Background: The project deals with the problem to find a job in another country which is derived from culture and ethnic differences. It aims to eliminate these barriers, providing equal opportunities to remotely attend a series of consulting courses through an innovative platform, and therefore facilitating the transition to world of work. In detail, the project aims at providing people with different age and economic backgrounds with the opportunity to explore the techniques of interview, through an innovative virtual world environment, offering high quality learning opportunities for unemployed and misemployed adults to adapt to different working environments and interviews.Main objectives: To explore and apply traits of multicultural interview behaviours and diverse ethnic characteristics into the simulation learning tool to maximise the skills and the competence of Europeans; to eliminate physical barriers and create equal opportunities for adults from heterogeneous ethnic backgrounds to collaborate, broaden their views and mind, exchange ideas and engage in constructive dialogue; to provide the opportunity to adult learners to adapt to diverse working environments, and interviews; to influence, motivate, and provide the opportunity to interested stakeholders to utilise and extend the scenarios, and deliver a scalable and expandable open source virtual learning tool in terms of functionality and learning material.Participants: 1) University of Cyprus (coordinator) - Higher education institution (tertiary level) participating in the project through the SEIT Lab, an integral part of the Department of Computer Science 2) Computer Technology Institute & Press Diophantus - Research Institute/Centre, a research and technology organization focusing on research and development in ICT with particular emphasis is placed on education, such as developing and deploying conventional and digital media in education and lifelong learning 3) Business Foundation for Education - Non-governmental organisation/association/social enterprise is a Bulgarian NGO with the mission to facilitate the development of the civil society through initiatives that enhance human resource competitiveness and contribute to economic development and prosperity. 4) FYG Consultores - SME, specialized in entrepreneurship, Strategy and Internationalization of start-ups and SME’s. Main activities: IO1: Reviewed most popular theories of job interviews tips, techniques and case studies; defined learning activities specifications, the pedagogical approach and the conceptual model; specified the interview scenarios (questionnaire with 144 participants was used in this process). IO2: Development of 7 interview case scenarios in English based on the results from IO1 and tutorial/guidelines which explain the case scenarios, thus guiding the interviewees and interviewers in the procedure of executing each scenario. IO3: A virtual learning environment was developed based on Opensim, a open source 3D technology which was chosen from the Study on 3D virtual world’s platforms and technologies. The interview scenarios are simulated in the 3D virtual environment and all required information for the users are available in the welcome area of the VW platform. A detailed manual of the platform as well as a Demonstration video is also available.Impact: Maximize competence and skills of European adults in self-presentation and job-preparation related skills; create opportunities for adults from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds to come together in constructive dialogue and exchange ideas; eliminate geographical barriers by providing equal opportunities to adults in distant areas across Europe to engage in participation; motivate and encourage adults to relearn and collaborate via a learning-by-doing approach and learner-centred means; increase the understanding of Europeans about the variations in interview cultures across EU nations to boost self-performance and maximize employment potential in the EU job market; expand interview skills and cultural awareness of participants; enhance the immersive experience and expand on the pedagogical techniques and theories to educate and expose individuals to numerous realistic and student-centric scenarios thus better visualizing real interviews and strengthening preparation skills.Long-term benefits: For future and interested stakeholders, national communities, etc. to adopt the learning material proposed and evaluate the pedagogy approach and its influence, the didactics, and the virtual learning environment to expand its value and its use and thereafter to sustain the life and the prosperity of the project itself. It is expected that the embodiment and re-use of the tool will maximize the number of the European participants leading to a wider and long-term educational and life-long learning training process where cultural awareness on interview, competencies, skills and techniques is achieved and enhanced.

