Exyonet Network – The Euro Forum Eyes

European Center in Training for Employment – ECTE is an active member of the Exyonet network, a European network for the employability of young ex-offenders and young people at risk of exclusion. The network has launched the Euro Forum Eyes, commenced in the capital of Europe, Brussels, and in a room full with an international audience interested in young people, education, employment and inclusion, with leading voices opening the Conference such as Ms. Ana Nóbrega, coordinator of the Exyonet Network, who shared experiences and good practices on this subject and whose White Paper was presented during the Conference

Euro Forum Eyes, in Brussels, has been an outstanding forum for revealing and sharing ideas, thoughts and proposals about the great challenge of youth unemployment, and, in particular, for groups of young people at risk of exclusion and young offenders.

Leading experts and professionals such as Sir Ken Robinson, Mr. Pasi Sahlberg, Stanislav Ranguelov, Luis Fábrica, or Jane Murphy, among others, have discussed issues such as employment and exclusion, the importance of talent as compared a curriculum, or the influence of educational models on the labour market.

More than 400 attendees actively took part in the event, asking numerous questions which were answered by the speakers for the different discussion groups moderated by the journalist Christophe Robeet.

Social networks were very active during the presentations, with more than 7,500 users on the event’s website, more than 14,000 interactions on Twitter, over 1,200 tweets, and with the hashtag #euroforumeyes, becoming one of the trending topics for that day. More than 16,000 people from numerous countries around the world took part in the event through online streaming, with significant participation from Belgium, France, and Spain.

The outcomes of the EXYONET project (the European Network for employability of Young (ex) offenders), the first European network to address the employability of young offenders and social exclusion, part of the Youth in Action Programme of the European Union, which has drafted the White Paper on youth unemployment, including a full analysis and a set of recommendations and proposals for the employment of young people in Europe, was also presented at Euro Forum Eyes.

All forum presentations can be followed in EYES FORUM PLATFORM

Poland meets the Paleontological Museum of Rethymno

In the Paleontological Museum of Rethymno, the cultural-natural history of Crete met to the cultural history of Poland. Young students, of the High School of Electronics in Rzeszow, in Poland, accompanied by Mrs. Katerina Diamandis, Mr. Charis Pantelidakis and Rodamanthos Androulakis, tutors in international department of the European Training Centre for Employment (ECTE), had the opportunity to tour the museum by Museum Director Mr Vasilis Simitzis, to experience the Paleontological history of Crete and in their turn to present the history, the culture and economic data of their country.

The presentations of students included a wide range of information regarded the history and culture of Poland. They began with a historical review extended from the Middle Ages until today and continued with the Polish education system, presentation of significant Polish portraits such as scientists, writers, politicians, the main economic activities and finalised with a presentation of the Rzeszow’s region culture and traditions.

The meeting provided an opportunity for all participants to come into contact with different cultures and learn about the Cretan and Rzeszow history and culture, proving that different cultures can not only coexist but also to interact and improve.

The international department of the European Centre in Training for Employment (ECTE), hosts a large number of young people from many EU countries that are getting training in ECTE in a different working environment. Moreover, they have the chance to acquire social and transversal skills working in a different cultural environment.

Why Youth & Community Development through Rites of Passage Now?

There are two significant and related challenges defining human progress. One is the need to adapt to a constantly transforming world. The other is the need to communicate and incorporate those adaptations into functioning and diverse communities. Indeed, the integration of adaptive strategies into viable social institutions has charted the course of human history.

Today, cultural changes, coupled with scientific and technological advances, are occurring with such rapidity that we find ourselves in a continually emerging “new world” – one that requires constant awareness and adaptation. Having to continually develop strategies to reconcile the conflict between what we know and what is constantly changing presents us with a set of ongoing challenges. The 21st century is clearly emerging as a crucial time. Recognizing the major transformations associated with the unanticipated consequences of technology and climate change is essential for adaptation, strengthening community, and ultimately, our survival.

One of the oldest and most successful survival strategies is our capacity to imagine and tell stories. We have a unique ability to remember the past, recognize the present and anticipate the future. With memory and a process for integration, we have evolved numerous formats for telling our history, narrating the present and imagining our future. We are a story-making species that collectively refers to our storytelling as the arts. Whether it is literature, poetry, music, performance, ritual, or visual images, our arts express who we are and give meaning to our lives.

We are a story telling species! Ellen Dissanayake in her book, What Is Art For?, suggests that art is our unique adaptation strategy whose purpose is to build and strengthen community, which is essential for survival. Elders guiding youth into adulthood is one of our most important and enduring stories. Over a hundred years ago this story was named rites of passage. Rites of passage is the story – the art – of how we transmit essential information to our children. All cultures have given form to this unique process for transmitting survival strategies that strengthen a community’s ability to nurture, grow and support life-affirming individuals.

