Business and VET providers both recognise the importance of preparing young people for the world of work, ensuring they gain the necessary skills to face the real challenges. While it is crucial that VET providers and the curriculum they offer are geared to meeting the needs of modern day business and industry, it is also undeniable that today, there exists a lack of real world experiences and an inability to apply the theoretical skills and knowledge to real scenarios.
Our role as VET providers is to supply the students with a solid and relevant preparation for this ever-changing world, with skills that could prove useful in a workplace. We highlight the importance of connecting the supply of education with the demand of the work environment, where students become aware of the importance of the ‘soft skills’, which enable people to work together, be creative, sole problems and take initiative, among others, as well as developing their practical skills in the workplace.
At Politeknika Ikastegia Txorierri we consider a priority to develop innovative educational projects that enable the students to develop the aforementioned skills. The two Erasmus Plus projects called LifeOnLine and VET-GPS, in which Politeknika Txorierri collaborates, seek to offer VET Teachers and Trainers a set of new tools, learning materials and resources adaptable to any level of Vocational Training to enhance their curriculum offer.
LifeOnLine has developed a training resource; learning materials, tasks and activities including Assessment methodologies that reinforce the need for young people to be more entrepreneurial and thus make them more employable in today’s age. Prepared and tested in all partner languages, these training packages offer modular resources to support these skill developments.
VET- GPS is looking at the development of training packages in the wider aspect of ‘soft skills’. These are seen as both attributes/attitudes and characteristics associated with operating in today’s work environment – but not only in associated with work – but more generally in young people’s ability to contribute their communities and society as a whole.
With the projects in which Politeknika Txorierri is involved, we seek to adapt to the new challenges our students need to face on the workplace and on real scenarios.