Description
Within the PLAY YOUR SKILLS project the approach followed is not gamification of VET content, it is the "VET-ification" of gaming. The project suggests the development of a pure mobile gaming app with all attracting features of classical successful mobile games. In the background, this app is collecting and analysing key competences of young people with fewer opportunities such as literacy, numeracy, spatial thinking, stress resistance, problem solving skills etc. Finally, the app can develop a key competence portfolio for a player while s/he is simply playing a mobile gaming app.
At certain stages, the mobile gaming app will then be able to approach the player and try to open a communication window with the VET system, with guidance and counselling experts developing the first loose ties to a system which they have totally lost before.
Beneficiaries
Young people with fewer opportunities sharing the common status of NEETs who need to be motivated to take part in Vocational Education and Training (VET) or at least get into touch with VET.
Level of implementation / Scope
Stage of implementation
Since 2019. Project duration from October 2019 to September 2021 (24 months).
Project duration from October 2019 to September 2021 (24 months).
Aims of policy/initiative
The main aim and result of the project is the development, testing and mainstreaming of a mobile gaming app which has the following core tasks:
- Motivate people with fewer opportunities (NEETs) to take part in vocational education (at least get in contact with guidance and counselling services from VET providers).
- Raise the self-esteem and self-awareness of NEETs in an immediate and substantial way.
- Raise the confidence of NEETs in the competences they already have, even if dropped out from education and VET systems (competence portfolio).
- Inform the NEETs about their vocational opportunities and bridging to VET counselling services in the local area of the target group members.
Features and types of activities implemented
- The Play your Skills Research Study - a research study to better understand the motivation factors of the target group as well as crucial key competences required in the labour market and in VET which could be implemented, developed and tested through a mobile gaming app. Available in all partner languages.
- The Play your Skills Mobile Gaming App - a mobile gaming app which is highly attractive for NEET users providing the identified motivation factors like rewards, social prestige and competition and at the same time development and validation of key competences and building of a key competence portfolio for the player. Available in all partner languages.
- The Play your Skills Guidelines for VET Staff - a guideline for VET staff, counselling and guidance experts to apply the mobile gaming app as a first communication and interaction tool with a target group that has lost all communication connection to the VET system.
Resources
Total Grant = 280.491,00 EUR
7 organisations in 6 countries involved
Staff altogether involved in the project = 16
Coordinator: Jugend am Werk Steiermark GmbH, AT
Partners: ENTER GmbH, AT; Consorzio CO&SO, IT; Future in Perspective Limited, IE; Centro de Formación Somorrostro, ES; Otto-von-Guericke-Universitaet, DE; Factor Social, PT
Erasmus+ | KA2 - Strategic Partnerships | Project no. 2019-1-AT01-KA202-051241
Evaluation of the measure
Not yet available, the project is ongoing.
Evidence of effectiveness of the measure
Not yet available, the project is ongoing.
Success factors
The innovative factors of the project and its outputs can be defined on the following levels:
a) Beneficiaries:
The Play Your Skills project has developed a proposal that is fun and includes attractive elements like competition, speed, social rewards and does not seem at all like learning, so it is motivating and tailored to the needs of young NEETs.
b) Technology:
The mobile gaming app in the Play Your Skills project offers the appropriate technology to benefit and engage young NEETs. The app is not gamification but actual gaming.
c) Introduction of tracking possibilities:
While offering a pure gaming app in the front end, the Play Your Skills app will use all available technological possibilities of tracking in the back. The app will collect information about reactions, spatial orientation, literacy and numeracy skills of users under the aim to develop a competence portfolio of the users.
d) Sector independence:
With the Play Your Skills project and the gaming app, a way to engage
NEETs can be offered and slowly grow their engagement in learning, self- development, raise the personal self-esteem and motivation. This will happen completely independently from any specific VET sector or topic. The main aim of the project and the app is to reach NEETs and develop ties in the best possible way. For this reason, the app can be used by every VET organisation, counselling or guidance organisation, even labour market institution or youth organisation, independently from sectors or training focus.
e) European dimension, transferability and exploitability:
The Play Your Skills project deals with a subject and topic and offers a solution which is similarly innovative and needed in all European countries (and beyond). This overarching geographical innovation makes the transfer, exploitation and sustainable use of the intellectual outputs very easy and raises the impact of the whole project considerably. With the Play Your Skills project there is the advantage that the problem with involvement and engagement of NEETs is similar and overall urgent in all European countries and the habits of using mobile technology and mobile gaming (including access to hardware and broadband, etc.) is also similar in the European countries.
Overall, the most innovative potential of the PLAY YOUR SKILLS project is the paradigm shift from a quite well and at least widely used gamification of VET content to a "VETification" of mobile gaming, which may be proved an efficient way to reach out to and motivate young NEETs.
