Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) supported by technology is an innovative challenge in the area of education. Children who become skilled at SEL improve their relationships with others and academic success. The efficiency of the SEL process in emotional outcomes increase when it take place with young children in early childhood classrooms. SEL is also an effective way to reach young children and youth who are most vulnerable (e.g., problem behavior). Education technology is as a tool that can enlarge learning when used adequately by educators and teachers. In this project, the partners acting at pre-school, school and higher education level, aim to link research, best practice and innovative learning strategies (play-based learning, peer learning, collaborative learning, and partner learning) with education technology and used technological resources (internet, multi-media), in order to: i) Create a platform to support both children and teachers, and other users, to implement the social and emotional learning program, where all outputs produced by the project will be available, and a backoffice where data from all users will be recorded; ii) Based on a Research report, adapt an “Emotional Competencies” methodology. Training will be provided to teachers and other professionals (e.g., psychologists, school mediators); iii) Develop a cross-national training course for teachers to support the use of the platform and to implement the methodology. A manual for the applicators (e.g., teachers, psychologists) will be launched; iv) Elaborate an evaluation protocol, with a qualitative research methodology – focus group – with children, complemented by a quantitative methodology – measurement instruments (e.g., self-report questionnaires); v) Create a tool “Emotechie Serious Play” to develop and promote social and emotional learning in students from 5 to 14 years old. A manual for children will also be released. A randomized control trial to evaluate the tool will be ...

This project intends to give a significant contribution in high education, proposing a specific master programme to form innovative managers, researchers and local developers, but at the same time providing a strict connection with industry and society, in a framework of blended learning approach. Precisely, the main aim is to allow SMEs and other kind of companies or institutions identifying good practices and new behaviours to face innovation challenges. The master degree students shall be capable to deal with innovation in traditional sector products, but also with the most advanced technologies, such as nanotechnology, biotech and ICT most innovative tools, with particular attention to the environmental problems in order to achieve sustainable solutions. Concerning sustainability, competences related to the circular economy will be trained, particularly promoting resource productivity with the aim of reducing wastes and avoid pollution. Industrial products and systems should be designed in order to close the loop, recycling and reusing post-consumer waste to make new products. This innovative approach must be fostered, especially among manufacturing enterprises, and the expected results of the master degree will be well prepared managers and researchers, fundamental in implementing sustainable innovation. Therefore, the programme will create competences for transforming knowledge into added value for society, providing entrepreneurship training to innovative participants, supporting with innovative financing (crowd-sourcing) such new opportunities, and interacting for solving environmental problems with new tools and rationale of the circular economy. In term of future impacts, this project will create capacities in managing technology and innovation in social and productive applications while constructing bridges for overcoming the “Valley of Death”, or the “European Paradox”, in a world of uncertainty, sustainability and complexity.

The priorities were chosen taking into account the main goal of MPATH project which is creating a mentoring model to help low skilled and long term unemployed workers to enter in the labour market and maintaining theirs job place. Before proceeding with the review, it is worth clarifying how mentoring has been defined. Tolan et al’s (2008) definition, which described mentoring as having the following four characteristics: interaction between two individuals over an extended period of time; inequality of experience, knowledge, or power between the mentor and mentee (recipient); the mentee is in a position to benefit from the knowledge, skill, ability, or experience of the mentor and the absence of the role inequality that typifies other helping relationships. Or in other words a mutually valued relationship.

Currently, the social networks and Internet are more than a tool; they have created a revolution in social connectivity. The children nowadays are grown immersed in this Information Society; therefore they embrace it naturally, active participation and taking the best advantage of their possibilities for communicating and socialising. While on-line computer exploration opens a world of possibilities for children, expanding their horizons and exposing them to different cultures and ways of life, they also can be exposed to dangers as they hit the road exploring the information highway. There are a lot of risks that the children face on the Internet daily.