The European Union has 68,000 km of coastline which is home to 1200 commercial seaports. Including the EEA members, the coastline covers 185,000km. Almost half of the EU's population lives less than 50 km from the sea. The maritime area under the jurisdiction of EU Member States is larger than the total land area of the EU. More than 37,000Km of inland waterways connect hundreds of cities and industrial regions in the EU. 13 Member States have an interconnected waterway network.However, holistic maritime education is not taught at high school and typically, young people who are entering vocational education have not been exposed to maritime culture or work environment. This is resulting in the vast majority of VET learners either: a) not considering a vocation related to the blue sector, b) finding themselves in employment related to the blue sector, but without basic maritime literacy, or c) having a desire to enter maritime related further education but lacking basic maritime literacy.In order to address this problem, the partners have identified a need for maritime literacy learning as part of preparatory basic vocational education and training. Starting from 2019 Danish partner, FGU Østjylland will deliver a new form of preparatory basic education in Denmark (FGU). FGU is aimed at those who are under the age of 25 and are not yet ready to embark on or pursue another secondary education for professional, personal or social reasons. FGU is unique in that it allows for a flexible learning programme to be developed according to the needs and interests of the learner. The partners intend to use FGU as an innovative practice and basis for developing a permeable educational recourse that can offer access to basic maritime literacy for vocational learners with fewer opportunities. Through this strategic partnership, the partners aim to develop a preparatory VET course in basic maritime literacy for vocational learners with fewer opportunities. Project Objectives:- Develop a 15-day course framework with lesson plans and learning objectives that address 5 thematic modules (Seamanship, Communication, Navigation, Safety & Ecology)- Develop a series of suggested training methods that fulfil the learning objectives of the five modules- Test the developed course and methods on 150 vocational learners with fewer opportunities- Publish the course in a PDF Compendium as an open recourse- Ensure the dissemination and exploitation of the courseOn completion of the project, one intellectual output will be produced; a preparatory VET course in basic maritime literacy for VET learners with fewer opportunities. It is foreseen, that upon completion of the project at least 15 institutions will have expressed an intent to offer the developed course to learners with fewer opportunities. The course will result in new learning opportunities for VET learners who face challenges in engaging in mainstream/traditional educational routes. This result will be seen both during the project period (150 learners reached through testing of the course) and beyond the lifetime of the project. The course will consist of a training framework with learning objectives, and training methods covering 5 modules: Seamanship, Communication on Water, Navigation on Water, Safety on Water, and Ecology. The course will not lead to a qualification, but will offer learners with educational difficulties, an introduction to the blue sector, and a foundation knowledge to take forward into further education or employment. The developed course will address the needs of learners who have challenges with traditional methods of education, that has led them to fall behind in attaining recognition of their competencies. The course will engage learners in subjects related to maths and science in an operational way, where knowledge of the subjects is necessary to achieving the task at hand. The course will impact learners with a sense of cultural connection to the seas, oceans and waterways. They will feel confident and proud in their overview understanding of maritime, which will give them assurance in perusing further education or employment related to the blue sector. The course's 15 days of learning will be flexible in its delivery, as such it will be possible to deliver the course as part of broader preparatory VET programmes. For example, the Maritime literacy course could be delivered one day a week over 15 weeks as part of preparatory VET programme in blue sector logistics. Transversely, the course could be delivered as part of an extracurricular summer school, to ensure that learners with educational challenges, who have no previous experience in maritime, are ready to start the autumn semester in a secondary VET programme related to a blue sector vocation.The project partners will work together over a period of 30 months to research, develop, test and disseminate the preparatory VET course in basic maritime literacy.