Conclusions of the Deal with Digital WBL Project Final Event at Universitat Oberta de Catalunya

The final transnational meeting and final event of the Deal with Digital Work-Based Learning project titled “Tackling future challenges in Digital skills for VET Trainers” was held on Monday 24 February 2025 at Universitat Oberta de Catalunya. Pablo Baztán, Montse Guitert, Teresa Romeu and Albert Sangrà (Edul@b, UOC) promoted the event.

During the final event it was highlighted the outcomes of the project which led to a forward-looking discussion on how to sustain and scale the mentioned results in order to meet the evolving demands of the European digital landscape. The session emphasized the pivotal role of VET trainers in equipping learners with future-proof competencies throuhg cutting-edge tools and innovative pedagogies.

Pablo Baztán presented the Guidelines for Designing Digital WBL & Remote Experiential Acitivity. The objective of the guide is to assist all people involved in Vocational Education Training (VET) to understand, reflect on and improve practices in Digital Work-Based Learning. It was created with the collaboration of multiple stakeholders from different countries. The guide is divide in three sections: the first one presents the research methodology, the second section sgows a theoretical overview about Digital WBL and the final one delves into what is a good practice of digital WBL.

The VET Practice Evaluation Tool (VPET) was also presented, this tool was designed to identify areas of development of good D-WBL practice. It will help you to reflect on a VET practice that you are developing or implementing. Also, it’s of great help in order to identify where efforts might be focused to improve the strength and quality of practices.

Find the guidelines for designing Digital WBL as well as the VPET Tool by clicking on the button below, available in English, German, Italian, Lithuanian, Spanish and Hungarian:

Laura Eigbrecht (Baden-Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University) explained the insights of the Blueprint for VET trainers’ development of digital competences, which provides a roadmap for institutions to navigate the transformative landscape of Digital Work-Based Learning and to prepare learners for the future. The blueprint offers recommendations across five dimensions and eight sub-dimensions, emphasizing the importance of supporting educators with competences, conditions, and infrastructures.

Read the full Blueprint for VET trainers’ development of digital competences here:

During the session it was also presented a competence framework to identify the competences needed to provide learners with good, rich Digital Work-Based Learning experiences. The competence framework was designed in a multistep research process, including the analysis of resources and frameworks such as DigCompOrg and DigCompEdu, the use of the SELFIE WBL tool, and the Digital WBL Ambassador Programme was set up, serving as a training and research programme. 

Learn more about the Emerging digital skills model for VET trainers below, report available in English, German, Italian, Lithuanian, Spanish and Hungarian:

This session was followed by more insights about the project, including more information about the Deal with Digital WBL Skills Map, the training course for VET Trainer which was explained by Rossella Brindani (CIS). After an open discussion with the participants, another key topic regarding Digital WBL practice was addressed by Zoltan Kelemen (Hungarian Association of Craftmen’s Corporation), on how to engage stakeholders and leverage feedback loops from trainers and Industry partners.

Towards the end of the event, Laura Eigbrecht (Baden-Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University) moderated an open session to all the participants, including the panellists Elena Senís (Institut Hospital del Mar) and Lluís Villarejo (Immersium Studio) who offered an experienced point of view about the future of VET and how to explore strategies for maximizing impact in skills development. Discussion focused on policy recommendations, strengthening industry-academia-VET partnerships, and enhancing trainer competencies to address emerging digital skills needs.

As a clousure for the event, Albert Sangrà (Edul@b, UOC) expressed the importance of exploring the sinergies between VET and industry, as well as remarking that this is just an end, but no the final end of Digital WBL project goals and objectives.

The consortium of the Digital WBL project is formed by: Sistemi Formativi Confindustria, Panevėžio kolegija/State Higher Education Institution, IPOSZ, Dinamo3d , CIS – Unindustria Reggio Emilia, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg and Hanse-Parlament.