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Stay up to date with the latest developments and milestones of eWBL (Work-based learning) project.
The Slovenian Master Training on Digital Work-based Learning is finalised
The Slovenian eWBL (electronic work-based learning) capacity building programme has been delivered in a series of interactive sessions; one onsite and four online sessions taking place from 15 April to 10 May 2024. At the beginning of an on-site workshop on 15 April 2024, University of Ljubljana hosted the Monika Govekar Okoliš and Ivan Svetlik, who are co-authors of the Handbook on Work-Based Learning in the Slovenian Context published in 2023. Monika Govekar Okoliš and Ivan Svetlik are both full professors at the University, with extensive experience in researching WBL.
The master training programme in the form of online sessions led by prof. dr. Tomaž Deželan and a preparation phase with Samantha Carty from Momentum was met with great interest by key stakeholders from the University of Primorska, the University of Maribor, the University of Nova Gorica and the University of Ljubljana. The participants, who already had extensive experience in the field of WBL, were eager and highly motivated to expand their knowledge on the topic - how to implement effective eWBL programmes in their institutions or improve WBL with new techniques. The wealth of experience was evident in their feedback and discussions during the sessions.
The online sessions were designed as interactive workshops and discussions where participants shared their practises and views through the exercises (mostly held in the break rooms) and solved the tasks given to them by the master trainers.
All eWBL phases (design, preparation, onboarding, implementation, evaluation and quality assurance) were covered with the aim of giving participants as detailed an insight as possible into digital WBL, with a focus on the differences with on-site WBL.
In particular, UL emphasised topics that are more interesting for the Slovenian situation, as there is still room for improvement: e.g. preparation of students before the start of WBL, structured monitoring of students by HEI mentors or coordinators and company mentors, weekly feedback, the introduction of the buddy system, safety measures in the workplace, checking the mental and social well-being of students during the implementation of eWBL.
In addition, communication between stakeholders and the importance of acquiring some digital skills in a design and preparation phase were also emphasised.
To make the training more attractive, UL invited a guest speaker from a well-known Slovenian IT company to explain the onboarding process from a corporate perspective.
The capacity building program adheres to the phases of effective eWBL design and implementation outlined in the eWBL project: design, preparation, onboarding, delivery, assessment, and quality assurance. While the eWBL Toolkit and eWBL Training Program served as primary resources, they were further tailored and enriched with additional materials to suit the Slovenian context.
While the eWBL toolkit and the eWBL training programme served as primary resources, they were further adapted and enriched with additional materials to suit the Slovenian context.
In total, 22 participants from Slovenia met the expectations and fulfilled all mandatory obligations to receive the Certificate of Participation for successful participation in the Master Training on digital WBL within the Erasmus+ eWBL project. Most of them stated that their main motive was to acquire and improve new skills and knowledge in this field.
The impact of such a capacity-building programme proved to be very valuable and necessary for Slovenia. The networking, the different perspectives of the participants in the exercises and sessions and the feedback from people working in the field of eWBL at different Slovenian universities showed that there is still a lot of room for improvement.
Some of the challenges raised on how to further improve WBL and eWBL in Slovenia were taken into consideration. The next opportunity to address them will be our event in Slovenia planned in November 2024, where eWBL project finalised results will be available.
Some thoughts from the participants:
“Really well prepared workshops. All credit to you”
“It is good that WBL is slowly gaining importance and relevance in the curricula in this way (not just as a marginal part of the curriculum to be completed), but it requires a rethink in terms of structure, organisation, planning, delivery methods, how to bring different stakeholders and organisations/environments together to make WBL more visible and of higher quality so that it has a greater impact on graduates' skills when they enter the labour market”
“Although digital WBL is not relevant in my field, I learnt some aspects that I could still usefully integrate into my teaching practise”
“I learnt that we need to strengthen the role of the HEI mentor throughout the placement. In this way, many difficulties faced by students can be avoided”
“I realised that even the forms of WBL that cannot be fully transferred to an online format can be at least partially implemented or at least supported by eWBL”
“I have gained a more structured view of the organisation of WBL”.