ROUND TABLE
„Innovative tools for teaching Sustainable Development in VET in Health Care and Logistics sectors”
Sofia, Globe Congress center, 1 Macedonia square, floor 2
10.05.2018
WETCO, Bulgaria
The round table was carried out in Sofia, Bulgaria, on 10 May 2018, from 9.30-16.00, with 20 participants. The participants invited represented VET centres, Bulgarian National Agency for VET, teachers and trainers, Trade Unions/social partners.
The opening session started with welcome and introduction by WETCO Executive Director. The aims of the round table were introduced: to present and discuss the results/intellectual outputs from GreenSkills4VET, to exchange and review policies and practices of VET in Bulgaria regarding using OER in VET and the topic of Sustainable development in VET, to discuss opportunities to implement the project outputs into VET at different levels.
The projects aims and objectives was presented by WETCO project coordinator, explaining what have been done during last 18 months, the efforts put by all partners in research and development different approaches and initiatives to carry out the tasks set, given a broader overview of the “status quo” of Education for Sustainable development and OER in different EU countries, particularly in the sectors Health Care and Logistics.
The projects outputs were presented to the participants. The demonstrations of the parts of the OER exemplary followed, asking for participants’ reflections and comments. There was alive discussion and Q&A session, where the participants share their views and opinions on:
- General comments on Sustainable development concept, differently accepted by different actors (policy makers, VET experts, teachers, learners), target groups and in the society;
- New challenges raised VET qualification in the two sectors;
- Shortage of skilled Labour force equipped with IT competences in the two sectors and need of new emerged skills;
- Impact of Industry 4.0 on the VET reform, need of more flexible tools and innovative approaches in qualification process (as our project outputs);
- Opportunities for using OER in the workplace training, dual VET and in the formal education.
Following the agenda, the round table discussed the sensitive question of the quality assurance in VET programs in the two sectors and the advantage of the project outputs for providing qualitative training in the sectors. All participants agreed that such innovative products should be disseminated and implemented in the VET programs and curricula, having in mind that the issue of sustainable development is almost unavailable in Bulgarian qualification programs, regardless partly included in training modules/subjects like Health and Safety at work, Economics, Ecology and environment etc.
In the afternoon sessions the participants presented their experience in using OER in VET and shared the results and facts from other projects like GreenSkills4VET, good practice examples and challenges faced. Most of the colleagues shared that using OER in the training process is very attractive, interesting and motivating both for trainees and for teachers.
The participants shared their willingness to have all developed final materials from the GreenSkills4VET project, in order to use them in their work. They are to be uploaded to the project website as well as at the WETCO website. In addition, participants established a non-formal network and will be kept “on board” of the Project further implementation and dissemination of results.