The time-tested principles of this defining village survival story – rites of passage – has been shared in a framework for youth and community development through rites of passage known as ROPE®, the Rite of Passage Experience©, www.rope.org. Since its first introduction into communities in the early 1980s, over 100,000 youth and their families have participated in remembering and adapting this school-community collaborative story. Evidence of ROPE®’s achievements are well documented. They underscore evolutionary biology’s belief that a species will not maintain any behavior for very long if that behavior does not serve its survival. For thousands of years across many cultures, rites of passage have been instrumental in building a community’s capacity to guide youth through the challenging passage to adulthood while strengthening the bonds of community.

By: William Lavine, DMD, MsD & Hyacinth Douglas-Bailey, JD With David Blumenkrantz, PhD, EdM
© 2013 The Center for the Advancement of Youth, Family & Community Services. Inc.

GoJobGo – International Profiles

Nowadays, 7,5 millions of European young people between 15 and 24 aren’t currently engaged in Employment, Education or Training (NEETs). The possibility of a ‘lost generation’ urges EU institutions and governments, businesses and social partners at all levels to address the youth unemployment challenge. GOJOBGO comes to contribute to youth employment, namely of the youngsters that have been involved in mobility schemes and face difficulties both in finding a job and in exploiting the added value of mobility experiences on their professional profiles.

GOJOBGO project is developed by a European Partnership composed of 9 members from 7 European countries, and is co financed by Erasmus+ Programme, Action KA2, under the code 2014-1-ES01-KA202-004998. GOJOBGO will last until 30/06/2016.

GOJOBGO aims to:

  • Reinforce the links between skilled job seekers with mobility experiences and employers and labour market.
  • Support the employability of job seekers with and International background.
  • Contribute to the visibility of European reference tools for the recognition, validation and transparency of competences and qualifications.
  • Develop best practices in the support for employability in the post-mobility period of Erasmus+ Programmes for Professional Training and Superior Education.

To achieve such aims, GOJOBGO has four objectives:

  • Promoting the use of Information and communications technology (ICT) and Open Educational Resources (OER) for employability purposes.
  • Promoting structured inter-regional cooperation: enhancing the commitment of local and regional pubic authorities in the qualitative development of the education, training and youth fields.
  • Increasing participation in learning and employability by providing a rich variety of European and national support tools and resources.
  • Facilitating the transition of learners through different levels and types of formal/non-formal education and training through the use of European reference tools for the recognition, validation and transparency of competencies and qualifications.

With this purpose, two fundamental GOJOBGO tools will be developed:

  • GOJOBGO PORTAL – Where job seekers can insert their CVs and highlight skills and competences acquired in the frame of transnational mobility and where potential employers can easily seek future employees with specific skills and international experiences in their background
  • IMPROVE MY PROFILE – Integrated in the Portal, there will be a set of tools, tips and instruments used worldwide level to improve profiles. Job seekers can/should go over all the steps in order to make sure their job search rends visible all the skills acquired in Mobility. The main issues approached will be CV, job search, applications and national/European labour market.
  • PILOT TEST TO GOJOBGO – in order for job seekers and employers to test, get familiar and give feedback with both Portal and
  • “IMPROVE MY PROFILE” toolkit and be totally able to exploit its benefits.

The expected results to be reached are:

  • Greater support to mobility participants after their international experience.
  • Increased employability of young skilled people after an international experience.
  • Enhanced use of European certification tools in order to foster the employability.
  • Wider recognition of competences connected, in accordance with the ECVET system, both on professional level, as well as on personal and social level, both for professional and for citizen participation.
  • Active involvement of public bodies in charge of Education, Training and Employment in the support of target groups in their transition to the labour market
  • Adhesion to the Resources and Portal by job seekers and employers from Europe.
  • Capitalization of the value of the international mobility experiences as a tool for learning and personal and professional development.
  • Improved tutoring and mentoring practices and tools of the mobility experiences, considering them learning processes that have to be linked with participants learning paths and personal and professional objectives.
  • Greater involvement of employers in mobility issues, allowing them to benefit from European mobility programmes by an active recruitment of young skilled people.

PATiE Project – Psychodrama Training modules in adult Education

The implementation of 32 pilot courses in workshops’ form, with the participation of 45 adult trainers in the four partners’ countries in Rethymnon (ECTE), Florence (Centro Machiavelli), the Watowice (EST) and Arrasate (ALECOP), gave enough material for evaluating, feedback and finalization of the produced educational material of the PaTie project

Coordinator of the training courses activities in all partners’ countries, as well as responsible for the development of two training packages, is the European Centre in Training for Employment – ECTE, while coordinating partner of the program is the part Lifelong Learning department of Regional Unity Rethymnon. In Rethymno, pilot training programs were attended by 12 adult educators, coordinated by a certified psychodramatist, Ms SofiaDimou.

The project «PaTiE», which is near completion, is aimed at introducing methods of psychodrama in the processes of learning, upgrading the skills of adult educators by developing educational material. Specifically, the produced educational material includes “teaching material User Guide” for adult educators and teaching eight teacher training modules.

  • Module1 Experiential psychodrama
  • Module2 Power of group
  • Module3 Sociometry
  • Module4 Warm up
  • Module5 Power of playing
  • Module6 Working with symbols
  • Module7 Conflict management
  • Module8 Sharing

The program is co-financed by the European Commission.