OPPORTUNITY
through
MOBILITY
Using the Leonardo da Vinci programme to
engage with unemployed youth
Lorraine Lockyer
Senior Manager
EIL Ltd
UK
www.eiluk.org
About EIL:
• Cultural and educational charity with
a 70 year history
• Part of an international federation
with 22 members across the world
• Working in the Youth in Action
programme since 1996 (EVS)
• Working in the Lifelong Learning
Programme since 2008
Our aims:
• break down barriers to mutual
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understanding and increasing cultural
awareness
empower and equip people, particularly
young people and disadvantaged groups,
as agents of pro-active change within local
communities
Provide opportunities for experiential
learning, training and cultural exchange.
Our Leonardo Participants:
• Unemployed
• Homeless
• Sometimes unskilled/low
educational level
• Disadvantage in some way
(“Youth in Action” describes
them as ‘fewer opportunities’)
"Young people with fewer opportunities" are
young people that are at a disadvantage
compared to their peers because they face
one or more challenging situations or
obstacles. (EU’s Youth in Action definition)
In certain contexts, these situations/obstacles
prevent young people from having effective
access to formal and non-formal education,
trans-national mobility and from participation,
active citizenship, empowerment and inclusion in
society at large.
The challenges:
• Economic obstacles (e.g. unemployed, low
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income, low standard of living)
Educational difficulties (e.g. low or non- qualified,
left school early)
Social obstacles (e.g. facing discrimination, exoffenders, limited social skills, substance misuse,
single parents)
Disabled or facing health problems
Cultural difference
Geographic obstacles (e.g. young people from
remote, rural or hilly areas, living on small
islands or peripheral regions, urban problem
zones, less serviced areas with limited public
transport, poor facilities, abandoned villages...
etc.
Potential difficulties of working
with unemployed youth:
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Maybe not used to getting up in the morning!
Maybe not used to having a routine or structure
Maybe not used to team work or group dynamics
Maybe not used to discipline or accepting
orders/instruction
May find the physical/mental work very tiring
Additional challenges:
• Communication problems (limited
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language skills)
Culture shock – a sense of confusion,
discomfort, disorientation, and uncertainty
felt by those exposed to a different
cultural environment (apart from being in
a new country, each work place has it’s
own ‘culture’, too!) N.B. - even people
who are used to travelling can experience
culture shock
Symptoms of culture shock:
• Physical illness (headaches, insomnia or
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sleeping more than normal, upset
stomach, etc) – stress suppresses the
immune system + new diet and routine
Emotional symptoms - feeling home sick,
isolated, withdrawn, irrational anger
Very negative about the new culture
Frustration at the inability to communicate
So how do we face these
difficulties and challenges?
• GOOD COMMUNICATION BETWEEN
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PARTNERS THROUGHOUT PROJECT
GOOD SUPPORT MECHANISM FOR
PARTICIPANTS BEFORE, DURING AND
AFTER THE PLACEMENT
FLEXIBILITY AND ADAPTABILITY TO
RESPOND TO PARTICIPANT’S NEEDS
We need to have a genuine desire to help this
target group as well as having patience and a
sense of humour!
Ideas for motivating and preparing
participants:
• Regular meetings / contact before departure
• Get them used to taking some responsibility for
their own learning – give them ‘projects’ to
research and share with the group e.g. customs
and traditions of the host country, information
about the host city, find and translate 20 slang
words/phrases … this is ‘discovery learning’
methodology and part of the cultural/language
prep – get them to take ownership of THEIR
placement
• If it’s possible, try and set up a visit to a similar
work placement near home for a day (or more?)
of ‘work experience’
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• Keep them engaged - Email them regularly with
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bits of interesting information about the
placement / host country – always end with a few
specific questions to get them to respond to the
email (then you know they have received it and
hopefully have read it!)
Keep it ‘fun and interesting’! Meetings can include
team-building games and communication games
Stress the positive outcomes as well as warning
that they will also face some challenges (such as
culture shock)
The rewards we usually see:
• Development of essential life skills =>
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Social skills
Communication skills
Team working
Problem solving
Time management
Travelling to/in a foreign country
Ability to function in a foreign country to some degree
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Self confidence
Self esteem
Motivation
Positive attitude
Intercultural competence
Emotional Intelligence
Independence
• Personal development =>
(We call these ‘affective learning outcomes’)
Things to remember:
• ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’ !!
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Leonardo is an effective tool to skill up
unemployed youth, but it is part of a long
journey for these participants. You don’t
always see the benefits immediately
Affective learning outcomes are very
difficult to measure and may take months
or even years to become apparent
It is useful to combine Leonardo with
other EU funded programmes such as EVS
or Youth Exchange
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