Proposal for Training Modules for In-Company Trainers

The importance of dual education for a smooth transition from education to work and the economic relevance of skilled crafts and trade professions are widely recognised at a political level. Yet, SMEs find it more and more difficult to get suitable apprentices. Today, an increased number of apprentices make part of marginalised groups, such as school dropouts, refugees and youngsters with learning disabilities. 

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BöschGmbH 2017

 

Within the DuALPlus project, a train-the- tutor programme was developed aiming at offering in-company tutors the opportunity to acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and competences to successfully address, motivate and accompany apprentices from highly diversified backgrounds in the course of their apprenticeships. So marginalised youngsters are given the chance to accomplish their apprenticeships successfully and training companies the possibility, to benefit from the qualified apprentices they trained.

 

Structure

The whole training concept consists of six not interrelated main modules, which can be trained each independently, as needed. Thus, the concept can be considered as a guideline for further vocational training providers for setting-up a new qualification measure/ further vocational training offer for in-company trainers in their regions. 

In the following, we outline the single modules; you can find a detailed description of each one in the linked report below. 

 

Module 1: How to approach apprentices successfully?

The intention is to enable in-company tutors to approach youngsters in an appropriate way with the appropriate language, in order to make them choose an apprenticeship in their company. It also trains in-company tutors in promoting their trade/ profession to youngsters and in conducting job interviews with them avoiding prejudices and misunderstandings.

 

Module 2: How to integrate migrants by apprenticeship?

The scope of this module is to sensitize in-company tutors for the special experiences and background migrants have had and the particular living conditions they have to face now in the new country. The module is intended to train intercultural awareness and understanding, overcoming language barriers, fostering language learning (particularly technical language) at the work place, avoiding misunderstandings and resolving conflicts arising out of those.

 

Module 3: How to deal with study drop-outs as apprentices?

By this module, the in-company tutors shall learn what differentiates study drop-outs from other apprentices and why they can be beneficial for companies and particularly successful in their apprenticeship. They learn how to approach them didactically and methodologically, how to motivate those best and how to communicate with them clearly and successfully. In particular, in-company tutors have to be careful not to give study drop-outs the feeling of having failed and that dual education is the second-best option. Quite the contrary, pursuing a career by dual education is an excellent alternative to an academic track with an almost as broad variety of career opportunities.

 

Module 4: How to support the learning process by a holistic approach to apprenticeship?

This module is intended to make in-company tutors familiar with pedagogic theory and how youngsters learn particularly in the context of an apprenticeship. Moreover, in-company tutors will learn how to support the individual learning processes of youngsters and young adults, particularly fostering also those with learning disabilities or learning problems, but also how to assess learning progress and give constructive and motivating feedbacks and prepare apprentices for the final examination.

 

Module 5: Fostering digital competences for in-company tutors

The scope of this module is to foster the digital skills of the in-company tutors so that they can make use of those for improving the training of the apprentices at the work place and beyond. As the current Covid-19-Crisis shows, the ability to use internet and other digital media in order to facilitate distance learning activities is becoming a crucial and distinctive competence for trainers and tutors.

 

Module 6: Assessment of learning processes during the apprenticeship

The intention of this module is to provide in-company tutors with basic pedagogic skills so they can set appropriate learning objectives for the practical training and monitor and assess the progress made by the apprentices.