"The overall aim of the project Virtual Reality in Teaching (VirTrain) is to bring modern technologies and especially virtual reality directly to the hands of teachers to enhance the quality of teaching and learning in VET. Project goal is to map the training needs, show the benefits of Virtual reality (VR) to the full extent, train the teachers and develop their teaching skills and especially overcome the potential barriers to the use of VR in Teaching and Learning. The idea behind the project is to also tackle the challenge of decreasing people´s attention span that actually the technologies are generally lowering. Since the use of (VR) can make students not only more engaged but especially more concentrated and makes the lessons more lively. It is known that the more entertaining and interactive the learning, the more we learn.We want to show through the project how easy and accessible it is to use these technologies for teaching the professional languages in the VET sector. The project will bring to VET institutions and their teachers methodology how to use VR in language teaching and also inspirational teaching materials. The project will focus on developing VR-related ICT competencies of language VET teachers to provide insight into the available possibilities and to enable independent use of VR in the classroom as well as distance mode of language training. The project responds to the ""Recommendation from the European Commission on Languages"" (2018) in that it explores how virtual learning environments may be used as digital tools to develop collaborative and creative learning environments. The project also follows the Council Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong Learning as it will provide VET language teachers with a low-threshold ICT training course focused at state of the art VR, tailored to their methodological needs. Furthermore the project builds on and is informed by previous experience from the research and projects both from VR as well as Personalized learning environment (see section INNOVATION).The project will directly involve at least 15 VET language teachers (5 from each project country CZ, I, E) from at least 10 VET schools who will participate in VR course and will be preparing example VR lessons plans. Also at least 150 students will be direct beneficiaries of the lessons in VR. The methodology will be used by at least one national VET association and 2 regional bodies and at least 10 VET schools from 3 countries and the outputs would be also used for lifelong learning. Finally all of the outcomes will result in a multilingual one stop show website dedicated to VR in Teaching and learning full of free resources. Concrete project activities and outputs entail: 1.Mapping the landscape to inform VET language training practitioners of the applicability of VR. 2.Developing original methodology for both onset and online course on VR3.Purpose-built train the teacher course 4.VR lesson plans database5.Final methodology: How to teach professional language skills with virtual reality6.Multilingual One-Stop-Shop website - all for VR in VET from beginners to practitioners (all of the project material and outcomes available at one place).On the institutional level, we expect the impact being the enhancement of the body of knowledge of the institution, opening up to be more innovative and attracting more focused students into education. Also VET institutions will be able to improve the quality of the language teaching they offer, by assuring that their language teacher delivering the training has advanced and appropriate pedagogical competence and technical skills to deliver the training in VR. Students of VET will be the ultimate beneficiaries of these activities, benefiting from a more diverse and technology advanced and entertaining experience in language training, and consequently, higher quality E&T and better prospects for practical use of the embedded knowledge.The participating institutions will get deeply tested methodology and database of good examples of VR language lessons usable straight away in teaching. It brings significant extension in the project partners’ scope of activities, as well innovative solutions to embrace further new technologies for institutional, regional and national levels. (See section IMPACT for details). To sum up VirtTain aims to fulfil the following long term benefits: •establishing a ‘low-threshold’ approach towards the introduction of VR in teaching practice •provide hands-on experience with the technology (and) to enable VET practitioners familiarize themselves with its different forms •make the affordances of VR applicable in the sub-field of VET-related Language Acquisition accessible to a wide professional audience •make this promising new approach applicable in everyday practiceThe end result being a multilingual one stop shop website serving as repository as well as practical tool for the VR in E&T."

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.

