Map of positive Experiences across Europe

<< Background >>The risk of social exclusion among migrants in Europe is high. Language skills play a fundamental role in the community integration process thus most EU countries include language courses in their regular integration programs. However, the benefits of the courses remain non reachable for a large group of migrants. E.g DE registered ca 50% drop outs in the BAMF Report '21. The Commission is aware about this problem & has urged in its Action Plan on Integration ('21-'27) to enhance the language learning opportunities & to include tailored programs that will cover different learning needs. Still, regular integration programs in Europe continue focusing on traditional receptive learning experiences & trainers are too overwhelmed to experiment with new methods. By recognizing that traditional language courses may not adequately address the diverse needs of all learners, the project sought to develop alternative learning paths that are both accessible& engaging for the most vulnerable learners. Further, it wanted to actively support& upskill trainers during& beyond the project's lifespan, by raising awareness of the importance of learners' emotional dimension & creating free supporting guiding pedagogic materials that consider them.<< Objectives >>The final aim of the project was to enhance integration education offers & to reduce the risk of social exclusion among migrants by creating new language learning opportunities & by supporting language trainers in their professional development. It had 3 main objectives1: to improve the competences of educators leading to overall improvements and effectiveness in provision of migrants’ adult education: 373 trainers were offered the chance to improve their competences as educators or to test the developed materials during the project life span. 2: to create upskilling pathways for adult migrants improving thus the accessibility of adult language provision to vulnerable groups with unfavorable preconditions to learn: 354 migrants improved their language skills in the innovative language courses that considered emotional aspects of learning empowering them to practice and enhance their language abilities while working on their positive experiences in Europe. 3: to promote social inclusion while migrants exchange personal experiences: 372 personal experiences have been shared in a digital map as a result of migrants experiences in the classes by using storytelling activities that focused on positive incidents across Europe.<< Implementation >>The Project activities can be divided in 3 main Groups: Firstly, the activities dealing with the management & coordination: It includes all necessary actions for the successful implementation of the project (working structures & control, visualization, communication..) The 2nd group deals with the activities related to the creation of The EU+Map Trainers' Multilingual Toolkit that developed teachers' methodological guides, created& implemented presential&digital upskilling programs and a trainers' toolbox with ready to use language courses for migrants focusing on positive experiences incl. teachers' guiding material. The 3rd. group focuses on the development of the The EU+ Map, a digital map that compiles positive experiences in European Host Countries described by migrants. The inputs of the map - small positive experiences of the participants of the courses in various formats- are the result of the learning experiences of migrant participants that would usually not attend regular classes. The project implemented more than 15 _20 hours informal language learning courses across 7 countries with a positive experiential pedagogic approach based on storytelling activities developed by the trainers that had been previously upskilled << Results >>In the Trainers' Multilingual Toolkit: *methodological guide incl. experts' recommendations (58 pages in 8 lang.) (aprox. 51 trainers&14 expers involved)Upskilling programs : *2 ToT English (DIGITAL SKILLS FOR TRAINERS: creating& uploading materials to moodle (4 sessions 26 trainers involved, 2 delivering) & PEDAGOGIC SKILLS how emotional aspects affect learning & implementation examples of positive experiential programs (in ES, 11 trainers attended presential + 3 online, 3 delivering)*7 digital ToT of the pedag. skills in national languages, aprox. 2 hours each incl. 5 parts & final badge, 51 trainers participating, 19 delivering *8 lang blended courses for migrants in national languages + Engl. 20 hours courses incl. implementation guide 21 trainers implementing and exchanging experiences, 354 migrants participatingIn the digital map:*372 migrants' inputs with positive experiences across Europe (Result of the implementation of the blended lang. courses by part of the upskilled trainers) (21 trainers uploading)Other:A Learning PlatformInternal and external reports (assessing, controlling, communication..)websitenewslettersSM channels16 open days (2 /country & ES 4) Total: 373 trainers & 530 migrants reached