Budapest, January 2015
The European Centre of Youth in Budapest was selected as a meeting place for the second discussion due to the favourable experiences of the first meeting.
Planning a joint foundation study was the first significant subject of the three day period between 19 and 21 January. After viewing the position papers and analysing the comparative statistical data and diagrams, similar and dissimilar features became obvious among the partner countries. The partners have considered which factors might contribute the most to the success of the training programme. In the light of this relationship they have decided on which factors to take into consideration and which ones to reject. They have come to an agreement by commissioning the Hungarian partner to make the first version of the comparative study and the other partners will evaluate and supplement the Hungarian version.
Based on propositions shared by e-mail and on the professional literature, Edunet Foundation prepared a version for debate – containing diagrams and definitions – to identify the skills and competences that should be developed within the framework of the project. The next task of the meeting was to develop joint thinking and a framework of interpretation. Work was done in small groups and in a several-stage process and this resulted in ten bigger fields of skills that would be taken as a platform when developing materials. The fields in order of importance are as follows:
- willingness to learn
- interpersonal skills
- strong initiative
- problem solving
- take responsibility
- planning and organizing
- decision making
- adaptability and flexibility
- willingness to take risk
- business thinking and awareness
The Polish partners have undertaken the task of systematizing the definition of skills and building on the ideas presented in the meeting. Other partners promised to specify them on the online work surface Qualiboxx, in the following two weeks, if necessary.
Finalizing the features of the learners' target group makes up the third significant task of this work phase. The group wanted to define the common features in order to utilize the program widely in Europe on the one hand, and to identify the unique features to help the programme fit the situation in their own country on the other hand. Common features based on the position paper might be as follows:
- aged between 16-22 years
- more males than females
- low level skills in literacy and numeracy
- limited possibilities in the labour market
- little support from family and their local environment
The test groups in each country are liable to have the following specific features, as well as the more general ones mentioned above:
Germany
Young people (girls and boys), aged between 15-22, living in Munich and having joined ETC earlier supported by the local labour agency. They are characterized by a low level of self-esteem. They do not have any idea what to engage in, which way to go. Inviting them into the project will require permission from some of the parents.
Scotland
Young people born in the winter months, aged 15+ and coming from local schools in Stirling. They do not plan to continue their studies after having reached the age limit of compulsory education. They are called Christmas school leavers and make up a particular group in Scotland. Most of them are boys and Train’d Up regularly offers young people training courses which focus on the labour market.
Poland
Secondary school students in Cracow aged between 17-18. They are rather passive in planning their own future. They know little about the labour market and have no idea about how to shape their careers. They have the opportunity to enter tertiary education as a consequence of Polish educational policy. Experience however shows that after a three year period of tertiary education, they are as much at risk of unemployment as young people are with lower educational levels living in other countries.
Hungary
Since Edunet Foundation does not deal with the regular training of young people; the testing process will be carried out with partners. One of the test groups is made up of young disadvantaged people, aged 17-21, living in the city of Pécs. Most of them are young men with poor communication skills. They have difficulties with keeping to the social norms of behaviour and they have low levels of motivation to manage their own lives. The members of the other test group reside in juvenile prisons and are between 15-19 years with extremely varied capabilities. The project's training will fit into other development programmes.
The other task of the meeting aimed at considering what common blocks should be used to build the training programme. A full group discussion resulted in the decision that the biggest parts of the programme should be named 'units', while the smaller parts 'activities'. One unit contains a 3-5 hour period and 5-6 activities at the minimum. The activities primarily focus on developing a particular competence and an additional competence-field should also be identified and supported by practice. The group has also agreed on measuring capabilities and activities which support their development in a common conceptual system.
In order to support any would-be users of the programme to inquire about future materials, the group has agreed a common template to develop the training programme. All the activities should contain the functional components, as follows:
- name of activity
- a code number – to facilitate identification
- competencies developed: primary, secondary
- short, concise description of activity
- aim of activity
- objectives – behaviourally described
- methods used
- time-needed/approximation
- list of materials: scissors, paper, glue, work-sheets etc.
- description of setting: chair, tables, PCs etc.
- rationale for teachers/trainers
- detailed description of the activity – steps, rules
- handouts and illustrations for students
- self-reflection on the activity
- take-away-activity: optional activities that can be practiced/performed between group meetings
During the last period of the meeting the group fixed the time-frame to be covered by the training material, as follows: 12 x 2 half-days, made up of 24 half-days of 3-4 hours, which would equate to around 72-96 hours of activities. The detail of the programme will however be supplemented by additional units which make options possible.
