A set of Project Management guidelines were developed as a part of the PIA2 project - an innovation transfer project led by the University of Bremen in which project management was seen as an instrument for assuring quality in teaching and training in VET - with the ultimate goal being self-development among teachers, trainers and other educators. Guidelines begin by confirming why project management is equally important to those working in education and training prior to working through a series of important steps that centre on: project preparation, the clarification of project tasks, project definition, project planning, project execution, and project closure. In all cases, chapters comprise introductory texts and exercises with the overall concept very much based on the principle of “learning by doing”.
The original transfer concept centred on confirming the importance of project management within education and training circles with a number of countries targeted during initial (PIA) and subsequent (PIA2) transfers, notably those where there was less of a tradition of project management among teachers, trainers and other educators. Guidelines were most recently updated and delivered in 5 European languages (EN, ES, FR, IT, PT) and provide a basis for continuing professional development, for delivery through self-directed learning, with a view to enhancing future teaching delivery. Materials could just as easily be used to develop a bespoke training course or set of workshops for multiple professional learners, albeit with a need to build provision on the original “learning by doing” concept and thus allow for programme delivery to be interspersed with practical exercises. There is also the potential to adapt materials for use in delivering wider project management concepts to individual learner groups through project or scenario-based learning.