Methodology for Sustainable Learning Programs

The rapid shift towards a climate-neutral Europe and digital transformation is changing the way people work, learn, take part in society and lead their everyday lives. As the European Skills Agenda set, Europe can only grasp these opportunities if its people develop the right skills. The Covid-19 pandemic has also had a profound impact on millions of people in the EU who have lost their job or experienced significant income loss. Many will need to acquire new skills and move to new jobs in different sectors of the economy. More will need to upskill to keep their job in a new work environment. Flexible responses are requested from VET systems, with appropriate methodologies to foster resilience and responsiveness to changing societal and labour market needs. VET providers play a fundamental role in this scenario: as stressed by the Council Recommendation of 24 November 2020 on VET for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience (2020/C 417/01), high-quality and innovative VET systems provide people with skills for work, personal development and citizenship, which help them to adapt to and deliver on the twin digital and green transitions, to cope with emergency situations and economic shocks, while also supporting economic growth and social cohesion.

This Methodology for Sustainable Learning Programs, developed in the scope of the PI-VET (Powering the Innovation of VET) Project, Cooperation Partnership co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, aims to support VET teachers and trainers through a set of resources and guidelines to develop learning programs that are inclusive, digital, green, and more responsive to societal and labour market needs. The contents of this publication seek to:
• support the reform of vocational education and training providers toward more inclusive practices, empowering them to innovate their pedagogical approaches and learning materials to meet the learning needs of diverse VET learner groups, as well as enhance skills for digital transformation for both VET providers and learners, and support the integration of environmental-friendly means of teaching and training;
• support the development of VET systems that are proactive and flexible in supporting broader innovations for social and environmental sustainability objectives and support the involvement of all the stakeholders who have an interest in quality and innovation in VET in shaping VET Provision, in order to anticipate skill needs of fast-changing labour market scenarios.