Projects

Smart home models in VET

Programme and action type: Erasmus+ KA220-VET - Cooperation partnerships in vocational education and training

Project title and acronym: Smart home models in VET, Smart VET

Project number: 2022-1-HR01-KA220-VET-000086983

Period: 15.10.2022 – 14.10.2024

The general objective of the project is the introduction of a smart home model in VET. The use of real smart homes improves energy efficiency as they reduce energy consumption. If the energy comes from fossil fuels, which emit smoke, soot, ash and other harmful substances into the atmosphere during combustion, smart homes contribute to the protection of the environment and climate change mitigation. The project raises awareness of the need for environmental protection and the need to combat climate change, as it deals with the development of VET study programmes relevant to environmental protection and sustainable development. Therefore, the project enhances the competencies of VET staff and students in these fields, and involves other stakeholders on the project to rethink about their engagement regarding environmental issues.

With smart home models as teaching aids, students follow modern trends in science and technology, and acquire advanced and functional knowledge and skills they will apply in a workplace and in everyday life. The innovative advantage of our model compared to existing similar models is that it represents a smart home in a more realistic way and uses smart home technology that allows easy conversion of traditional houses into smart ones (without major alterations, or without laying additional installation lines).

An innovation is also a different approach taken to present the content and convey messages in this project. For younger students the Smart Home Clubs are formed, while for those entering the labour market, a short programme of 30 ECTS is developed, or existing courses innovated with smart home technology content. Then, the instruction material is created. As one of main project results, it is very flexible, since its units can be used independently and separately unlike traditional textbooks. As such, they can complement the content of some regular courses from the curriculum, in the measure teachers find it useful.

The establishment of the Smart Home VET Net provides an innovative approach to networking in this area enabling long-term sustainability of all project results related to the use of the smart home model and their upgrade through the exchange of practices and cooperation among VET stakeholders.

Introducing the smart home model in VET is the general objective of this project. It is divided into three major specific objectives, which are as follows:

• to create smart home models for teaching/training purposes;
• to develop VET programmes on smart home technology; and
• to produce teaching materials to be used along with the smart home models in the newly created programmes.

The activities carried out within the project have the following results:

• Five smart home models developed within the partnership;
• A toolkit in several languages for creating smart home models, for those intending to develop such a model;
• Guidelines on instruction methods;
• Short programmme with 30 ECTS on smart home technologies developed and accredited;
• Smart Home Club programme developed and delivered;
• Innovated existing courses with new smart home content; and
• A variety of VET resources on smart home technologies (teacher’s book, student reader, glossary, video and animated short film).

The target groups of the project include VET teachers and trainers, VET students, management of VET providers, smart home industry representatives and the broad audiences that should be acquainted with the smart home technology, its advantages with regard to environment and energy savings, as well as with possibilities to set up specialized programmes at different levels dealing with the technology in order to supply the labour market with qualified workforce. 

Project coordinator: Elektrotehnička i prometna škola Osijek, Croatia.

Project partners:

• Visoka tehnička škola strukovnih studija u Novom Sadu, Serbia
• Viešoji įstaiga Panevėžio profesinio rengimo centras, Lithuania
• Ida-Virumaa Kutsehariduskeskus, Estonia
• Baranya Megyei Szakképzési Centrum, Hungary

Additional information:

Karen Sukiasyan
Project manager
Mob: +372 5270400
E-mail: karen.sukiasyan@ivkhk.ee

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