About

Improving Upskilling Pathways and Increasing Lifelong Learning Opportunities for Adult Learners

On December 2016, the Council of the European Uniom adopted the Recommendation of Upskilling Pathways, an ambitious policy addressing the learning needs of many people in Europe to acquire a minimum level of literacy, numeracy and digital skills and acquire a broader set of skills towards an upper secondary qualification or equivalent.

People with low basic skills have fewer job chances and face a higher risk for poverty, worse health, they participate less in society, and have little sense of self-efficacy. This makes it absolutely necessary to increase participation in adult learning.

Mission

Partner UP aims at improving the implementation of Upskilling Pathways for the benefit of adult learners and increasing their participation in lifelong learning opportunities. The project not only targets a key feature of the Recommendation of Upskilling Pathways but also provides a crucial basis for the European Skills Agenda as it overlaps with other sectors but also will build on cooperations that are important for other areas of the Skills Agenda. It is also the basis for the Renewed Agenda for adult learning. The Agenda is the European policy for a comprehensive adult learning concept and strategy for Europe, which needs the basic skills approach of Upskilling Pathways, so close cooperation and alignment with the outcomes of the Partner UP project will make the most of the results.

Specific Objectives

Engage in peer learning with the other partners about what works well in their contexts/countries.
Analysis of existing and missing cooperation mechanisms and stakeholders.
Enable meetings between relevant stakeholders and agree on cooperations.
Develop implementation plans for further stakeholder engagement and cooperation.
Share experiences and outcomes of the project at the national level, in Europe, with relevant institutions and organisations.

Results

Stakeholder Analysis

Research and analysis will take place to identify gaps and opportunities in adult learning, as well as best practices to reach out and support adults with low qualifications.

Development Groups

Consultations will take place in partner countries with major stakeholders of adult learning to enhance cooperation, enable trust building and initiate a discussion on how to improve the implementation of Upskilling Pathways.

Study visits / peer learning

Online and face-to-face study visits with peer learning activities will take place during the project, aiming to the exchange of knowledge and best practices, get to know of different structures in partner countries and ways of engagement of the partners, stakeholders and the adult learners.

Implementation Plans

The project will develop Implementation, with road maps towards new cooperation mechanisms for the successful implementation of Upskilling Pathways, based on the previous results and actions of the project.

Methodology

The project design and implementation will be based on EAEA’s principles of project work:

Democracy and participation: The consortium will work together based on mutual respect, decisions made on an inclusive and democratic basis. Partners will be asked to give regular feedback and concerns will be vtaken into consideration.
Efficiency: At the same time, partners will be expected to be on time and provide results of high quality. If there are any problems in these areas, a solution will be found between EAEA and the partner, and if this does not work, with the whole consortium (see also the chapter on risks).
Sustainability and transferability: EAEA and our partners are interested in the project for their sustainability and transferability. All the projects that we are involved in can be applied and further developed for years to come. Projects that we have done in the areas of outreach and life skills are still hugely relevant, and the results have just been presented to the Parliament’s Working Group on adult learning.
Evidence-based: research and analysis provide the basis for the policy and practice work of the project
Achievability: the project will be a realistic balance between ambition and achievability. It makes no sense to prepare plans that are too difficult to implement, and neither should the consortium be satisfied with unambitious targets.
Flexibility: any project that brings together very different organisations and countries need to be based on flexibility. One size does not fit all is very true: each partner/country should be able to find the most appropriate solutions for their situation. The project is therefore a careful balance between defining common targets and activities.