In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as in the face of emerging challenges related to digitization and climate change, the Osnabrück Declaration of 2020 represents a critical framework for vocational education and training (VET) in Europe. The Declaration is endorsed by the Ministers responsible for Vocational Education and Training of the European Union Member States, Candidate Countries of the European Union, EEA countries, European Social Partners, and the European Commission to assist in upgrading VET as a driver for recovery and an enabler of transitions towards green and digital economies.
The agenda for 2021-2025 set by the Osnabrück Declaration with particular emphasis on the following four objectives: Resilience and excellence through quality, inclusive, and flexible VET; fostering a new culture of lifelong learning; embedding sustainability in VET; strengthening the international dimension of the European Education and Training Area. The objectives targeted providing support for economic growth, improvement of employability, and social inclusion through innovative and future-oriented education and training systems.
The ENTRE_VET project follows the vision stated in the Osnabrück Declaration to ensure that entrepreneurship education is appropriately integrated into VET programs. The project focuses on entrepreneurial skills, considered among the key competencies to be achieved for successful adjustment to the constantly changing labor market. It attempts to reduce the gap between vocational training and the development of entrepreneurial competencies.
The main premise of the ENTRE_VET project is to make VET students’ entrepreneurial competencies stronger and to make them more flexible in an ever-changing socioeconomic landscape. The comparative aspect of the project analyzes changes in behavioral patterns and inclinations toward entrepreneurship reflected in knowledge and intentions before and after target training. This will enable measuring how the dreams and choice of career by the students are influenced through the entrepreneurial education they receive.
One primary objective is to aid VET institutions in the practical implementation of the guidelines outlined by the Osnabrück Declaration. By breaking down these general guidelines into specific activities to be engaged in, it becomes a well-defined process for VET institutions to achieve effective entrepreneurial education within their curriculum. For this purpose, ENTRE_VET comprises content that is transparent, practical, and lively in the way it was created so it can be understandable by those who previously knew nothing about the subject. Training in the project corresponds to actual professional demands, so the VET students leave with skills rather than knowledge only to make the professional transition successful.
Other activities of ENTRE_VET serve the goals of a competitive, sustainable, fair, and socially resilient European Skills Agenda with continuous cooperation. An essential item that must be developed in the second objective is establishing stronger ties with VET institutions through collaboration with entrepreneurs. For this objective, VET students will participate in workshops and direct interactions with local entrepreneurs about real-life insights on entrepreneurship experiences and issues.
Social inclusion is the cornerstone of ENTRE_VET, and, eventually, it opens up entrepreneurship education to students even at the risk of being socially excluded—a guarantee for equal opportunities for all. The project will also utilize digital platforms as an innovative way of availing flexible, self-pacing learning opportunities that boost the impact of traditional VET curricula.
Specific goals of ENTRE_VET are the promotion of entrepreneurial skills through easy-to-integrate micro-learning courses in the existing VET curricula. Finally, the project will create an interactive multilingual digital platform with all project materials downloadable for free, making it easy to disseminate and use it in as many places as possible. Finally, ENTRE_VET will work on analysis and workshops on the entrepreneurial intentions of students; it will organize sessions with local entrepreneurs who are experienced to provide practical input and experience.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.