As part of the Leonardo da Vinci programme “Transparency of the Vocational Qualifications of Motor Vehicle Mechanics on the German Labour Market” – implemented under the Human Capital Operational Programme and co-financed by the European Social Fund – a group of students from the Zespół Szkół Mechanicznych in Bolesławiec left for month-long placements in Leipzig, Germany. The students from Bolesławiec had the opportunity to work at 11 workplaces. It was a genuine school of life: the students travelled to work on their own and returned on their own. They also had to provide their own meals (they received €750 in pocket money).
“There were no complaints about them and no problems were reported. On the contrary, the boys were praised for their reliability, punctuality and diligence,” says Ryszard Świerzewski, a long-time teacher at Bolesławiec’s ZSM and the placement supervisor. “They spent this month very usefully and industriously.”
As Adam Maksymczyk, the director of the “mechanics school”, emphasizes, the school prepared the trainees very well for the trip: “They took part in language training, during which we focused on technical vocabulary. This helped them greatly. They were able to communicate freely with their employers, which, as the Germans told us, rarely happens.”
“Everyone had work they liked. Nobody complained,” emphasizes Gabryś, one of the trainees. During the placement, the ZSM students performed so well that some companies offered them summer jobs once they finished school. This was the case, for example, with Paweł. “Our boss simply saw that we were good,” says the “mechanics school” student.
A similar story happened to Zbyszek, who worked for a company installing antennas and electrical systems. “On the first day, I showed my employer that I had electrical qualifications, which I had acquired at school,” the student recalls. “I was immediately assigned to work as a service technician. My boss was very surprised; he did not expect someone so young to already have such qualifications. I was treated like a regular employee, not as someone whose only job was to hand over a screwdriver.”
Tomek worked at a Volkswagen service centre, while Wojtek worked at a Toyota service centre. Both agree that what they had learned at school proved very valuable. “It was a very interesting experience; it was worth going to Leipzig for the month. And my German definitely improved,” says Tomek.
In addition to practical classes, the “mechanics school” students also had the opportunity to explore the city, visit museums, see BMW plants and even go boating.
Soon the students from Bolesławiec will receive certificates of completion for their placements, although some have already received similar certificates from their employers. All this will certainly help them find work in the future. Especially since some of the “mechanics school” students are seriously considering moving to Germany.
The placement supervisors also included German-language teachers: Agnieszka Zimirska, Alicja Rykowska and Edyta Adamczyk (each of them spent 10 days in Leipzig).
(information: ii)