The transnational project CROSS focusing on the changed basic conditions in adult education is carried out within the scope of ERASMUS+ as a Strategic Partnership for exchanging good practice, presents and interchanges examples of “best practice” as implemented by various providers of adult education. New concepts for cooperation between public libraries and facilities offering adult education are also presented, in which case the main focus is on the “Third Place” (Ray Oldenburg) approach. This approach is chosen to reach people which never use public libraries and/or facilities offering adult education to improve their knowledge or skills. Content and Objective:The following altered social framework conditions constitute the content of the project: - Demographic change and the shift in the circumstances of senior citizens are presenting a new challenge throughout Europe. This includes increasing educational activities for elderly persons in a life-long learning perspective (formal and informal learning) into old age. - Individualisation processes allow people to learn very individually, not only in social groups and not only at one place (also people with low education background).- Digitalisation, generally speaking, promotes co-existence as well as the combination of analogue and digital adult education opportunities. There are, for example, great differences in the digital equipment of both libraries and further education facilities. - Migration: To enhance the integration of migrants, they should be introduced to extracurricular educational and learning options.The direct target group consists of employees, managerial staff, decision makers responsible in libraries and facilities offering adult education. The indirect target group includes all customers of libraries and facilities offering adult education, especially seniors, people with educationally disadvantaged backgrounds and migrants. Corresponding with the target groups, the chosen programme priorities are “Supporting educators” and “Social inclusion”.“Third Place”:The concept of a third place emphasises a distinction to the first location (at home) and the second location (at work). In our case, the third place is a third option for learning settings and/or communication as informal as possible. This encompasses, e.g., cafés, restaurants, pubs, bars, book-shops, sports clubs, neighbourhood centres and similar facilities from the private sector and/or from the world of clubs, associations or public social culture. Duration and Structure of Project:The project runs from September 2019 until September 2021 (24 months). Local conferences are held at the project partners’ venues. The conferences are prepared by transnational project teams. Each conference has a different main focus, each of which is defined by all the project partners at a “kick-off meeting” in September 2019. After the individual conferences have been held, the project will be concluded in a final conference in September 2021. A steering committee is appointed for control and management purposes. Results of Project and Communication:Results are local/regional-Third Place”-adult education-concepts (best/good practice) and a tool-box how to develop, establish and run such locations and/or concepts. These results are easily adaptable by other organisations. Therefore, the results and conference reports are provided on a website where they will be at least 5 years available to other national and international adult education facilities as well as to other interested parties. Further, results are promoted via the EPALE-website, by press releases and a summing-up brochure (when the project ends). Project communication sees externally a communication strategy and internally, e.g. exchanging documents as well as using Meistertask, a browser-based project and task management tool on the web.Sustainability throughout the duration of the project is ensured by the participation of project partners from the European countries involved who are utilising the project results for long-term concepts in their local public libraries and training facilities for adult education e.g. by offering seminars to their own staff.

"The main theme of the project is set out from the title of the project: family literacy. The choice of theme was made as a result of reality observed: the decisive influence that literacy skills have on children academic success and their social integration. Two factors contribute greatly to overcoming the threats of social exclusion and poverty: the role and attitude of the family in creating a literary environment conducive to learning, and early education. The aim of the project was to sustain families in literacy skills by supporting reading in order to increase the access of children from disadvantaged backgrounds, to quality education.The five partners organizations of the project were selected for their experiences and expertise in literacy and educational programs with children and adults and participation together in other European projects. Learn&Vision Association was the coordinator of the project.The proposed objectives ensured consistency and quality in achievement. Thus, based on a comparative analysis, good literacy practices have been identified in the partner countries (O1). Professional competencies have been defined for a new occupational profile, ""Facilitator of family literacy"" (O2). The training course for facilitators (curriculum, methodology, learning materials) (O3) has been developed. The facilitators have designed literacy programs piloted in families. The analysis of the piloting efficiency of the family literacy training program, by various methods, has supplemented the research component removed from the project application. All the objectives were accompanied by methodologies that contributed to a unity of vision, integrating cultural differences. The debates in the project meetings played an important role in achieving the objectives, in compliance with the quality standards. An important role in designing the literacy facilitator course in the family was LTT Activity, with a high scientific level, Portugal, February 2018.The achievement of the objectives was completed by the translation of the project results in the participating countries' languages and ensuring free access.The projects’ results were possible because all partners had experience in European projects and expertise on the issue of family literacy, teamwork skills, cooperation and experiences from different cultural contexts.The objectives were finalized by the results of the project:1. The Comparative analysis of good literacy practices in the family in Bulgaria, Macedonia, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia(IO1) is a report based on a Research Methodology that proposes the collection of data for comparative analysis using a questionnaire on the literacy programs of the participating countries and identifying six good literacy practices in the family, one for each country, two for Romania.2. Occupational profile of Family Literacy Facilitator(IO2). This intellectual product was based on a comparative analysis of good practice as a prerequisite for design the ocupational profile. A condition assumed by the project, also achieved, was the harmonization of the profile with the Eurpean Qualifications Framework to increase the chances of validation on the labor market.3. Family Literacy Facilitators Training Program(IO3)The curriculum is based on the FLF occupational profile (IO2). The following 6 key Competence Areas include the competencies of FLF: Professional Competences, Pedagogy and Andragogy Competences, Facilitation Competencies, Interpersonal and Social Relations Competences, Organizational Competences, Personal Growth Competencies.111 people from the 5 countries participated in the training course for family literacy facilitators(vs 55 planned). They delivered pilot programs to 608 children and adults, many of whom were from disadvantage families. Through the activities carried out on the project, face-to-face or on-line 3102 people were involved. Project visibility was achieved through multiplayer events (8 vs. 6 planned), attended by 377 stakeholders vs 240 anticipated: educators, trainers, librarians, social assistances, local authorities.Another impact has been achieved through media and social media appearances (e.g. 6 press releases, 10 articles) more than we anticipated.The impact of our project at the level of each partner organizations means an increased capacity to offer family literacy programmes, cooperation with other organizations in promoting family literacy and ensures national visibility on the issue of family literacy; The facilitators trained in the program won better family literacy facilitation skills, improved awareness of literacy-supportive home learning environments and interactive methods of learning.The novelty of the project is that it brings together the results in an effective package in different national contexts, which define the professional profile of the family literacy facilitator, skills and competencies achieved through curriculum."