PRODIGE

Nowadays the job market presents several challenges due to the changing demand of a more globalised and intercultural world and the rising mobility of the workforce. Internationalisation of training systems has been regarded as the crucial response to provide young people with key competences, focused on citizenship and interculturality. The European Commission has urged Member States to act in modernising and improving their education and training systems increasing the percentage of learners participating in learning mobility. The financial constraint of EU programmes and schools budget unfortunately allow only a handful of students to participate in a mobility experience every year. There is a need to find new ways of bringing Europe to local learners by introducing more Internationalisation at Home.Furthermore since March 2020 the internationalisation process that VET centers were experimenting in the last decade was strongly affected by the COVID 19 pandemic. VET students' physical mobility is strongly weakened due to the lack of common policy and the widespread restrictions to transnational travels all across the European Union (OECD,2020) . VET providers are in need of new competences and tools to implement virtual mobility, blended mobility and fostering Internationalisation at Home processes.Given this context, the general objective of the project is to strengthen the European dimension of VET centers nowadays strongly affected by the circumstances created by the COVID 19 pandemic by innovating their internationalisation strategies thanks to the use of digital tools and to the development of teachers’ digital competences. The specific objectives are:1 To innovate the internationalization of learning and to make digital some of the activities linked to VET learners physical mobility and to its preparation, monitoring and follow up2 To build capacity to implement tailor made, safer and higher quality international learners' mobility experiences enhancing cooperation between VET schools and families3 To increase teachers competences to develop Internationalization at Home activities and to deal with virtual and blended mobility The project foresees the development of three intellectual outputs related to the specific objectives of the project.IO1: Online Toolkit for teachers aimed to support them in organizing learners’ mobility with a strong digital component, by virtualizing part of the experience. It will be composed of infographics, video tutorials, examples and practices adaptable to each VET center. IO2: E - platform for a tailor made mobility in hosting families. The platform will allow local families to register and signal their availability for hosting learners. It includes the development of video guidelines/tutorials addressed to families for their collaboration with VET schools in setting up transnational mobility activities. IO3: E-learning course for teachers on the Internationalisation at Home. It will be composed of training modules on how to set up learning activities for local learners and teachers with a transnational component, some examples are: use of e-twinning and further online tools, host European students and organise classes/activities for them while they are at school, hosting training courses for European teachers etc. A special focus will be keeped on building capacities to implement blended mobility. The outputs will be tested on 12 learners participating in pilot blended mobility plus others involved through KA1 projects. The project will directly address VET teachers; headmasters; parents; learners; educators; Mobility providers’ staff and will indirectly involve local and regional authorities dealing with VET.In terms of long term impact, all the activities aim to create a sustainable and durable community of well trained VET centers and hosting families, fully equipped and prepared to ensure enriched mobility experiences for their students and to innovate their internationalisation strategies thanks to the use of new digital tools and competences. Nevertheless, raising awareness of how to integrate school’s programmes with transnational activities and provide the dedicated tools will allow improved key competences and professional competences developed by both European teachers and learners.