Adult Education within the Erasmus+ Programme aims to tackle Europe’s most pressing challenges including the inclusion of migrants and refugees, the elderly and digitalisation. It also aims to provide equal opportunities to all adult institutions and learners.
In 2018, cultural heritage was introduced as a priority under adult education as a force to promote and protect our heritage, while enabling cultural organisations, such as museums, to also benefit from such funding opportunities.
Under the Erasmus+ Programme, learning mobility within adult education, enables adult organisations to support their staff by participating in learning opportunities at a European level. Through several activities, including job shadowing and structured courses, staff can acquire new skills and competences on both a personal and professional level. These skills and competences can thereafter be transferred within their organisation to ensure further sustainability and impact.
Inspire – Eden and Razzett Foundation has been applying for EU funds under the Erasmus+ Programme and former programmes for a number of years. In 2018, the foundation was awarded a mobility project entitled Fighting Social Exclusion with Emotional Intelligence under Adult Education. The seven-day mobility experience provided eight of Inspire’s employees with the opportunity to participate in a training programme in Prague in the Czech Republic, fulfilling the foundation’s aim to further enhance staff competences in various fields. The foundation affirmed that finding funds to support training costs is a struggle, especially due to the fact the Inspire is an NGO, thus such funding opportunities are vital to covering training and logistical costs.
Paula Doumanov, chief services officer of Inspire, participated in the Erasmus+ mobility experience. She was inspired to do so primarily since it was a unique opportunity for the team to step out from its daily routine and to get to know each other at a higher level whilst networking with entities from various countries. Furthermore, the training took place in Prague, a city she had never been to and this allowed her to explore new cultures. She firmly believes that the knowledge gained from this experience is transferable and useful in both her professional and personal life.
The mobility involved training in emotional intelligence (how to identify, harness and manage emotions). There was a mix of both practical and theoretical components which were great to share with colleagues back at Inspire upon their return. The experiential exercise provided the opportunity to develop emotional tools which allow for better and more effective leadership skills, and the training was delivered in a fun and interactive manner. The Inspire staff gained new competences including understanding the importance of emotional intelligence at the workplace and the factors influencing behaviour and feelings in various situations.
In this current Erasmus+ Programming period (2014-2020), adult education organisations also had the opportunity to apply for projects under Strategic Partnerships, with the aim to support the development and implementation of innovative practices, as well as the implementation of joint initiatives on a European level. Over the lifetime of the project (maximum 36 months), a range of activities can be executed including activities to promote the integration of refugees and activities that address innovative practices in the field of education, training and youth.
A project under Adult Education Strategic Partnerships which stood out in this programming period is the Supporting Migrant Inclusion in Lifelong Learning and Education (SMILE), a 26-month project awarded in 2017 and implemented by the Foundation for Shelter and Support for Migrants (FSM). Dr Ahmed Bugri, managing director, shares that the foundation was inspired to apply for a strategic partnership due to the educational situation migrants were facing at the time and because the foundation firmly believes that effective education is critical in the inclusion of migrants and third-country nationals within society.
A key element of the project was to develop resources to help all those who, whether in a formal or a non-formal manner, are supporting migrants to lifelong learning including policymakers, education institutes, teachers, and migrant organisations which can provide good learning opportunities. The project was innovative as it brought the inclusion of migrants in adult education into the spotlight and developed tools that will ultimately assist those who are already striving for inclusion in compulsory education. An important element which brought about added value was that all the project partners were migrant-led NGOs connected to learning institutes.
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A key result of the project was the creation of three ECTS-accredited study units on migrant inclusion in Lifelong Learning (Level 5) developed in collaboration with the Learning Support Unit and Student Liaison Manager at MCAST, for teachers of Further Education. Through this project, the foundation acquired new skills and competences in cross-cultural counselling in adult education, while also building strategic relationships with other organisations engaged in adult education in southern Europe. In addition, this project also increased the access beneficiary migrant communities have to adult education and employment in Malta.
As the current Erasmus+ programming period is coming to an end, the European Union Programmes Agency is preparing to launch the new programming period (2021-2027). A feature in the new programming period will be Erasmus accreditation, a tool which will enable organisations to gain simplified access to Key Action 1-funding opportunities under the future programme. The deadline to submit an Erasmus Accreditation is noon on October 29, 2020.
For further information, kindly contact the European Union Programmes Agency on eupa@gov.mt, or by calling on 2558 6132. Alternatively, visit http://eupa.org.mt/.
Trends within the Erasmus+ adult education sector 2014-2020
Overview mobility of individuals
- Budget awarded: €250,663
- Number of projects awarded: 17
- Number of participants: 125
Overview strategic partnerships
- Budget awarded: €3,196,705.19
- Number of projects awarded: 15
- Number of participants: 247
(Statistics might change as projects are still ongoing)