LernLäden in Berlin. Your local centre for Guidance and Counselling for Education.

Transcription

1 LernLäden in Berlin Your local centre for Guidance and Counselling for Education

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3 1. Why is there a need for educational guidance and counselling? Nowadays it is not enough to have successfully completed an apprenticeship or initial vocational training. It is necessary for everyone, whether in employment or looking for a job, to continuously update and adapt their professional skills set to meet the changing needs of the job market. If you don t keep your foot on the ball, somebody else will score the goal. Gaining a firm foothold on the career ladder is always hard, but especially for people with only a basic level of education or those who lack any qualifications whatsoever. However, these are also less likely to take advantage of further education opportunities. Calls for a coherent strategy to promote learning throughout the life course lie at the heart of every job market policy, both at the EU and national level. Guidance and Counselling for Education is an integral part of the infrastructure supporting learning throughout the life course, and a topic increasingly in the spotlight of education experts. What does the individual have to gain from taking Guidance and Counselling for Education? It motivates those who seek it, and opens their eyes to different opportunities with pros and cons available. It helps the individual to take well-informed decisions which will shape their own personal educational and professional path, based on their abilities and needs. It empowers the individual to select the education programme that is right for them from the often confusing range of qualifications available. Guidance and Counselling for Education increases the likelihood that personal and financial investments they make in their education ultimately pays off for them. What does society have to gain from taking Guidance and Counselling for Education? It increases the overall rate of participation in (further) education programmes by advertising, motivating and informing as politically defined by the so-called Lisbon goals of the EU. It supports access and 2 nd chances as it specifically helps people who have a problematic educational or professional background. It helps by the integration in the labour market, and so contributes to reducing the long-term burden on the public purse by reducing the number of people living on social benefits. Guidance and Counselling for Education also increases the chances for older job-seekers to find LernLäden in Berlin 3

4 employment, helping to ease the effects of demographic change and the resulting shortage of skilled professionals on the market. The key question is how to design an attractive counselling service that people would like to use. The LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg has been analysing this important question since 2001, with the developed resulting model which is running successfully in Berlin since So what is the approach of the three Berlin Lern- Läden? 2. The LernLaden approach Respecting the wishes and needs of clients forms the basis of any successful service. A LernLaden is a retail business; its success or failure depends on the same criteria as every other retail shop: It is located in a well-frequented residential area, preferably in or near a commercial area. The shop front appears friendly and welcoming. The services on offer are available at the usual demand driven shop opening hours, including Saturdays, as required. There is no need to make an appointment. All counselling sessions remain strictly confidential. The shop is accessible to everyone and does not exclude any group of clients The following two aspects also are vital to the lasting success of any Guidance and Counselling for Education service: Any advice provided must remain strictly neutral towards funding institutions and providers of education programmes. Clients expect a professional, reliable advice, with no priority given to any particular offers and to be presented with the whole range of available opportunities neutrally. Any educational guidance and counselling that preferentially recommends its own programmes over others must make this explicit as it will therefore not be the neutral service clients have a right to expect. Guidance and Counselling for Education must be free of charge to clients. Education counselling that aims to cater for every social group must be viewed as a public service and so must not frighten people away by charging fees. Ideally, the advice should be free of charge to anyone who seeks it, as is the case at the LernLäden. 3. Educational guidance and counselling through LernLaden The key to the service is the personalised advice on offer through the Lern- Laden approach. This focusses on the clients particular needs, with their background always taken into consideration. All forms of educational guidance and counselling include a stage of reflection for the client, the extent of 4 LernLäden in Berlin

