GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT
Programme name: South-East Finland – Russia CBC Programme 2014-2020
Name of the project: Improving professional education based on the needs of the labor market in Finland and Russia by using innovative methods and new technology
Acronym: ImProfEdu
Project ID: KS1877
Priority: 2. Innovative, skilled and well-educated area
Thematic objective: Support to education, research, technological development and innovation
Duration of the project in months: 30
Duration of the project: 01.05.2020 – 31.10.2022.
Target groups: students of secondary vocational education, their teachers, and cooperative companies. Areas of study will include tourism, hairs, interior design, and business administration.
Supported in 2019.
Partners:
Name | Country name | Region name | Type |
City of Kouvola | Finland | Kymenlaakso | Lead Partner |
Sankt-Petersburg Institute of Business and Innovations | Russia | City of Saint Petersburg | Partner |
St Petersburg State Budgetary Professional Educational College “Petrovsky College” | Russia | City of Saint Petersburg | Partner |
St. Petersburg State Budgetary Professional Educational Institution “St. Petersburg College of Architecture and Construction” | Russia | City of Saint Petersburg | Partner |
Joint Authority of Education of Kotka-Hamina Region | Finland | Kymenlaakso | Partner |
PROJECT INDICATORS
| Thematic indicators | Target value |
| Number of enterprises using programme support for cooperation with research institutions | 40 |
| Number of persons under age of 24 years and over 45 years participating in educational events | 157 |
| Number of new cross-border curricula created | 4 |
| Project specific indicators | Target value |
| The number of companies to offer workplaces to the students; this number includes to the thematic indicator of enterprises, because they also take part in the research | 20 |
| The number of students from two countries who successfully completed a bilingual educational platform on co-created programs in distance learning format.. This number is included in the thematic number of persons participating in the educational events | 112 |
| The number of students to take part in mobilities. Final report and making conclusions and material for the sustainability | 87 |
| The number of students to take part in competitions. Final report and making conclusions and material for the sustainability | 25 |
| The number of teachers to take part in the students’ training and virtual workshops and follow competitions | 16 |
| The number of teachers’ mobilities. Part of these persons are included also to the earlier indicator | 36 |
| The number of teachers to take part in the teachers’ meetings. Part of these persons are the same as in two earlier indicators | 36 |
| The number of virtual workshops offered by the project | 4 |
| The number of events, workshops and conferences organized by the project | 18 |
| The number of students, who have gained a work place or will continue higher studies after graduating. This number is included also to thematic indicator participating in educational events | 90 |
| The number of digital learning environments created in the project | 1 |
| Brochures about project and its activities | 2 |
| Project website | 1 |
PROJECT PARTNERS
PROJECT CONCEPT
Traditionally, the trusting partnership of Russia and Finland, both in the political and economic spheres, is based on a common historical and geographical basis. Today, countries are the most important economic partners.
The overall problem of the project is the lack of personnel skilled and competent to work in international, multicultural cross-border companies and the specific problem is the lack of educational programs and innovative learning environments in vocational colleges, which educate and train personnel for companies in South-Karelia and Saint-Petersburg area.
The aim of the project is to contribute to these problems by improving professional education focusing on the needs of the labor market in Russia and Finland, to plan a new study unit with innovative learning environments to train needed skills and to offer working life multiculturally skilled working force.
The project includes five work packages. The first work package is a research among Finnish-Russian companies to identify the skills needed for persons to work in a multicultural, international company in Russia and Finland.
The second work package is to compare the existing study units in colleges to results of the research and according to results to plan a new study unit and learning environments for studying skills needed when working in a multicultural company in Finland or in Russia. Sankt-Petersburg Institute of Business and Innovation will build a frame for the platform for the internet-based studies. Other partners will plan material for the study unit, workshops, webinars, visits to companies, and small periods in companies, taking part in competitions and observing them.
The third work package consists of studies of the new study unit by using the new internet based platform but also workshops, webinars, visits and competitions in Finland and in Russia.
During the fourth work package, students are practicing in companies and piloting the study unit. Together with companies, the study unit will be corrected according to the results of piloting period and companies wishes.
The fifth work package will include final report, ensuring the sustainability of the results of the project and informing about the results of the project. The main outputs of the project will be a study unit for tourism and hospitality, hair, construction and interior design and customer service including a platform for studies offering skills and competences needed when working in a multicultural company in Finland or in Russia. It will be in two languages: English and Russian.
The platform with all the learning material will be open to everybody also after the project and other learning material including virtual workshops, videos and webinars will be saved onto the home page of the project.
The project includes several multiplier events to inform about the proceeding and results of the project. The overall result of the project for working life and economy in both of the countries will be the increase of international skills, competence to act in a multicultural environment in Finland and in Russia. An important result is also the strengthened co-operation with the companies and vocational colleges in both of the countries.