TOY - Trainers Online for Youth
This is a reference for Jonathan Robertson
Finding the Element in Erasmus+ is a training course for youth workers to discover their Element through exploring and learning how to help young people to find their Element within Erasmus+. This training course is a concept built around the publications of the inspiring educationalist Ken Robinson. Ken is well-known for his books, TED talks and his thought-provoking and motivational speeches.
The Element is the point at which your personal passions and natural talents meet. When someone is in their Element they are at their most effective and also their most fulfilled.
Erasmus+ offers young people unique international opportunities to develop their passions and build their skills and employability. This training course focuses on how youth workers and youth leaders can find their Element in the Erasmus+ programme – and how they can then support young people in finding theirs.
Participating countries: The course involved participants from the Netherlands (hosting), Italy, Poland, United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece and Belgium. The language of the training course was English.
The hosting team was Dutch.
The trainers were 2 from the UK and one from Greece.
Our training will be focused very much on experiential learning and applying non-‐formal education methodologies and practices. Through this participants will increase their understanding of the potential of non-‐formal educational approaches at both a personal and intercultural level. Through creating a positive and participatory learning experience and environment participants will actively be engaged in fostering mutual understanding of similarities and differences. The professional and cultural exchanges between participating individuals is fundamental to building tolerance, understanding as well as bridges for future collaborations.
Finding the Element Within looks to enhance the competences and quality of the work of youth workers both at a national and international level. Through working with this target group we will construct a positive and innovative methodology that can be utilised in enhancing and promoting the benefits of international cooperation, learning activities and the impact of youth work through Erasmus+.
Participants on ‘Finding the Element Within’ will firstly explore their own Element and find out about the impact that being in their Element can have on them. They will look deeper and discover the Erasmus+ Programme and locate themselves, their organisations and their young people within it. They will continue through learning how to help the young people they work with to find their Element through Erasmus+.
The training will have a positive impact on those working with young people through their participation they will develop a greater understanding of who they are and their passions, talents, natural abilities and strengths in working with Erasmus+ and young people. This will then be transferred to the young people they work with increasing their potential for active citizenship and building their capacity and awareness of their strengths and areas for development for life, the labour market and civic competences -‐ a holistic, person-‐centred approach to employability.
By the end of the training course participants:
- had a deeper understanding of their Element;
- knew how finding the Element can benefit their work and projects;
- had increased knowledge of the Erasmus+ programme and how to best use it;
- had plans for how their organisations can work within and find their Element in Erasmus+ and relationships with new organisations from different countries to work with;
- had new tools, skills and confidence to be able to support those they work with to find their Element in Erasmus+ and develop their employability.
The core team behind Finding Your Element in Erasmus+ was 4 people. Together we co-created the idea. I was involved particularly in creating a document for partners and participants and helping writing the application to Erasmus+. The team continued to plan together in the build-up to the training. During the training the training team of 3 shared the delivery of the course - and the evaluation afterwards.