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Youth Empowering Skills for the 21st Century
Start date: Sep 1, 2014, End date: Aug 31, 2016 PROJECT  FINISHED 

Educators throughout the world always have their students' best interests at heart when preparing their students for the future. Unfortunately, we as educators are not always able to keep up with the changing world and the competences that are required of us or our youth who will face the demands of the 21st century. Therefore, we as educators, together with our students, need to look for new ways to upgrade skills for employability. In a fast and changing world, our youth need competences that will not only help them to learn about these skills but will supply them with the opportunity to experience these first hand. The main objectives of our project, Y.E.S.-Youth Empowering Skills for the 21st Century will be concerned with investing in education and training to develop skills through social entrepreneurship and open and flexible learning. Students need to build more self-confidence through creativity, innovation, hard work, motivation, knowledge, communication and understanding. Transversal skills such as the ability to think critically, take initiative, problem solving and work collaboratively will prepare individuals for today's varied global labour market. However, our project will not have financial profits as the main goal, but will be concerned with creating a project, event or business that tries to find innovative solutions to economic and social problems by bringing the learning experience closer to the reality of the working environment. The participants in the project will work to create new contacts and collaboration with local, regional and European entrepreneurs. Involved in the project will be 110 16-19 year old students from upper secondary schools in Italy, Spain and Sweden including 10 -15 students with lesser opportunities. The activities included will be the process of creating innovative and entrepreneurial ideas with the help of teachers, mentors from the local communities, collaboration between participating schools to try and find what skills and competences are needed not only in their own countries but in a 21st C Europe. Interviews with local entrepreneurs will be conducted to establish what competences are needed to promote skills such as entrepreneurship, real-time problem solving and creative thinking. Comparisons and collaboration between countries concerning interview questions, ideas, etc will be conducted through ICT based tools and disseminated on the eTwinning-TwinSpace portal. The project will also include training and implementation of TBL-Thinking Based Learning methodology to enhance learning outcomes and the quality of teaching and learning. The results will be more valuable insight into the solving of social problems through social entrepeneurship, broadened collaboration with local and European mentors and coaches, increased collaboration between students in analysing the different steps involved in creating a SSR -Student Social Responsibility and recognition and experience of the skills needed.The creation of the Y.E.S. Handbook will help educators and other stakeholders by providing information and insight into the process of building SSR's, into building our students' creative and critical thinking skills (TBL) and by supplying examples of creative, innovative and responsible projects that will aid other organisations in working with and implementing student social entrepreneurship in their curriculum, schools and local community. The long term benefits for the students in the project will be the increase of self confidence as a result of the experiences which will lead to an individual who can meet and take part in a changing world with many challenges. Social and economic development are difficult to predict and the EU countries have different problems to cope with. The students will be educated and equipped to solve problems by themselves. Their innovative and critical thinking skills from the implemented project activities will remind them of how to act and work by taking initiatives when conditions are not as advantageous in the community or on an international level (EU). We are convinced that all students in the project will be equipped to meet possibilities and difficulties i.e. a new generation of self confident, empowered youngsters who can support themselves and others. Certainly, the Y.E.S.handbook will remind them of how to organise and interact with corporations and institutions for long term benefits.
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