BackgroundThe Willy-Brandt-Schule is a vocational school. Main subject areas are health care, gardening and floristry. Many students with a migration background attend the Willy-Brandt-Schule. Since 2013 we maintain in the health care sector a cooperation with Taserudsgymnasiet in Arvika, Sweden. We plan to intensify this cooperation by sending in the coming years students and tea-chers for a learning experience to our partner school in Arvika. ObjectivesOne objective of the project is the consolidation of our cooperation with our partner school in Arvika. In the long term we are interested in developing more partnerships with European schools or training institutions.Through the exchange project teachers and students learn about the school and training system at our partner school.Students and teachers gain intercultural experience and improve their intercultural competence. This promotes their understanding for students with a migration background, no matter whether they are refugees, asylum seekers or people with migration background, who have already lived in Germany for some time.The project wants to strengthen the European consciousness and the active EU-citizenship of its participants through personal contacts and experience.The professional competence of students in their field of training will be improved by obtaining in-sight into the work practice in our partner country. Another aim is to improve the language skills of participants.The new impulses will promote the educational work and the school development at Willy-Brandt-Schule - especially with regard to the teaching of refugees and migrants.Number and profile of the participantsThe Willy-Brandt-Schule aims to send 4 teachers and 8 students to Sweden over the course of the next two years.The selected teachers will be the most interested colleagues, who appreciate both the work related and language challenges. Furthermore, they will be asked to share their experiences so that the entire school can benefit from the program.The selected students will be trainees in the health care sector. They have already gathered some experience with the German educational system and will therefore be able to compare the German and the Swedish health-care system on the basis of target oriented questions. This will not only be beneficiary for the vocational school lessons but will also be of great value for the apprenticing companies. ActivitiesThrough job shadowing teaching staff will learn about the Swedish vocational school and training system. The focus will be on job shadowing in health and refugee classes. Students will also learn about the Swedish vocational school and training system durin their two-week internship. The main focus will be on a work placement in a training organisation in Arvika.Moreover, extracurricular activities will allow German teachers and learners an insight into the Swedish culture.Results/ Impacts/ Long-term benefitsThe impacts and the long-term benefits of the mutual exchange will be manifold. Firstly, the teaching team will certainly benefit. The impulses gathered during the job shadowing will create an impact on our lesson planning and execution in terms of didactics, methods and learning material. An increased motivation tightens the cooperation between colleagues, students, parents as well as apprenticing companies and chambers. The expansion of one's own horizon concerning the inter-cultural competences defines the internationalization of the entire Willy-Brandt-School.The exchange is supposed to promote the internationalization of the Willy-Brandt-School. We are not only looking to expand our international connections but also to foster a cooperation, that reflects and improves our InteA concept. Further aspects of our school development are the improvement of our lesson quality as well as the public image.Foremost, with their participation the students will improve their intercultural competence and their language skills. Furthermore, they will develop a stronger european understanding and a wider level of tolerance, especially in regard to the current refugee situation, as well as an increased learning motivation and higher self-confidence. The trainees particularly boost their career opportunities over those with no experience abroad because they display their versatility and mobility.