5 which depends on the service and the individual s circumstances. The counselling team at the Lern- Läden advises clients on a wide range of opportunities, including academic and vocational training, initial or further education programmes, as well as on professional (re)orientation, career planning, and advanced further training. They also offer expert counselling on the topics of basic education and the recognition of foreign qualifications. 1 In addition to face-to-face counselling, the LernLäden offer a simple advice service by and telephone. 1 This list of services is an excerpt. For a full account of the counselling services individual LernLäden offer, please visit Clients are also welcome to use the personal computers in the shop to carry out supported research or compile their applications. These core services are supplemented by a wide spectrum of courses and workshops on topics such as finding and selecting job vacancies, job applications, and identifying career objectives. The LernLäden work in close collaboration with partners and are able to refer clients with specific requirements on to the relevant institution, such as the IQ Netzwerk Berlin 2 or bridge Netzwerk für Bleiberecht 3. Mobile educational guidance and counselling In spite of the LernLäden s innovative approach to counselling, their services are not accessed equally by all target groups. Some people still have reservations about entering the LernLäden, including adolescents and 2 The IQ Netzwerk Berlin offers advice on how to get your foreign academic or professional qualifications recognised in Germany. 3 elderly men of migrant backgrounds 4. These groups, however, are in particular need of advice; a need which then unfortunately cannot be met by the in-shop counselling service. So, in addition to the very well established LernLäden, education counsellors also provide a community outreach service, reaching out to the target groups in their local neighbourhoods, in youth clubs, cafés and community centres. The very nature of the mobile counselling service creates particular challenges for the advisor, so its initial aim is to show clients the benefits of the service and to build trust. Mobile Guidance and Counselling for Education can be a lengthy process, as the complexity of cases cannot be compared to those found in the average advice centre. Young people in particular need longer-term support to cope with the transition from school to professional life, and 4 This includes foreign nationals with a registered address in Germany who have not acquired German citizenship, 2nd generation migrants, and late repatriates from the Commonwealth of Independent States and Russia. LernLäden in Berlin 5

6 education counselling alone is unable to solve the multiple challenges they often face. The portfolio of the Mobile Guidance and Counselling for Education is as comprehensive as the advisor can make it. It covers the entire process from the initial contact, analysis of strengths and weaknesses, through to support in applying for a job, apprenticeship or further education. The interface with social work is fluid, which is why the advisors have adopted many strategies commonly used in streetwork projects. Book Tips Susann Kühnapfel: Mobile Bildungsberatung Ein Handlungsleitfaden für die Praxis, published by LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v., Karin Kramer Verlag, Berlin Sylvana Dietel: Mobile Bildungsberatung und nachhaltige Entwicklungschancen, published by LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v., Karin Kramer Verlag, Berlin Educational Coaching Counsellors also have the further option of referring clients for educational coaching. This, however, is a limited additional service, for clients with a high degree of self-reflection who need more intense advice because of their personal situation in life. 4. Quality The quality of educational guidance and counselling is determined above all by two main factors: the competence of the counsellor and the methodological approach of the counselling organisation. Almost every consultant working at the LernLäden has completed the in-service training course for counsellors at the regional qualification centre (RQZ) 5. This course provides them with practical skills as well as specialist knowledge relevant to the provision of counselling services. Supported by the Berlin Centre of Coordination of Quality (k.o.s. GmbH) 6, the three LernLäden received the Learner Orientated Quality Certificate in Further Education (LQW) in 2007 the first education counselling centres nationally to receive this certificate. k.o.s. GmbH creates a well-designed, supportive framework to ensure that counselling services function optimally. In 2014 k.o.s. GmbH developed a new quality-control model for publicly financed education advisory institutions in Berlin. The plan is to roll out this new model, entitled New Quality for Berlin Education Advisory Services, to all advisory centres across the city LernLäden in Berlin

