"The project ""C.I.V.I.C.S. - International cooperation for the empowerment and validation of competences between nautical Schools"" has been presented dall'IISS Calamatta of Civitavecchia, in partnership with two nautical schools in Finland and Spain. The project is based on a joint analysis of needs, which recognizes the extreme importance of the marine industry for the growth of European territories and, at the same time, the absence of a common framework for the validation and certification of soft and non-formal skills requested from this particular sector of the labour market. CIVICS achieved with success the following general objectives: - modernize the educational systems of the partner schools, improve the effectiveness of nautical and logistics education, improving the interrelationship of education and employment, multiplying bridges between formal, non-formal and informal learning and expanding the certification of competences based on experience gained in an international context - strengthen cooperation between the partners to enhance the transparency of the skills acquired in the course of education in a nautical institution, promoting mobility and lifelong learning And the following specific objectives: - launch an exploratory process of validation of competencies, related to the Nautical and Maritime Education, to facilitate the acceptance and recognition of the skills acquired in an EU country and in different learning environments, including non-formal skills - develop a common methodology for the certification of skills and ad hoc training programs, with special focus on soft skills and skills learned during a long term period of mobility abroad, thus empowering the teaching profession - support the improvement of the quality of educational curricula provided in the path of education of a Nautical Institute, expanding the international dimension and opening up to the soft and non-formal skills, choosing indicators and instruments for an innovative, common evaluation framework. CIVICS has organized a series of activities that involved students and teachers and was structured in three stages: preparation, implementation and evaluation/dissemination/ follow-up, structured in Work Streams. With regard to mobility, the project included 5 Transnational project meetings, a joint event training staff and three long-term mobility, lasted three months, for four pupils from each of the partner schools. Scheduled LTTA was functional in the implementation, evaluation and validation of important educational-methodological deliverables, which have been the following: o training materials developed during the Joint Staff training event and merged in a compendium for teachers, concerning certificason of transversal and non-formal skills in the nautical education and training; o a Protocol for the certification and validation of skills o Teaching materials creating the Joint Curriculum that will be submitted to the students participating in the long-term mobility all three have been conceived OER and loaded on a European Dissemination Platform, thus making these products maximally sustainable and replicable at EU level. When preparing products, we have intended to reduce the weight of the traditional summative assessment (which searched to establish with instruments that were as objective as possible to assess the ownership of knowledge, skills and competencies focusing on the teaching / learning final product) and have enhanced the use of an authentic formative assessment, which aimed at supporting the learning process of the pupil. As for the managerial part the project management intended to apply the methodology of shared leadership. The project also has a capillary Dissemination Plan, involving stakeholders and beneficiaries who are not directly involved in the project activities. Partners have conceived an Assessment Plan marked with specific indicators that aimed at assessing the effectiveness of the activities and the correspondence between objectives and expected results. Both outcomes and outputs of the project were to generate long-term benefits, making an impact on multiple levels. Since this has been a project that included a significant focus on continuing education in the sense of empowerment and lifelong capacity building of teachers, exchange and creation of good practices, and above all it is about the development of a Protocol of Certification of transversal and non-formal skills in the marine industry as well as the creation of teaching materials produced during the joint Staff Training event and learning modules in joint curriculum delivered to students participating in the long term mobility, the project had the highest sustainability possible."

Background The background for this project is the desire to modernize the teaching methods of the Nautical Studies in our schools in light of the IMO recommendations following recent disasters at sea. As well as to improve teachers’ and students’ digital literacy, create a local source of pedagogical resources and a uniform digital learning environment. In this project we hope to achieve better cooperation between students combining peer-learning Nautical Studies and ICT which may lead to better results for the students.The project objectives are;Modernizing education by finding methods for peer learning for teachers as well as students to share good practice in Nautical Studies by using ICT.Improving attainment in basic skills for young people such as technical language skills in Nautical Studies and in ICT-skills.Improving students’ ability to analyse, communicate and ability to manage information.Improving students’ knowledge about European institutions, countries and culture.Improving school staff competences in language and ICT as well as teaching methodology.Find methods to implement cross disciplinary workProject partners The total number of partners in this project is 3(? . London Nautical School in UK will coordinate the project and will be in charge of implementing peer-learning methods and standards. The Nautical school in London has a dedicated Nautical Studies and ICT departments, the Italian school, +++, bring skills of technical and entrepreneurship. The Turkish school +++ is specialized in Navigation and Simulation Techniques. The London Nautical School, follows the successful English model of engaging students in becoming responsible for their own learning. ActivitiesTo reach these goals the partners will work together in a four different subject areas one per term.(A) Promoting computer literacy and safe behaviour online. During the first term we will learn new technical skills in Nautical field which we will be able to use throughout the project. (B) Promoting inter-cultural awareness(C) Promoting Nautical Studies and Entrepreneurship(D) Promoting Technical Linguistic skillsDuring these thematic studies all partners will work on activities or work tasks, entrepreneurship skill will be incorporated continuously within the project. We will communicate using different ICT-tools such as Skype, Google drive, Google site, Facebook. Outcomes of the activities will be shared as pod casts, movies, e-books, tutorials etc.The project will contain motilities so the students can learn more about everyday life and culture in other European countries. During these motilities we will teach the students new skills. After a mobility the participants will teach new skills to their peers.Methodology to be used in carrying out the projectLocal project groups with both students and teacher will be set up in the individual schools as well as international project groups each containing one student from each project country and a teacher who will monitoring the process and give guidance. Teacher seminars will be organized to further train teachers in peer-learning as well as ICT-skills.To deepen the cooperation-experience there will be motilities where the international project groups will meet and learn new skills and review their results.Results and impacts The expected results for this project are by working together and sharing good practice to meet the needs in future society. We hope to demonstrate this based on improved student results, the effectiveness of peer learning implemented on ICT platforms.Impacts on pupils;Improving their social abilitiesImproving their linguistic abilitiesImproving their ICT skills Making friends in other European countries Raised self-awareness as a European citizenGaining experience researching a subject, making presentations and disseminating itTaking responsibility for once own learning.Impacts on staff;The teachers will improve their knowledge of teaching methods; they will enlarge their vision concerning the new and modern techniques of teaching and methodological knowledge by collaborating with their colleagues from other countries and organizations. The project enables teachers to get an international cooperation-experience which leads to professional growth by;Reflecting upon different ways of approaching tasks Getting to know other school systems and teaching methodsImproving their capacity of communicating in foreign languages by modern techniques Planning and implementing a project on a European scale.Getting new impulses and encouragement for the daily routine.Starting up networks between participating teachers.Impact on participating institutions;The project leads to international friendships and networks amongst participants and participating schools because of the multinational dimension of education.Improve new teaching methodologyEnrichment of school life (activities, school-homepage etc.)