School Chalenge
Start date: Dec 31, 2014,
End date: Dec 31, 2015
PROJECT
FINISHED
EFTA - Escola de Formação Profissional em Turismo de Aveiro, Lda, was constituted in 2006 and since then has sought to establish a direct relationship with the region in which it operates and is by qualification that provides vocational students secondary and the contribution to the number of qualified technicians in the region that the EFTA fulfills its mission to promote the improvement of living conditions of the surrounding region and improvement of its services.
In 2014 and 2015 the EFTA promoted the School Challenge Project under the Erasmus + program, intending thereby contribute to meet the various needs identified in the school community, the municipality and region in which it operates.
Thus, the general objectives for this project was inserted in the development of some of the objectives of the EFTA educational project:
Develop students' taste for knowledge
Reduce the dropout rate and school failure
Improve performance and educational outcomes of students
Develop strategies that encourage improved management of the teaching process
Diversify training offer
Promote the improvement of skills of teachers and non-teaching staff
Provide the updating of skills of training, promote the sharing of experiences and compare educational practices
Improve the process of school and vocational guidance
Disseminate school and all its initiatives among companies in the region and society in general
Participants and destinations of this project were:
- 15 students of the 11th year of the courses of Tourism (6 students), Reception: Front-office (3 students), Kitchen / Confectionery (5 students) and Restaurant / Bar (1 student)
- Destinations: Spain, France, UK and Italy
- 5 former students of the courses of Tourism (2 ex-students) and kitchen / Confectionery (3 ex-students)
- Destinations: UK and Italy
- 6 staff: Chef restaurant / bar, Educational Advisor of Class and Trainer of Tourism Area, Chef EFTA kitchen, Educational Guidance
of Class and French teacher, Coordinator of courses and the Director of EFTA
- Destinations: France, Italy and Luxembourg
The activities planned for students and recent graduates, included a language course week before departure and an internship program (curricular / extra-curricular) during the week of mobility. Staff for the Job-shadowing mobility was for 1 week.
For all participants, preparation and information sessions were held, as well as follow-up evaluation after mobility.
The impacts identified in the participants and the community were:
STUDENTS AND EX-STUDENTS
- Further integration of trainees probabilities and former graduates in the labor market after the end of the course / mobility
- Enhanced language competence in the use of everyday life and in the professional field
- Reinforcement of personal skills: greater feeling of autonomy, responsibility and entrepreneurship
- Openness to other cultures and nationalities
- Increased competence in intercultural contact
- Increased taste for learning and for sharing their experience, transmission of the same like the other students / young people
TEACHERS
- Contact with other realities, renewing and recycling knowledge acquired over the years of work
- I like the professional field and recognizing the need for continuous training
- Recognition of the need for constant updating and technical professional
- Recognition of international experience as positive the development of their personal and professional skills
- Higher pedagogical competence of the faculty
EFTA COMMUNITY
- Increased ability to respond to the needs of the county and region, through continuous participation in mobility projects bringing to the EFTA which is best done abroad
- Update methods and teaching techniques
- More competent Teachers and updated, able to contribute to the motivation of learners
- Reduction of levels of school leavers, by motivating students to participate in new mobilities. It appears that every year the number of students interested in participating is higher
- More efficient school management
Through this project, participants had access to the Europass mobility, certificate of the host entity, EFTA certificate and in the case of students and ex-students, language course certificate