A career without barriers

The Educational Research Institute is implementing the project “A career without barriers”, financed by a grant from the Ministry of National Education. The financed amount and total value of the project is PLN 24 880 000.00.

The full name of the project is “Improving the effectiveness of the education and formation of children and youth (including those with disabilities) in order to prepare for active participation in the labour market in cooperation with external entities”. Project activities include:

• preparing career counselling specialists to work with people with disabilities and on their behalf,
• stimulating the activity of schools and institutions in building positive patterns of care, learning and formation, preparing students, including those with disabilities, for functioning in the labour market.

The most important task of the project is to develop training materials and to conduct training on building positive attitudes in students relating to their further educational and professional development. Also planned is the development of a model of activities to support schools as well as research activities.

Various stakeholder groups will be involved in the tasks: trainers, career counsellors in schools and advice centres, teachers, school directors and directors of other educational institutions, students, methodological advisors, employers, occupational medicine doctors and students’ parents/guardians.

I.1. Project objectives

The main objective of the project is to support teachers, career counsellors and other specialists interacting with students who have different educational needs, including those with disabilities, to prepare them for their future transition to the labour market in both the following respects:

• building positive attitudes of students regarding professional activity,

as well as

• helping students to develop the specific skills needed in the labour market.

I.2. Project values

Well-being of the people involved - the value for us is to have each person involved feel that the implementation of the project respects and takes into account their resources and needs. We believe that well-being consists especially of trust, a sense of meaningful work, being listened to, respecting the dignity of each person. The solutions and actions taken in the project stem from listening to such needs. We also value the well-being of the team, which is to be the sum of individual expectations.

System-wide - we believe that a profound change in the school culture can only take place if the school community is involved in the widest possible way. These activities should include all activities of the institutions: teaching, extra-curricular activities, workshops, internships, meetings with parents, school councils, meetings with employers, etc. This approach also assumes that the school is a community of attentive adults focused on developing the skills of young people. It is a willingness to collaborate, to communicate, to learn from each other, to create safe bonds that enhance learning.

Persistence - only by working systematically on competences can a team or an individual achieve mastery in a particular area. The value for us is to develop solutions so that they make a lasting difference to the way we work in individual schools/institutions.

Uniqueness - each school and institution has its own work history, resources and areas for development. We want to invite schools to experiment based on their own individual work programme, respecting what has been achieved so far, and being open to change, but also open to a variety of experiences and solutions.

Courage and responsibility - we believe that school is a place where talents, interests and abilities are developed. In order for this to happen, extra effort must be spent on new experiences. We will encourage project participants to explore ways of working that they have not used yet, to look for solutions that are innovative for a particular teacher or institution with a sense of responsibility for the future of the pupils and students learning there.

Interaction - we strive to ensure that the project activities result in creating an environment that is conducive to supporting all students, including those with diverse needs, in the development of competences and skills relevant for the transition to the labour market. It is therefore important to build a network of cooperation beyond the school, and include the involvement of entrepreneurs, labour market institutions or other actors and institutions from the school environment in developing transition models. It is also important to initiate cooperation among schools from different regions in terms of sharing knowledge and good practices.

I.3. Target groups

1. Teachers, career counsellors, other education specialists
2. Students
3. Parents of students
4. Entire institutions: primary and secondary schools
5. The environment surrounding schools, including employers

I.4. Project activities

1. Develop training materials and training programmes
2. Develop a model of support activities for schools, identify operators to support schools and support them in implementing activities in accordance with the planned model
3. Conduct research activities.

I.5. The Competence Model

We have developed a model of students’ competences and skills needed in the labour market. All project activities are based on this model.

I.6. Training courses

See them here

I.7 Support for schools

The activities in schools will take into account the "model of competences and skills of students for transitions to the labour market" based on the recommendations of the Integrated Skills Strategy, as well as referring to key competences in the Council of Europe recommendations of 22 May 2018 and the rankings of transversal (transferable) competences for the labour market.

The activities will be systemic and cyclical. They assume the involvement of different groups: teachers, students, parents of students, professionals from the students' environment, employers. The activities will be undertaken in cooperation with psychological and pedagogical counselling centres, institutions or schools performing the tasks of Specialised Centres for Supporting Inclusive Education or vocational training centres, other training centres or Industry Skills Centres. The tools and computer equipment available under the following programmes will be used: Laboratories of the Future, School of Exercise, Accessible School, Education Towards Wisdom, School of the Innovator, Active Blackboard, Integrated Education Platform resources and other relevant ones.

The organisation of support includes such activities as: selection of support operators, selection of schools, diagnosis of the situation in schools, selection of adequate forms of support, on-going monitoring of school support activities, evaluation of activities.

I.8. Research activities

The implemented support measures for schools, including teacher training will be evaluated. In addition, we plan to research the attitudes of students towards being professionally active (including preparation for entering the labour market) and the psychosocial determinants of undertaking activities to enter the labour market.

I.9 Project results

1. 1000 training participants per year from 2023 to 2025
2. Training materials, guides, lesson scenarios, webinars, educational videos
3. Activities supporting specific schools in Poland, including those addressed to teachers, students, the parents of students, as well as the social environment of the schools
4. Developed conclusions from the entire cycle of support and recommendations on preferred and effective forms of support for schools
5. Research on the attitudes of students towards being professionally active (including preparations for entering the labour market) and the psychosocial determinants of undertaking activities to enter the labour market.