The project aimed to increase the quality of the connection of Professional Higher Education (PHE) with the World of Work (WoW). The main objectives were to encourage Professional Higher Education Institutions (PHEIs) to analyze their internal policies for cooperation between education, research and business, implement improvements and reforms to policies and practices as regards cooperation with the WoW, support the sharing of best practices for strengthening the knowledge triangle, design a set of supporting tools, such as framework policies and implementation guides, to strengthen active cooperation between HEIs and external stakeholders.The project consortium consisted of two PHEIs (PWSZTAR, (PL) and TTK (EE)), three national associations of PHE (AZVO (HR), CASPHE (CZ) and VIVIS (SI)), EURASHE as the European umbrella organization for PHE and Knowledge Innovation Centre (MT). All partners were involved in former EURASHE projects and initiatives. Besides PWSZTAR and TTK, thirteen other PHE institutions from PL, CZ, HR, SI and EE were also involved in piloting. PHE associations from PL and EE were taking part in dissemination activities.Two sets of activities were running in parallel during the project and informing each other:1: Development of self-assessment and improvement methodology for PHEIs (data-collection framework, methodology for identifying improvement strategies to policies for cooperation with the WoW) and running self-assessment and improvement processes within pilot PHEIs (self-improvement cycles, creation of self-assessment reports and improvement plans). 2: Collection of best practices, and design of tools to stimulate best practice. The framework policies were created in the form of a checklist which can be used by institutional leaders to assess their compliance with each of the criteria of the PHE Quality Framework. An online self-assessment and benchmarking tool was developed and made available at https://buildphe.eu/assessment/. The main results of the project are: Methodological framework and set of self-assessment tools, Database of best practice cases, Publication “Tools to Support Quality in Professional Higher Education“. Additionally, on the basis of project outputs, Self-Assessment Reports were produced by pilot and Implementation Plans describing proposed improvements to policies and strategies to better cooperate with the world of work were formulated. The most important immaterial output are new competences of staff acquired during a peer-learning training event and later developed in the framework of project activities: an international group of “PHE agents of change” was created. At local and regional level, the project fostered collaboration between PHEIs and enterprises, strengthening 'dual' options involving a mixture of studies and work experience such as apprenticeships, contributed towards addressing skill-shortages in key technical areas of employment and enhanced the quality of the 'professional' experiences offered by PHEIs.At national level, the project made recommendations to policy-makers as to measures to improve and enhance cooperation between academia and enterprises. At EU level, the project facilitated exchange of practice and increased cooperation between Institutions and Associations of PHE, with EURASHE WG Quality as a platform to support such cooperation.The project promoted a holistic approach to considering quality of all activities and processes within PHE institutions and from this perspective fed into a strategic priorities of EURASHE. The findings and experience from the project served also for policy discussion on the development of PHE across Europe, its quality assurance and enhancement as reflected in EURASHE contributions to EC policies or EHEA documents. From this view a synergy effect with the EQUIP project, mapping implementation of European Standards and Guidelines was quite beneficial.The most important longer-term benefit of the project is the possibility to use optimized tools and methodology in self-assessment processes by a wide range of PHEIs in Europe and beyond. HEIs from Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine and Latin America have already expressed their interest in adopting BuildPHE tools in their national environments and two EPP CB projects were just submitted. The fact that the master version of tools is elaborated in English brings supplementary added value to institutions in non-English speaking countries – international dimension of internal QA (possibilities of comparison and benchmarking) and thus better preparation for external QA (in many national regulations international dimension of QA is appreciated by accreditation bodies). The international experience will likely enhance readiness of PHEIs to engage in cross-border activities, should it be joint programmes or benefitting from cross-border QA, both being strongly supported by European policies as a tool of strengthening European added-value and identity.

"The past 20 years have seen significant investments in Quality Assurance infrastructure across Europe, thanks largely to the focus on quality assurance provided by the Bologna Process. Starting with the ESGs and EQAVET, a multitude of standards provide guidance as to what constitutes quality. Quality approaches in institutions vary widely, and despite efforts to the contrary, often quality assurance is reduced to a ""commitment to quality culture"" supported by a bureaucratic and time-consuming set of checks, often in the form of evaluation questionnaire of various kinds.In fact, according to analysis from the European Commission contained in the Modernisation Agenda for Education, educational institutions are not:- equipping enough people with the right skills for modern society- doing enough to tackle social divisions, in particular with regards to people from low socio-economic and migrant backgrounds- contributing enough to innovation in the places they are located, and- organized and funded in a way that allows them to work well.Quality assurance policy in Europe has either been unable to detect or unable to resolve these issues. It is our hypothesis that this is due to quality assurance which is applied nearly exclusively a course/programme level rather than at institutional-strategy level, where it can be a lever for organizational transformation. In analysing this phenomenon, we have identified a lack of formalised expertise in quality management amongst institutional top management as a key barrier limiting uptake. Often institutional leaders will have never received any formal training in QA-management, and thus, while having significant expertise as to what constitutes quality education, will have limited expertise in how to translate that mission and vision into a management system based on clear quality objectives, backed up by steady processes that will assure the adequate planning and realization of activities leading to the achievement of those objectives, as well as monitoring and analysing processes that will enable continual improvement.The project is broadly divided into 5 phases:Phase 1: Overview of Institutional Leaders’ Views to QA and barriers to proper implementation of QAThis phase, will set the scope of the project by using a survey of 70 institutional leaders, followed by focus groups to identify the problems institutional leaders have with QA processes, the reasons QA processes fail to promote positive change to their full potential, and the elements of these which might be solved through training of institutional leaders.Phase 2: Creation of a Quality Competence Framework for Institutional Leaders and Associated Learning OutcomesThe competence framework will take the form of a grid mapping required learning outcomes in terms of knowledge, skills, autonomy and responsibility against levels of seniority in management. Authoring will take place via meetings of an expert group, whose results will be validated by a 20-member panel of experts in QA.Phase 3: Design of Curricular Materials for Institutional LeadersThe methodology for course production will follow a standard ADDIE instructional design model. It will be structured as a set of online micro-learning modules (bite-sized modules), since studies show that this format can strengthen knowledge inputs including process, curriculum, form and time, and that is particularly effective in promoting the acquisition of finely defined competencies. The short-format paired with the online availability also makes it easy for senior staff to find time to integrate the learning into their schedules.Phase 4: Delivery of TrainingThis will involve the organization of multiplier events aimed at promoting the online training, as well as the organization of an advanced 4-day intensive training event on specific QA techniques and methodologies. The face to face training will make heavy use of simulation techniques to model an institutional environment.Phase 5: Provision of Model StrategiesSo as to allow institutional leaders to quickly implement what they learn in the training, the project will also design a set of model strategies for implementing techniques such as issue management, kai-zen, and holistic-course review. The model strategies designed by the consortium will be piloted via dry-testing in a set of HVET institutions before being proposed to leaders in the course, to ensure that they can be efficiently applied in these contexts. A properly implemented quality management system allows an institution to understand the requirements of all its stakeholders, including students, industry and society, and then to design a mission, vision and strategy that addresses those requirements. Thus, the main intended impact from QALead is to change attitudes towards quality assurance from a compliance-focused mindset that focus on the needs of learners, enterprise and society."

