Second Survey School and WOW.pdf

WORKING GROUP: SCHOOL
III.2.4. Innovative examples from schools
Austria
A special resent development is the so called “new comprehensive middle school” (“Neue
Mittelschule”) in Austria, as an innovative approach to find a way behind the early selection of
young people after nine and the half year into two school pathways.
There is a complex and differentiated program behind this new school type, starting with the
school year 2008/2009 – in nearly all provinces of Austria at about 65 places. Detailed
information are described within the official documents of the bm:ukk and the Expert
Commission of the Austrian Federal Government.
Denmark
At vocational schools students at some courses are working at the school with projects like
„create your own business“. These projects enhance students’ ability to understand the
complexity of the life in a business and that many different job roles can be involved in every
type of business. Apart from teaching the students specific competences as, for example
business administration, the students also gain insights into many other areas of the business
life – e.g. development, sale and production
Finland
The objective of cooperation between the school and the working and business communities is
that the pupil obtains information about vocational fields, vocations, and working life and
acquires ideas for entrepreneurial activity. Introduction‐to‐working‐life periods are to be
organised for the pupils as a basis for their educational and occupational choices, and to
enhance their respect for work. The pupil must be able to gain personal experience with
working life and vocations in genuine work environments. In connection with the introduction
to working life, the pupils are to be given a chance to evaluate the information and experience
they have acquired. The curriculum is to include a plan for arrangements for the introduction
to working life.
Germany
School firms are a form of vocational orientation which have developed in the last years,
especially in the secondary one school forms (Hauptschule, Realschule). The concept of the
school firm is not new but today, it gains more importance. The development of a school firm
at a school depends more or less on the initiative of single teachers or school classes. Some
good examples and discussions can be found on the internet source of the conference “School,
economy, sustainability – strengthen the weak” which took place in 2006 (dbu.de).
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