NATIONAL NETWORK OF COUNSELORS AND COUNSELLING STRUCTURES - ICT WEB FORUM “IRIDA”
Name of the good/interesting practice/initiative/policy
NATIONAL NETWORK OF COUNSELORS AND COUNSELLING STRUCTURES - ICT WEB FORUM “IRIDA”
Country
Greece
I am proposing that this example will be published also in the KSLLL database
No
1. Background
What makes this an example of good/interesting practice/initiative/policy?
- The motivation of the initiative (What is the history/background of the policy?)
- Linkages with LLG policy priorities (Please add references to other national/EU policies or documents)
- Participants
The ICT web forum IRIDA is the electronic communication platform of the Greek Lifelong Guidance Forum.
The development of a network and electronic communication platform targeted to guidance practitioners was implemented in 2007 by the National Centre for Vocational Orientation (EKEP). Following a Ministerial Decision in 2011, the National Organization for the Certification of Qualifications and Career Guidance (EOPPEP) has incorporated all the responsibilities previously carried out by EKEP.
The motivation of the initiative was to develop a forum of dialoque and consultation on important issues of LLG in order to promote cooperation and coordination of career guidance counselors and services of the public and private sectors in national, regional and local levels according to the 4th priority set by the 2008 EU resolution on life long career guidance.
Through the coordination of all career guidance stakeholders of both the public and private sectors a certain complimentarity of actions is achived together with better exploitation of financial and human resources with ultimate result the improvement of quality of career guidance provision
The project is linked to the following LLG policy priorities: Quality, Coordination and Cooperation and Access.
The initiative is part of EOPPEP’s responsibilities as a National Euroguidance Center. For its operation, many European good practices of networking are taken in account, as well as CEDEFOP’s study "Establishing National Lifelong Guidance Forums».
Aims and targets
- Objectives of the initiative (What did the policy set out to achieve?)
- Target group
- Methods applied to reach the objective (technological and /or pedagogical)
The aim of the platform is to connect all services providing career guidance at national regional and local levels, including:
Centres for Career Guidance (KESYPs)" that operate in the capitals of the prefectures under the juristiction of the Ministry of Education
Centers for Promotion to Employment operating within the Greek Public Employment Services.
Career offices in tertiary education
Career guidance services of the private sector: (The Centers of Life Long Learning (KDVM) (former Vocational Training Centers), The Private Job Finding Offices and The Temporary Job Enterprises
Social partners’ guidance structures.
The target group is mainly the Career Guidance Counselors of the public and private sector that work in the above services, who need to get informed and exchange ideas concerning issues of career guidance services in national and european level.
The initiative is the result of a fertile collaboration between its coordinator (EKEP and now EOPPEP) and an important number of career guidance centers.
The platform is designed as an ICT interface. It consists of an information data base and a dialogue interface, accessed only by subscribed users. It is controlled and supported by an administrator and several moderators.
The subscribed users of the platform are trained by the tool itself.
2. Implementation
Strategy and actions (Please describe the approach adopted to make the reform work and any actions taken.)
- Level of implementation (national, regional etc.)
- Implementation (description)
For the implementation of the forum, the following actions have been undertaken:
• Definition of platform’s stakeholders and needs by EOPPEP
• Collaboration among the stakeholders and EOPPEP’s Career Guidance Directorate for the subjects to be discussed in the platform
• Design and implementation of the platform by an ICT company (EPAFOS) in collaboration with EOPPEP
• Testing of the platform by EOPPEP
• Creation of platform users’ accounts
The development of the platform is completed and the instruction of moderators is under way. The platform is about to be presented to the public afterwhich its official operation will start.
The communication among IRIDA users will be in a national, regional and local level.
Monitoring and evaluation
- What has been put in place for monitoring and evaluation?
- What actors are involved?
EOPPEP has the role of scientific and ethical supervision of the web forum. Moreover it facilitates the active participation to the platform of all represantatives and stakeholders of career guidance services of the education, VET and employment sectors including social partners and users of the career guidance services. The contribution of the forum to the improvement of quality of career guidance services will be evaluated by EOPPEP
EOPPEP is responcible for the promotion of the platform to the public and of the technical maintenance
3. Outcomes
Achievements (Please describe the main outcomes/results according to the following headings. Each option can be answered - up to 50 words)
- Specific results
- Cost effectiveness
- Budget
- Innovative aspects
Specific results: The platform will give to its users (counselors of the Career Guidance Centers (KESYPs) of the ministry of education, Career Offices of the Universities, Centers for Promotion to Employment (KPAs) of the Greek Manpower Organization (OAED) of the Ministry of Labour etc) the possibility to communicate to each other, to exchange ideas, practices and knowledge, to discuss various subjects (e.g. career management skills, european dimension in career guidance etc) to raise questions etc thus promoting the cooperation and coordination of all career guidance stakeholders.
Cost effectiveness: The cost effectiveness is high since the complimentarity of actions, the dissemination of innovative policies and good practices and the exchange of information on available services, training opportunities, awareness seminars and scientific conferences will promote both the coordination and better access to career guidance services, all of which result in the improvement of quality in career guidance provision for the sake of its users.
In financial terms there will be reduced costs as the communication is evolved by economical means, i.e. mail and internet instead of high budget live meetings. Through the coordination of LLG activities, the cost of parallel and similar policies is eliminated.
Budget: Since the platform was developed in the framework of another ICT tool (Interactive Internet Portal for Adolescents) it had no cost. However, it will require annual technical maintenance.
Innovative aspects: Irida is the first and only web forum connecting career guidance counselors and services of the public and private sectors in national, regional and local levels. It is an easy to learn and use tool that stimulates cooperation and coordination of policies, projects and actions and promotes dialogue and exchange of opinions on issues relating to guidance practice..
Success factors (What key success factors have led to or prevented success?)
- Lessons learnt
- Unintended impacts (Have there been any unintended impacts? Positive or negative?)
The forum’s development and improvement is a continuing procedure. EOPPEP has a daily relation with interested stakeholders in a formal (cooperation contracts) or informal way (phone contacts).
Its successful design and implementation is based mainly to the collaboration among stakeholders and to the consultation provided by EOPPEP.
Strengths and weaknesses
- What areas of the policy can we learn lessons from?
- Are there still challenges ahead?
The initiative can encourage cooperation on specific activities of the participants. They can have lot of benefits as described above .
The platform can inform career guidance counselors about several themes like career guidance tools and methods, career management Skills, quality assurance in career Guidance , career development of practitioners, seminars and conferences in Greece and abroad, ect.
The tool is interactive. The users can upload questions and answers on interesting issues. The practitioners can actively participate in conversations and get updated on innovative tools and methods. They can also make changes in their electronic profile.
In order to access the platform they need to create an account, after a relative application to EOPPEP.
EOPPEP is responsible for the coordination and the support of the platform, through a team work of internal users (moderators and administrator).
The biggest challenge for the forum is to become a strong and active mean of communication that will be accepted and widely used by all career guidance stakehloders.
4. Additional narrative description of the policy/practice/initiative
Additional information
Name of contact
Fotini Vlachaki, (MSc) Manager of the Directorate of Career Guidance of EOPPEP - Dimitrios Gaitanis (PhD) Head of the Department of Scientific Support of Career Guidance Counselors and Services
Role (in policy initiative)
COORDINATORS
Organization name
EOPPEP - NATIONAL ORGANISATION FOR THE CERTIFICATION OF QUALIFICATIONS AND CAREER GUIDANCE
Address
41, ETHNIKIS ANTISTASEOS AVE. 14234 ATHENS GREECE
Phone
+30 210 2709172-7
Fax
+30 210 2709178
guidance@eoppep.gr
Website address
http://guidanceforum.eoppep.gr/
Documents and publications
Attached files
Links
http://guidanceforum.eoppep.gr/
This information was provided/updated by:
Dimitris Gaitanis and Marina Katsimani, department of scientific support of career guidance counselors and services.
No comments by users.
good practice, initiative, interesting practice, policy, career guidance services, cooperation, coordination, data base, information, network, ICT, quality, co-operation, co-ordination, Greece
The Hungarian LLG Council and LLG System development
Name of the good/interesting practice/initiative/policy
The Hungarian LLG Council and LLG System development
Country
Hungary
I am proposing that this example will be published also in the KSLLL database
No
1. Background
What makes this an example of good/interesting practice/initiative/policy?
- The motivation of the initiative (What is the history/background of the policy?)
- Linkages with LLG policy priorities (Please add references to other national/EU policies or documents)
- Participants
In Hungary there is no official central ownership of guidance issues. While guidance activities and development are overseen by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour (Szociális és Munkaügyi Minisztérium), the Ministry of Education and Culture (Oktatási és Kulturális Minisztérium) is also a key actor in the field. However, the two ministries do not have a long term strategic agreement on the issue. On the other hand, neither the citizens, nor the employers have a clear idea of the aims, methods or the benefits of guidance, counselling and vocational orientation.
Since the establishment of the European Lifelong Guidance Policy Network (ELGPN) at EU level, national developments have pushed ahead. The Hungarian LLG Council (Nemzeti Pályaorientációs Tanács, NPT) was founded in January 2008 and in September of the same year a new national programme was launched in the framework of the Social Renewal Operational Programme (Társadalmi Megújulás Operatív Programja, TÁMOP) of the New Hungary Development Plan (Új Magyarország Fejlesztési Terv, ÚMFT) 2007-2013 which includes the development of a new national LL guidance network.
The national LLL strategy (2005) as well as the National Reform Programme (2008-2010) also specifies the development of some elements of career guidance activities but a policy document was elaborated by the new Hungarian LLG Council.
Aims and targets
- Objectives of the initiative (What did the policy set out to achieve?)
- Target group
- Methods applied to reach the objective (technological and /or pedagogical)
The main aim of the national council is to develop and promote a framework for lifelong guidance policy. The work of the council is strongly related with the national development programme for LLG System in Hungary. According the Hungarian Government decision (2007) this programme was designed for the 7 years period of the NSRF (2007-2013) and cover 22,6 millions EUR total. Within this main aim the subtasks are the followings:
1. unifying the meaning of career guidance within the educational and employment, social regulations in national level
2. re-establish and also reinterpretat policy mechanism in the field of career guidance after the 70’s
3. develop an unified regulation for career guidance and also develop the financing mechanism
4. develop a cross-sectoral common understanding in the field of lifelong guidance/ carrier education and career counselling
5. develop a web-based unified cadastre for career counselling professionals and for other professionals whose are working in related fields (i.e. teachers, social workers etc.)
6. develop unified guidelines for career counselling professionals
7. upskilling professionals for LLG
7a. offering in-service trainings at two different levels:
- for career counselling professionals
- and for professionals in the related fields
7b. develop tools for all age guidance
7c. publishing a new review (Életpálya Tanácsadás) for the professional community
7d. widening access for career guidance services as a common project of different stakeholders
2. Implementation
Strategy and actions (Please describe the approach adopted to make the reform work and any actions taken.)
- Level of implementation (national, regional etc.)
- Implementation (description)
SROP 2.2.2. under the professional supervision of the NPT implementing a numerous new features in the field of career guidance. The main items within the first 2 year-long period are:
- Development a new toolkit for career guidance professional (questioners for all-age services, web based databank)
- Get together the professionals and the related professionals of career guidance
- Provide in-service training for 2000 people whose working in related professions
- Provide 2 year-long post-graduate diploma for career guidance professionals as widening the network of trained professionals
- Develop a national and regional network of the professionals
The programme SROP 2.2.2 supports development in the areas of IT and methodology. In the area of IT development, the development of a new national guidance portal is envisaged, targeting the youth, adults and professionals/experts, with the aim of providing integrated, up to date, and user friendly information related to education and the labour market. The webpage would also offer a portal for the career guidance professionals, where they could reach all the information and tools regarding the project. It has four main functions:
- Social networking
- Knowledgebase
- Special functions: online storage of counselling case diaries, nameless statistical treatment of their facts, tools that make possible to analyse the offline questionnaires
Monitoring and evaluation
- What has been put in place for monitoring and evaluation?
