Accessibility and Design for All are the base for the independent living and full participation of persons with disabilities in society and its all domains such as education, work, politics, administration, culture, leisure/sports, entertainment. To achieve that - Accessibility and Design for All must become an integral part of mainstream curricula of Higher Education (HE) to educate professionals at all levels and in all areas like IT, Design and Arts, Architecture, Civil Engineering, Audiovisual, Teacher Education, Care and Social Sciences, Politics, Administration, Business, Economics and Management. Those professionals must be aware of and have knowledge of guidelines, standards, techniques and tools in Accessibility and Design for All and can design, implement, procure, set-up, integrate, use and maintain accessible services and accessible products in order to benefit individuals with disabilities, their communities and society as a whole. The ATHENA project we will develop a set of recommendations on how to integrate Accessibility and Design for All into the Higher Education curricula. This will be a huge step forward in promoting equal opportunities and social inclusion of persons with disabilities. The partnership of European Disability Forum representing over 100 million persons with disability in Europe, 4 universities having expertise in accessibility and EURASHE, one of the key stakeholders in the European Higher Education Area will create the recommendations through exchange and development of new practices and methods. The last year of the project will be dedicated to reaching out to HE institutions and influencing them to take on the guidelines developed in the project.With ATHENA we want to transform the HE sector and to offer students education that will include the knowledge on accessibility. This will lead to new approaches in a variety of professions what will build more inclusive society.

Teaching excellence if of primary importance for the learning environment in higher education. Thus, TEACHEX is a project conceived to contribute to the continuous professional development of academic staff by offering adequate support structures (Centers for Teaching Excellence)and innovative, high-quality, flexible programs designed to promote better teaching and therefore enhanced learning as well. Other specific goals of the project are:1. To improve quality of education by contributing to university management in accordance with academic staff needs, connecting personal and civic fulfilment with the ‘transferable skills required for a rapidly changing world. 2. To develop and deliver training materials and follow up activities for staff working at CTEs. 3. To create support structures in CTEs that outline conditions for project sustainability 4. To produce benchmark tools for teaching excellence that serve as medium and long term analysis. 5. To disseminate the European experience in teacher training and preparation of documents necessary for enhancing the interaction between the CTEs and other educational key stakeholders in IL.The main outputs and outcomes areTo place sustainable structures for academic professional development in function of academic staff an student needs, connecting personal and civic fulfilment with the ‘transferable skills required for a rapidly changing world To develop and deliver training materials for professional development including elearning and active education in IL To evaluate the impact of training and use of materials in relationships between continuing education, academic and student groups through the piloting of professional courses To create a digital repository with open educational resources of easy access to allTo disseminate outcomes broadly in IL (ie website, newsletters, media) and internationally To create informal networks through a social media app generating conditions for sustainability

The project “Mainstreaming Procedures for Quality Apprenticeships in Educational Organisations and Enterprises” (ApprenticeshipQ) wanted to support educational institutions and placement providers to offer high-quality education to their apprentices. The project’s proposed assessment of quality has made these processes more manageable and will benefit all stakeholders. These benefits include lifelong learning for teachers, professors and tutors, enhancements for placement providers, improvement of apprentice’s skills development and overall higher quality of the learning experience.Quality is key to assuring positive outcomes for all stakeholders involved and this project therefore focused on approaches to securing and developing high quality apprenticeships that will in turn help foster stronger collaborations between employers, providers and students. However, experiences, concepts and vision on how to leverage the potential of practice and work-based learning (WBL) for the field of HVET was lacking. The project addressed this issue through comprehensive quality criteria to give guidance and orientation on how to structure those parts of HVET which take part in the world of work. In fact, no proposal existed on how European Higher Vocational Institutions may adapt their internal quality systems to ensure proper supervision and control of apprenticeships, or even what a minimum level of quality for an apprenticeship should entail. The intention of the ApprenticeshipQ project was to:develop an ApprenticeshipQ toolkit, which provides a clear framework for quality management of apprenticeships at organisations, particularly educational institutions and placement providers, ensuring systematic feedback; foster mutual trust and respect through regular cooperation and better quality management between the apprenticeship partners;ensure the content of HVET programmes is responsive to changing skill needs in companies and society;ensure fair, valid, and authentic assessment of learning outcomes in apprenticeships; support the continuous professional development of in-company trainers and improving their working conditions. The ApprenticeshipQ toolkit was developed by:identifying and analysing different forms of apprenticeships and work-based learning to design and test a typology of apprenticeships;identifying the strategic goals of the main stakeholders involved in HVET to inform quality management;identifying the factors that stakeholders consider essential for QM within the strategic partnership;providing a set of best-practice examples for QM at education institutions and at placement provider sites;identifying quality criteria including their measurement