7 The LernLäden tested the model, and were the first centres for educational guidance and counselling in Berlin to conform to these new quality requirements, and to receive certification. Book Tips Kompetenzentwicklung in der Weiterbildung Neue Herausforderungen an Weiterbildungsanbieter eine Dokumentation zur Veranstaltungsreihe, published by zukunft im zentrum GmbH, 2005 Thomas Kieneke, Frank Schröder (Hrsg.): Qualität in der Bildungsberatung Dokumentation zur Einführung des Lernerorientierten Qualitätstestierungsverfahrens LQW in Berliner Bildungsberatungsstellen, published by zukunft im zentrum GmbH, Documentation The Guidance and Counselling for Education sector in Berlin has access to a well-established online system for documenting counselling sessions. This is managed by an independent centre, the Coordination and Evaluation Centre for publically financed further education centres in the state of Berlin (KES) 7. Every counselling session at the Lern- Läden is documented confidentially in this system, collecting a pre-determined number of data points. A reference number then allows the adviser to directly access and update individual records in any follow-up session. The system therefore has a dual function. It serves as a reference database to support the counselling process, and also creates an extensive dataset to provide detailed reports to the funding institutions. The data makes it possible to monitor the evolving behaviour of the Berlin population towards counselling services over the long-term. Collecting data 7 points such as migrant background, sex, age, and status allow a range of specific questions to be answered. The documentation system gives the LernLäden an evaluation tool to optimise the services they offer, while the Berlin Senate Departement for Labour, Integration and Women s Issues receives a fact-based analysis of the counselling data on a regular basis and when a project comes to an end. This means that the funding institution always has up-to-date information about the success of the advisory service they are financing. A working group on a city-wide level, with representatives from the KES Association, the k.o.s. GmbH, the Humboldt University and the LNBB e. V. developed a tool to evaluate LernLäden in Berlin 7

8 the effect of educational advice. The aim of this project was to make the success and meaning of educational guidance and counselling transparent. To this end, a survey of clients was carried out after their counselling session. The questionnaires both recorded improvements in decision-making and actions taken by counsellors, and also tracked whether the advice seekers then remain in employment, apprenticeship, or further education. The LernLäden were one of the first institutions to test the tool, and are still using it today. Book tips Käpplinger, Bernd / Lichte, Nina / Rämer, Sabrina (2014): Ich sehe doch am Gesicht des Klienten, was wirkt und was nicht! Eine Systematisierung von Wirkungsanalysen in der Bildungsberatung. In: Melter, Ingeborg / Kanelutti-Chilas, Erika / Stifter, Wolfgang: Zukunftsfeld Bildungsund Berufsberatung III. Wirkung Nutzen Sinn. Bielefeld, S Statistics The number of people visiting the three Berlin LernLäden has been recorded since 2006, and remained stable over the past few years. Of the total of over 290,000 visitors up to the 2nd Quarter of 2015, approximately 100,400 chose to receive education counselling. With currently around 9,000 advice sessions annually, numbers for the LernLäden have reached a significant level. Visitors Counselling sessions Visitor numbers and counselling sessions provided ( ). 71% Advice seekers with a migrant background Advice seekers without a migrant background 29% Proportion of advice seekers of migrant background compared to the total number of counselling sessions provided ( ). Approximately one third of all counselling sessions that took place at the LernLäden from 2012 to 2014 were given to advice seekers of migrant background. However, the proportion of advice seekers from this group varies greatly between the individual LernLäden. This is the result of differences in the composition of the population in the districts where the individual LernLäden are situated. In the period between 2012 and 2014, the LernLäden were frequented more often by women (56.1%) than by men (43.9%). 8 LernLäden in Berlin

9 Women Men 43,9% 56,1% 7. Partners The LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg (LNBB) is a traditional network project, created as part of the Learning Regions Promoting Networks programme (Lernende Regionen Förderung von Netzwerken) run by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The LernLäden are supported by the following organisations: LernLaden Neukölln: gsub mbh Proportion of women to men in the total number of counselling sessions ( ). Even though figures for the initial visit show the ratio of men to women to be almost equal, further analysis revealed that a greater proportion of women came to the follow-up sessions. This is reflected in the chart of the total advice figures above. The three LernLäden within this LernNetz Partnership are managed by the LNBB, which ensures that they follow a common advisory approach and maintain the LernLäden corporate design. The LNBB is also responsible for encouraging general public debate around learning in the life course, and Guidance and Counselling for Education in particular. To achieve this, the organisation takes part in specialist conferences and publications, and is actively involved in a range of committees. LernLaden Ostkreuz: Deutsche Angestellten Akademie LernLaden Pankow: zukunft im zentrum GmbH LernLäden in Berlin 9

