BIBB trainees back from first exchange in France
Three weeks long - from 14 September to 2 October 2009 (see BIBB press release from 1 October 2009) - 13 trainees from several government bodies in Bonn experienced everyday work life in France and completed practical placements in commercial occupations at French partner institutions in Forbach, Lorraine. The Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) initiated the trainee exchange and played a major role in its preparation. Not only BIBB but also the German Research Foundation (DFG), the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BAFin), the Federal Railway Authority (EBA) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) sent trainees to Forbach who worked and learned together with French trainees at a partner school and in partner enterprises in Forbach. The project was supported by the Ludwig Erhard Berufskolleg and the Berufskolleg Bonn-Duisdorf vocational schools in Bonn. The Saarbrücken-based Franco-German Secretariat for Exchanges in the Vocational Education and Training Field (DFS) financed the trainee exchange in Forbach. DFS exchange programmes are funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.
Manfred Kremer, the president of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training, visited Forbach on 1 October 2009 for the conclusion of the first round of this exchange. There he was welcomed by Jean-Marie Haas, the director of the partner school Blaise Pascal School, and met with the deputy mayor of Forbach and representatives of the regional government of Lorraine and the Académie Nancy-Metz, the regional administrative authority for education. Mr Kremer also visited two 'training companies' (enterprises that provide in-company vocational training) in the region which had hosted exchange trainees from Bonn. The trainees who spent their exchange at SMART in Hambach, Lorraine, and at regional government offices in Forbach were pleased with their experience; the instructors also had words for praise for the trainees from Bonn.
Mr Kremer had an opportunity to talk with the trainees from Bonn and with their French 'tandem partners' in the auditorium of Blaise Pascal School on the evening of 1 October. Their comments confirmed the impression that the school director had previously conveyed: That the trainees from Bonn were largely satisfied with the course and results of the exchange. The French partners - some of whom had even invited their German 'tandem partners' to their homes - were similarly satisfied.
In his closing speech, Mr Kremer emphasized the importance and necessity of exchanges in the vocational training field which has lagged behind the secondary school and university sectors in this area to date. He expressed a warm welcome in advance to the French 'tandem partners' who will visit Bonn for three weeks in March 2010. He then addressed the German trainees who participated in the exchange: "You have experienced the culture of your host country. I hope that you tried to speak your host country's language and found that you would like to learn more of it. You have gathered many new impressions. And I hope that you have gained much for your personal development. Experiences of this kind are of great value for your future working life." Mr Kremer then underscored the special benefits of cross-border mobility in a converging Europe: "When young people are given an opportunity to experience mobility, they develop and refine not only their intercultural and vocational skills, they also improve their chances in their occupation and on the job market. Which is why this additional qualification, this additional intercultural experience that you have gained is being documented in the Europass Mobility." He presented the participants from Germany this document at the close of the official part of the evening.
The German and French partners then said goodbye during a cheerful dinner which was hosted by Director Haas in the school cafeteria. The "Tschüss, les filles!" one French girl called to her German girlfriends as they left [Tschüss is German slang for good-bye, les filles is French for girls] shows that the participants got to know each other better both linguistically and personally.
