Work Based Learning has been highlighted as a very significant process in various research projects and reports from VET providers, trainers & students, HEIs, schools, and training and postsecondary education centers. Through Work Based Learning, graduate students achieve a practical and real understanding of their profession, they are being integrated in the work market, they actively participate in the production process, and most importantly they are developing their professional skills, while the companies that offer it can, integrate new elements in their teams. It is therefore, a very important bridge between education and professional life.
The project Deep in Work Based Learning responded to some of the current challenges faced in the context of Work-Based Learning, such as the political control and the involvement of social partners, the support for training companies, the process of making dual forms of training more attractive, some quality assurance issues and the improvement of the number of women taking part in dual forms of training.
The project completed its last deliverable, Guide on New Cooperation Paths: Identification of Innovative Paths of Cooperation between Professionals Involved in Work Based Learning. This report is the result of an online survey in which every partner disseminated a questionnaire to the project’s target groups. The online survey was sent to vocational schools, training centers and companies that welcome young people to carry out apprenticeships in the workplace. Its goal was to identify existing cooperation practices, possible cooperation structures, existing difficulties or threats, offering to the participants the opportunity to suggest future cooperation paths.
The report includes a wealth of information regarding vocational training and WBL practices from Austria, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Turkey, showcasing how necessary is an effective Work Based Learning strategy both for companies and students. In order this to be achieved, some of the actions that the report point out are the following:
-Both areas (VET schools and companies) are interested in cooperation, although both sides experience some issues in cooperation.
-The learning period in the workplace needs to be extended in order to create greater integration / productivity, as short internships are not accepted by most of the companies
– Clear and objective communication needs to be established from the first minute;
– Good practices and a unified process for monitoring, managing and evaluating the work-based learning program, applying key performance indicators and other criteria needs to be developed.
You can access the full report via the project’s website.