In today's labor markets, which are living exponential transformations that have a cross-cutting impact on practically all sectors and occupations, continuous training, c-VET, becomes a key tool. Training gaps have a quantifiable negative impact on the employment opportunities of workers, and especially in people with a lower educational level, who are exposed to almost twice as likely to be unemployed with the economic and social loss that this implies.Law 30/2015, which regulates the vocational training system for employment in Spain, already included among its aims to promote lifelong training for unemployed and employed workers to improve their professional skills and their employment itineraries and training. Thus, numerous agents, ranging from public institutions to providers of continuing and occupational training, work to offer adequate responses to current training demands.Some data show a clearly improvable panorama. For example, in Spain, the tendency to participate in c-VET has decreased (by 15% between 2017 and 2018, according to FUNDAE data), and stands at 7.4% for non-formal training (INE data). In addition, those with lower qualifications participate to a lesser extent, which also affects their levels of employability. Some other EU countries show even lower rates, like Bulgaria (2.5%), Greece (4.5%) or Cyprus (6.7%), according to Eurostat data, 2018.Experts call for updating the scenario of c-VET and in-company training because low participation is identified with training topics out-of-date from the reality of the new working scenarios, and with the use traditional and unmotivating methodologies for the profile of low-skilled people.One of the elements that most affect the success of a training initiative aimed at workers and unemployed people with lower qualifications is the pedagogical approach and the applied methodology. Andragogical approaches and methodologies for experiential and creative learning are placed at the centre of the stage to enable the design and delivery of innovative, motivating, and c-VET that allows the development of the so-called transversal skills of the 21st century (problem solving , communication, critical thinking, etc.)The ELMET project tries to contribute to the development of innovative and updated c-VET opportunities by developing a set of resources, in the form of a complete TOOLKIT that enable c-VET trainers and experts to design and use the educative Escape Games (including digital escape rooms) as new active learning methodology to develop the key abilities and competences requested from the Changing Working environments.The project main target group are trainers of employed and unemployed people (specially low qualified, long term unemployed, migrants, etc.) and of active professionals that want to recycle their skills and competences to new working environments.ELMET project objectives are:- To innovate in the field of c-VET by supporting trainers in the design, delivery and evaluation of active learning methodologies.- To facilitate the application of Escape Rooms, including fully digital ones, for the development of skills and competences necessary for the jobs and occupations in the digital era.- To support c-VET trainers in the acquisition of competences, skills, knowledge and resources for the use of active learning methodologies.- To raise awareness on the need of modernising the delivery of c-VET schemes to adapt them to new labour and learning scenarios.- To improve the quality of the training offered to vulnerable workers and unemployed people so they are motivated and engaged to the learning process.ELMET TOOLKIT for the design, delivery and evaluation of experiential learning programmes will offer a complete set of ready-to-use resources, including: - A training course on the design of escape rooms: specific for the continuous training field.- A guide to support each of the stages that comprise this learning methodology: design, implementation, facilitation and evaluation.- A guide to support the creation of 100% digital-based escape-rooms.- 3 ready to use escape rooms in offline version and 3 ready-to-use escape rooms in online version, focusing on the 3 main transversal topics identified among the needs of active workers or unemployed people (i.e. new digital working environments, green transversal skills, 21th century soft-skills (creative and critical thinking, effective communication, teamwork and collaboration in intercultural environments).ELMET seeks to make a significant impact on current training practices, equipping c-VET professionals with practical resources based on innovative methodologies. We believe that the use of the project's tools will help to generate motivating (face-to-face and virtual) learning spaces for the most vulnerable student profiles, and that, in addition, the project's results are easily transferable to other educational levels.

Our connected society is full of promises, but the online world also brings dangers related to cyberbullying, social exclusion, fraud, false information, and many other potential problems. In general, population is aware of these risks, as outlined but a recent study from European Parliament on Cybersecurity: an 86 % of Europeans feel increasingly exposed to the risk of falling victim to cybercrime. The same document states that, in some Member States, 50% of all committed crimes are cybercrimes.But not only security is a risk to consider. The misinformation and generalization of the so-called fake news are becoming a serious problem, affecting all citizens, and representing an attack on the foundations of democracy. The Eurobarometer from April 2018 confirmed that more than 85% of respondents think that the existence of fake news is a problem in their country, at least to some extent, and a similar proportion (83%) say that it is a problem for democracy in general.But are adult Europeans able to identify and protect themselves from these risks? As a reference, only a 15% of respondents in the mentioned Eurobarometer felt very confident about being able to identify fake news; and according to the EC data, 44% of Europeans aged 16-74 do not have basic digital skills.According to these figures, adult people in general lack the ability to identify these issues and, furthermore, especially young adults are overly confident on their online and social media skills which leads them to adopt practices that are risky and uncritical of the received information. If not shown and convinced to adopt safe and critical approaches they will become passive recipients of “fake news”, unable to identify valid sources and easy preys of radicalisms, extremisms, and snake oil sellers.Adult trainers can play a key role on helping this collective explore the opportunities of digital technologies by providing them the means to adopt safe and critical views of the online content. But trainers must be themselves confident and comfortable to use and apply online tools. The objective of the CRITICAL project was therefore to work with and empower trainers to help their students be prepared for the online world.This was achieved through active and collaborative learning methodologies whereby students engage in activities that promote higher order learning skills like critical analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. These learner-centered methodologies use advanced ICT tools like serious games and interactive simulations that the new technologically savvy students understand and master so that they can feel comfortable and motivated. This way, adult learners develop critical thinking, creativity, problem solving, teamwork, collaboration, leadership, communication, and others through an online digital platform that includes multiple advanced ICT tools.The project results therefore fight against digital exclusion, improve social participation and cohesion, and increase online confidence and trust. The project addresses directly the priority of open and innovative practices, by promoting active and innovative learning methodologies and by developing learning materials that support the effective use of ICTs in adult education, therefore promoting the new technologies as drivers of improvement in education policies. It also addresses the strengthening of the profile of teaching professions by supporting teachers in adopting the previously mentioned collaborative and innovative learning methodologies.O2. CRITICAL platform: a motivating learning environment where learners will be challenged to solve different problems linked to the digital security and information.The objective of the project was twofold: on the one hand, and considering the group of adult trainers, to provide them with the knowledge and resources so that they can use ICT-based active learning methodologies. On the other hand, and from the point of view of adult students, enable them to recognize, identify, act, and manage against the risks of online information (cyberbullying, fake news, post-truth, radicalism, online violence, etc.). They learn to face these threats in a responsible and critical way, which favors their security and digital well-being.The two pillars of this project (active learning methodologies and competencies for the security and digital well-being of adults), fit perfectly. From the central point of view of the use of new technologies in which both realities are supported, but also from an andragogic pedagogical approach, offering a practical learning environment. The adult student puts their digital competences into practice from the beginning of the learning process, through close activities, based on reality, and highly motivating.

