Page 126 - Guiding-at-risk-youth-through-learning-to-work-Lessons-from-across-Europe

Guiding at-risk youth through learning to work
Lessons from across Europe

and creativity), necessary to cope with the uncertain employment paths of today’s
societies (Schoof, 2006). An evaluation from the US has also highlighted that
youth entrepreneurship programmes have been particularly effective at keeping
students from low-income urban backgrounds on the academic track and can be
a significant force in driving them towards high achievement and leadership
(United Nations, 2000).
Secondary school level entrepreneurship education programmes have been
found in Austria, Belgium (Flanders), the former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland,
Slovakia, Slovenia and the UK.
A number of these projects involve mentors or volunteers from business,
who young people may be able to identify with as role models. The opportunity to
test out their own entrepreneurial ideas through initiatives which allow young
people to set up their own business, may also provide them with the inspiration to
pursue this as a career option. It can also support them in gaining skills and
qualities important in the world of work and, for those that are interested in doing
so, it can provide them with the knowledge and skills required to set up their own
business.
Further, across Europe, innovative projects funded through ESF and through
the Equal initiative (Theme C) have shown that entrepreneurship can offer people
from disadvantaged groups a route out of social exclusion. Enterprise can also
be a way for young people at risk to make the transition to the labour market, as
demonstrated by the success of the Prince’s Trust in the UK, which provides
business start-up support to young people who have a business idea. The aim of
setting up a business may provide at-risk young people with the sense of
direction they need to engage again with learning and, for some, may represent a
relevant alternative to formal education.

6.3.4. Vocational training as a valued study path
There is evidence that vocationally-oriented training pathways can encourage
young people to remain in or return to formal education (Cedefop, 2009c) and
there is an increasing interest in such programmes across Europe. For young
learners who are less interested in traditional, academic study routes and prefer
a ‘learning by doing’ approach, it is important that they are able to access
alternative forms of learning, including vocational qualifications. Vocational
qualifications usually include on-the-job training, enabling young people to work
with employers and build effective relationships, as well as allowing them to learn
and practice new skills in an authentic working environment.

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