The BEEHiVES project (Boosting European Exchange on Higher VET and Employer Involvement in Education Structures) addressed cooperation in the strategic partnership triangle defined as collaboration between HVET/PHE, employers and students. It examined how the strategic triangle contributed towards the development of skills relevant to labour market needs and equip students with the knowledge and skills relevant for their long-term employability, entrepreneurship and personal development. Our main question was: How can a strategic partnership and cooperation between providers of higher vocational education and training and professional higher education (HVET/PHE), employers and students be strengthened? The project brought together representatives of the strategic triangle to exchange innovative practices and deliver recommendations for improving employer involvement in HVET/PHE. In the first year of the project the partners identified how HVET/PHE is organized in six European countries (Basque Country/Spain, Czech Republic, Denmark, Flanders/Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom). During the second year, the project surveyed stakeholders throughout Europe, through a mixture of methods to gain a more in depth understanding of their inter-collaborations. Main ResultsThe fast-pacing change due to developments in technology is a concern for all stakeholder groups, and implies an area requiring closer, more consistent, long-term collaboration. Effective methods of collaboration have centred around joint participation of stakeholders in governance and consultation structures, joint knowledge transfer and extensive surveying of stakeholders to inform decision-making.Compared to graduates from more academic streams of education, employers find graduates from HVET/PHE to be more employable. Nevertheless, they universally indicate that there is still significant room for improvement, arguing that graduates do not have the necessary soft skills and attitudes to enter the labour market without additional training. All stakeholders admit a significant difference in cultures between the three groups as the main barrier to strengthened collaboration. These cultural differences can be exacerbated by practices such as excessive bureaucracy and lack of flexibility at educational institutions; excessive focus on short term economic returns (rather than long-term benefits from training) on the side of businesses, especially during economic fluctuations and recessions; and the weakness of processes to enable student participation in most decision-making structures.Our research indicates that setting collaboration as a priority and then relying on organic growth, does not lead to a truly integrated strategic triangle. Collaboration is enabled at:-micro-level by strategies for supporting individualised collaboration pathways allow for individual students, SMEs and businesses to collaborate on specific projects-meso-level by structured collaboration boards within the structures of HVET/PHE organisations, business chambers or student associations allow for top-down coordination of the relationship providing that these boards have regular contact, to work on specific objectives measured against pre-set targets-macro-level by empowering regional forums bringing together all three stakeholders to set the goals of collaboration since these allow for the overall purpose of the strategic triangle to be set within a wider societal context.Impact and ConclusionsThe strategic triangle is at the heart of the BEEHiVES project, and more widely, the heart of the mission of HVET/PHE Institutions. Paying true attention to the importance of the triangle implies deeply integrating and mainstreaming these indicators into quality systems operated by all parties. The sum of our research indicates that collaboration in HVET/PHE has primarily been focused around collaboration between educational institutions and businesses for the benefit of students and the wider economy. Students themselves have not been seen as an equal participating partner in the strategic triangle in Europe, even though they possess great potential, especially as later alumni and possible employers. Future work should focus on ways to further support and strengthen their contributions.Furthermore, career guidance at HVET/PHE institutions and companies of students and employees has consistently been marked as critical to supporting personalised career development pathways. Thus, quality factors for such guidance processes promise to be a potential fruitful area for exploration.Finally, joint research projects seem to hold significant potential, particularly in enhancing long-term tripartite collaboration – exploring case studies of such projects promise to yield valuable information on further enhancing the strategic triangle.