Am Stadtgarten in Germany and Intergrado Centro de Formación Profesional Pico Frente in Spain. We also intend to develop further cooperation with these trips and then with future mobility for student in mind.Three teachers will go to Denmark, four teachers to Germany and three will visit Spain. The partnership we intend to build in this project will though not be ""one-sided"" since we will also be hosting visitors from the schools we´re building partnership with, both students who´ll be doing traineeships in our school as well as teachers who´ll be doing job-shadowing visits in our school."