indicators in different education institutions and various industry sectors. This knowledge was applied for target groups including educational institutions, placement providers and apprentices by creating the ApprenticeshipQ toolkit, consisting of:an institutional quality management framework for apprenticeships;an online-assessment tool for quality management;an apprenticeships QM manual for educational institutions containing instruments, methods and tools they can work with to develop a joint quality culture between themselves and small and medium enterprises; an apprenticeships QM manual for enterprises containing instruments, methods and tools they can work with to develop a joint quality culture between themselves and educational organizations. a harmonisation and translation guide with policy recommendations. To test, validate form consensus in the field the project consulted extensively with stakeholders by organising:Workshops in 6 countries involving more than 500 QM experts and other expert stakeholders from the training and education site;Field tests in 6 countries involving more than 300 employers, quality managers, trainer and teachers, HVET institutions, etc.;Surveys, interviews and presentations in 6 countries involving more than 1.300 employers, QM person responsible for the placement as well as the HVET institution site, teachers and trainers.Through the involvement of chambers of commerce, standardization bodies and associations of European institutions of Higher VET in the project, ApprenticeshipQ reached a wide impact, and ensured the inclusion of its processes amongst both placement providers and educational institutions. This in turn led to an enhanced quality management and hence improved quality of apprenticeships in Higher VET around Europe, which is going to increase the attractiveness of HVET as an educational pathway thus enhancing the employability of apprentices and students.

"PARTNERSHIPThe project SPRINT: “Standardize best PRactices about INTernships” started in September 2017 and ended in December 2020. It was implemented by a consortium of European structures representing all the parties concerned by the internships: Higher Education Institutions: HEI (Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3 University), students (Trade Union Youth Plus), host organisations (The Adecco Group). The partnership was enriched by the expert structures participation in the field of standardisation (AFNOR: Association Française de Normalisation), the supervision of youth mobility in Europe for learning purposes (UNISER), the development of digital tools and the internships evaluation (InternsGoPro) and the promotion of higher vocational education inside the European Higher Education Area (EURASHE). PROJECT CONTEXTInternships play a fundamental role in the integration of students and graduates into the labour market by enabling them to acquire professional skills and to experience host organisation functioning. However, not all internships fulfil their objectives. Numerous initiatives have emerged in Europe to provide quality frameworks for placements, but they are not been applied in all European countries. OBJECTIVESThe SPRINT project has been implemented to create a common European quality framework for internships to be recognised by all the stakeholders (HEIs, students, host organisations) with an effort to improve the supervision of the internship at a European scale and thus enable better integration of the young’s into the labour market.The partners also implemented the project activities to:- establish a strong partnership between organisations working in the field of internships;- raise awareness among stakeholders of the importance of the quality of internships;- encourage host organisations to improve their practices;- prepare the different stakeholders’ training to ensure proper implementation of the internships quality criteria.These objectives have been achieved by the consortium.ACTIVITIES The SPRINT project partners carried out the following activities:> Drawing of a general report on internships’ national legislation in the member countries of the European Union and Switzerland: 182 pages.> Sending out a survey on needs and barriers about internships: 116 participants (HEIs, students, host organisations).> Production of a summary of good practices in internships.> Drawing up of the common European quality framework for internships, drafted and approved following the steps of a CEN (European Committee for Standardisation) Workshop Agreement, under the AFNOR supervision. 8 quality criteria have been identified for internships through the following activities:- Kick-off meeting of the CEN workshop (E1) (17 participants from outside the SPRINT consortium);- Drawing of the CEN workshop agreement (9 participants);- Adoption of the CEN Workshop Agreement with a 60-day comment phase open to any organisation: 28 participating organisations (64 pages of comments);> Drawing of the practical guide on the implementation of quality internships for host organisations;> Development of a self-assessment tool for host organisations on their internship programme; > Production of a guide on the quality of internships and higher education institutions; > Organisation of two training sessions (E2) (in English and French) for HEI teams in charge of student placements to raise awareness of the ""quality internship"" concept and to train them to the tools developed in the SPRINT project framework (96 participants); > Organisation of a conference (E3) aimed at explaining the European policy context concerning the quality of the internship and presenting the SPRINT tools developed to bring a concrete solution to internships improvement in Europe (153 participants).OUTCOME The implementation of the above activities led to the achievement of the following results:- Harmonisation of best practices in the field of internships in Europe;- The adoption of common quality criteria for internships;- The creation of tools for the implementation of these criteria within host organisations;- The development of a coherent evaluation system on the quality of internships valid for the whole of Europe;- The establishment of a working group on the quality internships.IMPACTSThe project enabled the partners to broaden their knowledge about internships in Europe and the pre-standardisation process.The participants in the dissemination events improved their knowledge on the quality criteria of an internship. Stakeholders interested in internships have reliable tools on the quality of internships in Europe."