<< Objectives >>The Future Work 4s’ project aims at helping HEIs address the digital transformation, shift to a circular economy, volatile labor market, and societal challengesthrough a future-oriented gamified MOOC, that will equip students with the skills demanded in the future workforce and in society.<< Implementation >>The project will develop an innovative gamified MOOC Future Work 4’s for developing 4 transversal skills - digital, green, entrepreneurship, and social. The gamification will integrate the content in an engaging learning environment, combined with interactive exercises, and real-world practical challenges.It will be piloted with 300 students in the 4 partner countries. The impact analysis will be presented across key stakeholders to promote the MOOC widely across the education system<< Results >>The MOOC will be freely accessible in 5 languages by the end of 2027. It will mainstream digital competencies; green skills entrepreneurship and social skills across students in all fields of study and lifelong learners, particularly focusing on women and other vulnerable groups underrepresented in the jobs of tomorrow.

"""ISSA, Internationalisation for Social and Innovative Start Ups and Entrepreneurs"" is designed to identify core and innovative learning methods that encourage success in international activities for Social Start-ups and entrepreneurs. The project is based on previous projects (SUC, start-up communities; SUI, Start-up Internationalisation) but it goes one step further promoting international expansion and development of social start-ups and entrepreneurs. The impact of the global financial crisis has made necessary to look for an innovative vision on how to improve economic growth. One of the most attractive options are social entrepreneurs, which in 2015 counted in NOR,SPA,CYP,GRE and BUL between 300 and 8,500 (EC). Although social enterprises are a means to increase competitiveness and state the importance of cross-border values on European economy, it should be noted by social entrepreneurs how nowadays organizations active on international markets grow faster and are more innovative than those that limit their activities locally. Due to their social activity, it is highly interesting for social enterprises to initiate international relations with similar organisations to promote their objectives at European level (EC,2015 ).EU, regarding its communication 05/03/14 Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan: ""has every interest in making sure that its companies remain very competitive and are able to access new markets and benefit from these sources of growth"". If Member States want to achieve the objectives of an innovative, smart and inclusive Europe from the Europe 2020 Strategy, it is necessary to take into account social enterprises and facilitate their creation, as they have a huge potential for job creation, particularly youth employment, and thus to reduce poverty and social exclusion; partners noted this issue and made a preliminary research in which it was established how an international, innovative training is crucial on Social Start-ups, which are usually not taken into account for this type of learning.The interest of the EU to promote and take up social entrepreneurship experiences made us believe that our project can be valuable and beneficial in the education and training fields. We are aware of the importance of EU's concern about this subject. Participating organizations carried out a project which focuses on the improving the internationalization perspectives of EU's Social Start-Ups. The essential goal of this partnership is to analyze the most frequent Social Start-Ups problems and barriers in effective internationalisation process. European project's partners research and exchange of the best practices will provide the indispensable purpose which is: to deliver self-training and practical entrepreneurship education among social entrepreneurs from partner's countries. During the project we will deliver self-training and practical Internationalisation and entrepreneurial education among social entrepreneurs from partner's countries. We will design an innovative self-training course for the internationalization of Social start-ups that will serve as guide to solve the special needs of social start-ups and entrepreneurs to get proper training in essential aspects of the internationalization process, through the cooperation of the partners. The self- training course will be complemented with a e-learning platform that will work as support for social entrpeneurs. ISSA will provide and support also a proper Virtual Environment to promote social entrepreneurs attitude about the vital importance of internationalization of the social start-up in early stages. Our main objectives are focused on developing quality and practical Life Long Learning support, with a strategic use of Information and Communication technologies (ICT). We realize the need of improving the internationalization perspectives for Social Start-Ups companies at a local level. The project main target group will be social entrepreneurs and potential social entrepreneurs interested in boosting social entrepreneurship and development of social start-ups."