Europejskie rozwiązania w zapewnieniu efektywnej współpracy edukacji i biznesu sektora automotive

<< Background >>The project was a response to problems reported by VET schools in partner countries in establishing cooperation with employers, especially in the automotive sector. A closer diagnosis of the problem revealed the need for improvement in this area both in schools and employers. It turned out that both of them lacked knowledge and competences on how to effectively and long-term organize mutual cooperation, how to create conditions for the flow of knowledge about mutual needs, possibilities and expectations, and how to communicate effectively with each other. Schools lack knowledge of how business works, and employers lack knowledge about vocational education systems, possible expected competences of students, etc. All these elements mean that the automotive industry has great difficulties in recruiting young staff trained in accordance with modern standards. In turn, schools, deprived of constant contact with business, often organize vocational education without any connection with the labor market and its needs in terms of the desired skills and competences acquired by young people. In order for employers to be satisfied with the quality of education at VET schools, there must be lasting cooperation between education and bussiness.<< Objectives >>The project aimed to achieve several goals. The main goal was to improve communication between VET schools educating professions in the automotive sector and companies from this sector. The second goal was to increase the knowledge of management staff of VET schools and employees of companies in this sector regarding effective mechanisms for establishing and maintaining lasting cooperation between schools and business, aimed at adapting education to the needs of the labor market. Thirdly, it was important to contribute to innovation in the field of vocational education and training by changing the approach to the mechanisms of building school-business cooperation and, as a result, changing practical education so that it better meets the needs of this industry. This change was to include the approach of both VET school managers and teachers, as well as employers, and include such elements as: changing the way of establishing contacts, defining needs, creating permanent communication channels, planning activities and monitoring effects. An integral priority was also to adapt vocational education to the needs of the labor market. These objectives are fully consistent with the national education systems in all partner countries.<< Implementation >>All planned activities were implemented in the project. They can be divided into several groups. The most important activities, from the point of view of the project goals, were meetings with participants. A total of 6 meetings were organized in the form of workshops, attended by representatives of VET schools and employers from the automotive industry from partner countries. The next group of activities are tasks related to the development of project results. These were activities involving both substantive preparation of content, as well as formal, graphic, editorial, etc. A lot of activities were related to the dissemination and sharing of the project results. The most important of them was organizing a 2-day final conference, during which the project and its effects were discussed and summarized. In addition, the partners promoted the project by participating in other conferences and events related to vocational education, the labor market and cooperation with business, as well as by publishing information about the project in various media and publishing houses. Finally, the last group of activities are tasks related to project management, organization of project meetings, preparation of materials and current arrangements.<< Results >>Two products were created as part of the project. The first of them is the Online Catalog of Good Practices. The second one is outlines of workshop programs for employers, management staff and teachers of VET schools on effective cooperation between education and business. The Online Catalog of Good Practices is a collection of innovative methods for establishing and maintaining lasting cooperation between VET schools and automotive employers in partner countries, which were collected during case study workshops and survey research. In turn, workshop programs were prepared by employers for school representatives - management staff and teachers, who in turn prepared them for employers. The idea was for these programs to take into account the necessary knowledge about the processes and functioning of school and business in the context of building mutual effective cooperation. Other noticeable results of the project include, above all, the establishment of international cooperation between the project participants. The exchange of experiences regarding existing solutions for practical vocational training in partner countries and the possibilities of their implementation in their own countries turned out to be particularly inspiring.