The main attribute of professional higher education (PHE) is their relationship to the world of work through apprenticeships that represent a substantial part of their curricula. When of high quality, apprenticeships promote a smoother student transition from PHE institution (PHEI) to work, enabling a good start to working careers by providing a good mix of basic competences and job-specific skills and valuable work experience. Employers benefit by identifying and training students adding to their productive capacity and forming their future employees but struggle with the bureaucratic burden, lack of direction and support from PHE institutions (PHEI). The key innovation of Apprentice Track (AppT) lies in the unique 360-degree approach to apprenticeship management by creating a quality framework (IO1) developed into a transparent and comparative response and data driven digital tool (IO2), upgraded by a supportive training raising the pedagogical and digital capacity of mentors (IO3).The Apprentice Track (AppT) project:Strengthened cooperation between students, HEIs and SMEs during the apprenticeships through improved efficiency of cooperation thanks to the provision of the AppT Prototype (IO2) as an online digital tool available on any type of devices (smartphone, tablet, and computer) with all information accessible to all stakeholders with just a few clicks anywhere at any time; offering a collection of relevant data on institutional and national level which allows the identification of labour market needs and gaps to improve curricula and policies. The course for mentors (IO3) was implemented to support employers in integrating apprenticeships into their strategic planning, recruiting, management, and cooperation with PHEIs.Gained a quick, easy, and efficient way to track the progress of students and ensured that learning outcomes which should be achieved through work-based learning (WBL) are attained by providing students and mentors with a list of learning outcomes to be achieved (IO1), enabling transparent progress assessment supported with assessment criteria and showing an overall apprenticeship progress grade accessible and visible at any time to each student and their PHEI in the AppT Prototype (IO2).Obtained a good overview of the role of the student in the apprenticeships for mentors by providing mentors with the insight to all agreed documents at any time and place. For each individual student’s agreement, clear description of agreed role, responsibility, and obligations of the student during their apprenticeship is provided. Gained a quick and easy ongoing evaluation of student progress at apprenticeships for mentors by enabling the mentor the instant insight to student’s competences to be achieved, prepared workplan, assessment of progress and at the end of the apprenticeship the compilation and translation into a final student’s apprenticeship grade and report from the mentor in the AppT Prototype (IO2).Enabled the possibility of a quick and effective response of organizers to lack of students' progression through improved responsiveness of apprenticeships in PHE by the AppT Prototype (IO2) requiring adequate input to each procedure, assuring relevance, consistency, and timely insight into the progress of achievement facilitating the PHE supervisor to follow the students’ progress or lack of progress which enables them to act efficiently when identifying student’s poor or no progress during the apprenticeship contributing to timely problem resolution.Involved students into quality assessment of the apprenticeships by providing student direct access to the regular periodic assessment of their progress in the AppT Prototype (IO2) student can react to assessment, discuss it with mentor and understand or object assessment if it is not aligned with the assessment criteria. The opportunity to follow their own progress assessment motivates the student to even better achievements.Kept the whole process of apprenticeship progression transparent, comparative, and paperless through improved quality by defining a transparent, comparable quality framework (IO1) which was set to offer all actors insight into apprenticeship management at any time anywhere in the AppT Prototype (IO2), by collecting periodically relevant statistical data per country and compare results, by enabling the use of the AppT Prototype (IO2) cross boarders providing transparent and comparable apprenticeship management to Erasmus+ students due to its multilingual approach.Met the needs of employers, students and PHEIs in the field of ICT supporting tools and increased the attractiveness of PHE by creating a use-friendly, efficient, and accessible digital tool for paperless apprenticeship management (IO2) and providing supporting training (IO3), the project enabled apprenticeships to be an easy manageable, meaningful, and pleasant experience making its attributes more evident contributing to the attractiveness of PHE.