Basic skills have an impact on all aspects of daily life, from school to employment and from health care to social life. Literacy effect in work and duration of employment shows that literacy difficulties limit individual capabilities, reduce productivity and prevent innovation. Recent research shows that adults with poor literacy and numeracy skills are less likely than more highly skilled adults to engage in education programs designed to improve their skills. We also know from a study of UK workplace literacy programs, that workplace basic skills courses reach people who are not normally involved in continuous education or training.
Therefore, what the partner organisation wants to establish with this project, is a systemic approach to improve basic skills for people in employment. The project will develop and share methods and tools for successful basic skills training, including mapping and how to motivate both employees and businesses for training.
The project will develop descriptions of necessary basic skills in different professions in order to motivate both businesses and employees. Furthermore, they will develop new training methods as well as an online platform, which not only allows for an exchange between teachers, trainers and students, but includes training modules so that teachers and trainers can develop their methods online. The methodology involves aspects of traditional and creative formal education methods as well as informal education methods. The experience will be summarized in a “best practice handbook”.
Each partner will conduct a pilot of basic skills training with a company, where the developed methods and guidelines will be tested in all countries. The partners will cover various professional aspects of basic skills training (ex ICT, media literacy, numeracy) which overall cover a multitude of opportunities.
As a result of the project, the employees in need to improve their basic skills will have an increased awareness of the opportunities that exist to tailor training. The positive effects of training will likely motivate more companies and employees to undertake training. For trainers and teachers the project will help them to improve their methods in planning and working with basic skill lessons.
In order to achieve longer term benefits, the project’s methodology is centered around a close cooperation with all stakeholders, such as governmental education institutions, employer and employee organizations and business sector. The professional network of the project partners aims to create a network where one reaches as many potential companies/participants/students as possible in a given region, and show how it is possible to work together in order to improve basic skills at the workplace.