- What actors are involved?
The first round of monitoring will be carried out in 2010 before than end of the first phase. Internal evaluation is must of the Hungarian Development Agency (NDA) and the National Agency of European Social Fund. Four internal evaluations are compulsory within these 2 years:
- May 2009
- October 2009
- May 2010
- December 2010
NDA and ESA Agency are monitoring the programme outcomes. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour will get a professional summery before the second programme proposal will be submitted to the National Development Agency Human Resources Managing Authority till June 2010.
Two independent external evaluations are also planed within this period.
- one in policy context,
- another for measuring the performance of the 50 career counsellors’ activates working in the programme
3. Outcomes
Achievements (Please describe the main outcomes/results according to the following headings. Each option can be answered - up to 50 words)
- Specific results
- Cost effectiveness
- Budget
- Innovative aspects
Project indicators and their status:
- Number of clients receiving guidance services - base: 30 000 persons/year, aim: 40 000 persons/year, status: achieved (2009)
- Trained persons (from the fields related to guidance) - base: 0, aim: 2000 persons, status: in progress
- Number of persons who successfully finished trainings - base: 0, aim: 1900 persons, status: in progress
- User satisfaction of clients included in guidance activities - base: N/A, aim: + 20%, status: in progress
- Persons attended in post-gradual trainings - base: 0, aim: 50 persons, status: achieved
- Newly developed occupation folders - base: 202, aim: 302, status: in progress
- Updated occupation folders - base: 172, aim: 222, status: in progress
- Newly developed training materials (and courses) - base: 0, aim: 10, status: achieved
- Newly developed occupation films - base: 344, aim: 364, status: in progress
- Unique visitors of the newly developed national guidance portal - base: 223 200 visitor/year, aim: 268 000 visitor/year, status: achieved (2009)
Budget: 2,08 Bn HUF - 7,8 M EUR - is to be used in the first 2 years.
Success factors (What key success factors have led to or prevented success?)
- Lessons learnt
- Unintended impacts (Have there been any unintended impacts? Positive or negative?)
A strong professional view of the programme management and the international developments (ie. EU Resolutions 2004, 2008, EU-OECD 2004. ILO 2006. UNESCO 2002 publications etc.) help in the implementation period.
Strengths and weaknesses
- What areas of the policy can we learn lessons from?
- Are there still challenges ahead?
Lack of evidence of the real economic impact of career guidance and a very segmented human resources development system make the ongoing development and further implementation very fragile. Lack of national resources for the maintaining of the ESA founded development is also an important issue, especially after 2013/2014 for the next development period (2014-2020) of the EU. A national level and cross-sectoral unfiled re-regulation of this field is essential for the success and the marinating of the developments.
4. Additional narrative description of the policy/practice/initiative
Additional information
Name of contact
Borbély-Pecze, Tibor Bors, NPT
Role (in policy initiative)
Secretary of NPT
Organization name
Nemzeti Pályaorientációs Tanács
Address
Nemzeti Pályaorientációs Tanács Titkársága Foglalkoztatási és Szociális Hivatal (Borbély-Pecze Tibor Bors, titkár) Budapest Kálvária tér 7. 1089 Hungary
Phone
+36.30.216.0095
Fax
+36.1.459.2099
beneiv@lab.hu; borbelytibor@lab.hu
Website address
http://internet.afsz.hu/engine.aspx?page=full_kulfoldi_palyaor_eu_magyar_llg_tanacs
Documents and publications
Attached files
- File: coordination anc cooperation HU NPT case.pdf (416 KB)
- File: Hungary policy statement - 2008 EN.pdf (287 KB)
Links
http://internet.afsz.hu/resource.aspx?resourceid=full_kulfoldi_palyaor_eu_magyar_llg_szakpol_ang
This information was provided/updated by:
BORBÉLY-PECZE Tibor Bors
No comments by users.
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