10 Committees and Networks The LNBB and the LernLäden collaborate with the following organisations 8 : Centre of Coordination and Evaluation for publicly financed further education providers in the state of Berlin (KES Association) Centre of Coordination of Quality Berlin (k.o.s. GmbH) IQ Network Berlin The information point of the Berlin Senate Administration for Education, Youth and Science Centre of Basic Education Berlin In addition, the LNBB and LernLäden are represented in the following networks and committees: Guidance and Counselling for Education Berlin (KES Association) The Round Table for Literacy and Basic Education The Federal Association for Literacy and Basic Education Alphabündnis Neukölln Regional Qualification Centre Dessau-Roßlau (RQZ) The Berlin Society for International Education Marketing e.v. The Berlin Working Group for Education Counselling The Berlin Working Group Evaluating the Effectiveness of Education Counselling The LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg has been financed since 2006 within the LernNetz Partnerships project by the Berlin Senate Department for Labour, Integration and Women s Issues through funding from the State of Berlin. 8. Publications Published by LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v. Sylvana Dietel Mobile Bildungsberatung und nachhaltige Entwicklungschancen ISBN: pages, Karin Kramer Verlag Berlin, 2009 Susann Kühnapfel together with Frank Bauer, Erika Dettmann, Clinton Enoch, Gabriele Fellermayer, Kerstin Gürmann, Esther Kramer und Diana Peitel Mobile Bildungsberatung Ein Handlungsleitfaden für die Praxis ISBN: pages, Karin Kramer Verlag Berlin, 2008 Zehn Jahre Bildungsberatung in Berlin ISBN: pages, This list does not include the numerous local cooperation partners of the LernLäden and their mobile counselling service. 10 LernLäden in Berlin

11 Published by Gabriele Fellermayer/ Esther Kramer Bildungsberatung und Kompetenzentwicklung Beiträge zur aktuellen Diskussion LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v. ISBN: pages, Karin Kramer Verlag Berlin, 2008 Published by Gabriele Fellermayer/ Esther Herbrich Lebenslanges Lernen für alle Herausforderungen an die Bildungsberatung LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v. ISBN-10: ISBN-13: pages, Berlin, Karin Kramer Verlag, 2006 Published by Frank Schröder/ Peter Schlögl Reviewreport: Wie macht ihr das eigentlich? Ergebnisse Erfahrungen Erkenntnisse k.o.s. GmbH, Eigenverlag, Berlin, 2012 Published by Deutsches Institut für Erwachsenenbildung Frank Schröder/Peter Schlögl Weiterbildungsberatung. Qualität definieren, gestalten, reflektieren ISBN-10: ISBN-13: pages, WBV Bielefeld, 2014 Future publications Mobile Bildungsberatung Handlungsempfehlungen aus der Praxis in revision, awaiting publication. Published by Esther Herbrich/ Jörg Jurkeit Lebenslanges Lernen und Bildungsberatung zwischen Theorie und Praxis LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v. ISBN: pages, Karin Kramer Verlag Berlin, 2004 LernLäden in Berlin 11

12 9. Addresses LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e.v. Rungestraße 19, Berlin Tel: 030/ , Fax: 030/ Project manager: Achim Fischer LernLaden Neukölln Karl-Marx-Straße 131, Berlin Tel: 030/ , Fax: 030/ LernLaden Pankow Stargarder Straße 67, Berlin Tel: 030/ , Fax: 030/ Find out more about the LernLäden and LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg at and on Facebook. Last updated: October 2015 LernLaden Ostkreuz Pettenkoferstraße 34, Berlin Tel: 030/ , Fax: 030/ LernLäden in Berlin

13 For your notes: LernLäden in Berlin 13

14 For your notes: 14 LernLäden in Berlin

15 Imprint LernNetz Berlin-Brandenburg e. V. (registered association) Rungestraße Berlin Tel.: 030 / Fax: 030 / Contact: Achim Fischer achim.fischer@lnbb.de Association registration no. (Vereinsregisternr.): NZ District council Berlin-Charlottenburg As of: October 2015 LernLäden in Berlin 15

16 Supported by funds from: