German VENet Model: QUINTA Modular Network for Vocational Training Organisation in charge: BBZ Berufsbildungszentrum Hellweg e.V., Soest (non-governmental, non-profit educational institution)
- Target group: moderately disadvantaged young persons with apprenticeship potential
- Cooperation between non-governmental, non-profit educational institutions and regional companies (joint training system)
- Participants attend regional vocational schools
- Mix of regular in-company vocational training, vocational and life skills train-ing in non-governmental, non-profit educational institutions and theoretical vocational training at vocational schools
- Optimised and supervised vocational training, tailored to special needs
- Psychosocial support for participants
- Dedicated human resource management
- Exchange of participants within the Modular Network for Vocational Training is possible on demand (rotation principle)
- Complementary, holistic and individualistic system for vocational training
At the heart of the German QUINTA Modular Network for Vocational Education is a regional network of three non-governmental, non-profit educational institutions. These institutions are in charge of most of the VENet management tasks and are involved in the theoretical and practical vocational training of the participants. A ma-jor task of this network as a whole is to impart social-skills (coping) to the partici-pants and to guide them through the vocational program. One of the educational institutions (Berufsbildungszentrum Hellweg e.V., Soest) is in charge for the overall management of the entire regional VENet project. The practical vocational education mostly lies in the hands of regional businesses. They are being supported by the aforementioned educational institutions that have adequate workshops and instructors at their disposal. Educational institutions are also responsible for most of the supporting activities (psychosocial support, human resource management). The complete modular network of vocational training is sup-ported by relevant professionals in the labour market and education field.
Alltogether the QUINTA Modular Network for Vocational Training consists of the BBZ Bildungszentrum Hellweg e.V., the INITEC gGmbH, the Kolping Bildungszentrum Werl (non-governmental vocational institutions) and several small and medium com-panies in the region. Within the network 25 participants undergo a regular vocational education in the vocational fields of crafts and commerce. The most innovative ele-ment of the network is the complementary involvement of different vocational train-ing locations as a joint training system, offering a broad bandwidth of vocational content to the participants. Another innovative aspect of the network is the active integration of support-structures on various levels important for the successful ac-complishment of the vocational training by the participants (e.g. psycho-social sup-port; labour market interface).
LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE GERMAN QUINTA MODULAR NETWORK FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING
- The most difficult task was to establish the complex network of the involved partners. This refers to the effort necessary to inform the personnel thor-oughly about their tasks and responsibilities as well as to the time needed to establish mutual confidence between all partners.
- Positive aspects of the network include the fact, that only one participant dropped out of the vocational training so far. So apparently the construction of the network with its different facets meets the demands of the partici-pants. Because of the involvement of many partners within a complementary network structure, the vocational training of the target groups proves to be very effective.
- The rotation-principle allows more participants to finish a vocational education successfully compared to conventional methods of vocational training.
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