We are excited to announce the release of our new project VIRDUAL. A project which aims to boost digital innovation in vocational education and training (VET) by equipping teachers and in-company trainers with the skills to use Extended Reality (XR) tools and simulation techniques. This will help them train apprentices and work-based learning (WBL) participants in work-readiness skills.

VIRDUAL will increase the capacity and readiness of VET centres and companies participating in WBL to manage an effective shift towards digital education. The project will support the purposeful use of XR digital technologies in WBL for teaching, learning, assessment and engagement, developing digital pedagogy and innovative use of digital education contents in VET.

The digital-based methodologies and results of VIRDUAL project will enhance expertise of the target groups in the use of Extended Reality (XR) to train work-readiness skills in WBL and will promote the innovative use of digital education by means of implementing a double approach to training Digital skills:

1) VET teachers and in-company trainers, target users of the project, will be skilled on using XR to train work-readiness skills.

2) Apprentices and WBL participants, will be trained through XR on work-readiness skills, to be applied in businesses during their participation in apprenticeship programmes.