Project Concept

  • Strategic partnership project between organisations and institutions

  • School education sector

  • Duration: 36 months (01/11/2022 – 31/10/2025)

  • Funded by the Erasmus+ programme by the European Union

This project is addressing specific and urgent issues – to tackle the disadvantage of the job preparation skills and low proficiency in basic and social skills of marginalised youth such as representatives of minorities, Roma, refugees, but also students with learning difficulties and special educational needs, who are the most disadvantaged groups with regards to employment.

With this project we have developed, tested and exploited widerly a special educational serious game for them called “It’s time to work”, where we have prepared dedicated scenarios in accordance with a pre-employment structure, where these students were able to explore different stages of job preparation. While gaming, the students were able to validate and assess the level of their preparation for employment. Any identified gaps served as a evidence to teachers and pedagogical counsellors to further implement actions on preparation for employment for these vulnerable people.

The method of serious game gave an extension of their digital skills, but also a safe environment, where students were not judged, but the opposite – we gave them an opportunity for fun and engaging way to perform their knowledge toward how to maintain positive physical and verbal image, how to improve their verbal and non-verbal communication skills, how to be answer difficult questions during job interviews, which channels to use in terms of searching for a job etc.

Important part of the project training material were the developed illustrative info digital cards. They led to greater independence and financial security, allowing students to became active members of society.

In such way we supported teachers and counsellors with visualised attractive digital materials, which became regular method for ensuring the successful career preparation of the marginalised students with whom all partners are working on daily basis. All partners were motivated and believed that this approach is a successful method in order to improve the realisation of the students, with whom they are working, educating and supporting. This was confirmed during the implemented pilot implementation phase (see section Deliverables). Our project activities tackled inclusion and diversity in the mainstream schools, which staff further strengthened their capacity (as school and as personnel) to provide qualitative and targeted education in a easy-to-understand manner following the individual’s gaps in terms of job preparation skills and level of their educative background needed for this realisation.

This helped the participating schools in Spain, Bulgaria and Turkiye to attract more students from these target groups in the following years and to increase the number of the students who successfully passed the pre-employment career support programme. From other side the participating organisations improved with this project their intervention and guidance with parents and family members of marginalised students and this led to extension of their society image and reputation.