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Modelling informal learning and transversal compet..
Modelling informal learning and transversal competences in the voluntary service experience to increase employment and mobility of citizens
Start date: Sep 1, 2014,
End date: Dec 31, 2016
PROJECT
FINISHED
LEVER aims at “Modelling informal learning and transversal competences in the voluntary service experience to increase employment and mobility of citizens”, fostering volunteers’ competence/transversal skills certifications, according to common transnational schemes and reference frameworks. In fact, the voluntary service can be seen as a relevant learning set/experience for the world of work and can even facilitate worker (and students) mobility at local and transnational level.
Under this purpose, LEVER will survey a) the different informal learning models within the voluntary service world, already experimented and deployed in the LEVER partners’ countries. A special focus will be on the possible paths integrating work/voluntary work as alternative training; b) the main common typologies of voluntary activities beyond the specific work sectors (e.g., planning, coordinating, training and coaching, networking, etc.); c) the related possible skills and competences required (e.g. communication skills, budgeting, digital skills, project management, team building and team working, etc.) referring to the 8 key competences for lifelong learning in the European certification procedures; d) the most required transversal competences in the profit world, also referring to already existing frameworks on this topic at local and transnational level; e) best practices of key competences/transversal skills informal learning and the related recognition and certification approaches.
From the result of the survey, the LEVER e-book will be implemented to provide a guidance for non-formal learning/training programmes in the voluntary service and the related assessment of transversal competences. It will include:
- A Correspondent Table of the current assessment and certification procedures in the LEVER partners’ countries, such as in Italy, in The Netherlands and in the Denmark;
- A Reference Framework of the Transversal Skills identified;
- A Set of possible non-formal learning paths as guidance
- Criteria to assign credits and EQF levels
- A set of possible assessment methods and tools to be used to recognize and certify competences (based on learning outcomes and EQF levels)
- Recommendations for local and EU policy makers to embed the LEVER results in the labour policies.
In the testing phase, according to the LEVER guidelines, each partner will identify at least, twelve volunteers interested in certifying their competences/transversal skills developed or reinforced during their voluntary experience; one company whose employees are also involved in the voluntary service, interested in supporting the recognition of their transversal competences; the required
assessors for the competence evaluation and recognition, to be trained according to the LEVER model. On the whole, about 70 certification processes will be activated and at least the 50% certified by the reference local certification bodies which will share the common scheme. The LEVER web tool will be an interactive web device for users to allow them to get information on the certification process, make comparisons between local frameworks and schemes with the support of the correspondence table; upload the pieces of evidence provides during the certification process, building their e-portfolio and recording their certifications according to EUROPASS.
The main target groups will be:
- Volunteers engaged in voluntary service
- Voluntary service associations and their operators
- Employer associations
- Enterprises
- Training centers
- Certification bodies
- Labour Policy makers
- Young people, students and families
- Teachers
Two local workshops and two local focus groups with stakeholders will guarantee to meet the market's needs and the LEVER quality as well as to identify and reach volunteers interested in the certification process. A continuing monitoring of the interim results impacts within the target groups involved in the testing phase will also feed the final recommendations to policy makers.
Facebook and twitter web communities will be opened to foster conversations and sharing views; the Wikipedia.org platform will be used to publish interim and final results. A dissemination dashboard will help partners monitoring the level of the project diffusion whose the LEVER widget published on the web will be the smart indicator.
The general expected LEVER effect is a mutual recognition of the competence/transversal skills frameworks and certification schemes within the partnership and the local/EU policy makers, so to enhance mutual trust for mobility and be compliant with the new EU directives on non- regulated professions (e.g. 2013/55/UE); the stakeholders' increased awareness of the voluntary service relevance for the world of work in terms of learning; a consequent implementation of internal services offered to volunteers by the voluntary service to facilitate them undertake the certification process.