The Foundation for the Development of the Education System in partnership with the Educational Research Institute are carrying out the project A chance – New opportunities for adults. The project is in line with the 2016 Council recommendation on upskilling pathways: new opportunities for adults; it is jointly financed by the European Social Fund and will be completed at the end of 2021.
The main goal of the project is to support adults with a low level of skills, knowledge and competences who are not eligible for support under the Youth guarantee. The selected target groups are:
- employees (especially from small and medium-sized enterprises);
- unemployed or inactive adults;
- adults from disadvantaged areas (rural areas, small towns and/or post-industrial municipalities);
- people above 50;
- immigrants;
- adults with intellectual physical and/or sensorial disabilities;
- adults affected by abuse (e.g. physical, mental).
The project will offer beneficiaries flexible opportunities to improve their literacy, numeracy, digital and social competences, and an option to progress to higher levels of the Polish qualifications framework. These objectives will be achieved by developing effective models which will reach and motivate individuals from the selected target groups, and by offering them tailored-made learning programmes, skills assessment and validation of achieved learning outcomes.
The project A chance - New opportunities for adults comprises three phases:
- the first phase includes qualitative research and analysis of current initiatives (e.g. projects, surveys, reports, strategy documents), the selection of priority target groups and the development of specifications and requirements for tailored models supporting adults with a low level of basic skills;
- the second phase will focus on the development of these tailored models by eligible entities chosen in an open call for grants; the best ones will be piloted;
- the third phase will focus on preparing recommendations to the government to be used in developing coherent strategies for raising adults’ basic skills. They will include conclusions from the piloted models and will cover such aspects as the effectiveness of pilot projects, the cost effectiveness of the intervention, and best practices.
The first phase of the project was recently completed, while the call for grants for eligible entities to develop models supporting adults was announced in October 2019.