As part of the “Supporting the professional mobility of future employees in the hotel and catering industry” programme, fifteen students from the Zespół Szkół Ogólnokształcących i Zawodowych in Bolesławiec will leave for Chemnitz, Saxony, at the beginning of November. The programme prepared by ZSOiZ teachers received a very high evaluation (the school received 97 out of a possible 100 points and an EU grant of more than €36,000).
Before the fourth-year students of the Hotel Management Technical School leave for Saxony, however, they must complete 65 hours of training: 50 hours of vocational German and 15 hours of pedagogical and cultural preparation. “In German lessons, students learn specialist vocabulary related to hotel management. They learn how to welcome guests, how to say goodbye to them, how to respond to a complaint and how to talk to an employer,” says Edyta Chomiaczewska, a teacher at ZSOiZ. “The students are working very well on the course. Better than during regular classes,” she says with a smile.
And there is nothing surprising about that. Twenty-five people are taking part in the training, but only 15 will go to Chemnitz. “Someone who is a little weaker may not manage,” says Ewelina, a student at the school and a course participant. “We have to give a lot of ourselves and study a lot at home,” she adds.
The course is intensive. Classes began at the beginning of September. Sometimes they will also be held on Saturdays. But the effort will certainly not be in vain. “This placement will help students pass their vocational examination,” explains Edyta Chomiaczewska. The ZSOiZ students will also receive a Europass Mobility Certificate, which will help them find work both in Poland and in other EU countries.
However, according to the school’s deputy head, Barbara Smoleńska, the trip may bring the young people of Bolesławiec benefits extending beyond their professional development: “This placement will certainly help students gain greater confidence when communicating with guests, as well as greater ease in using a foreign language.” In 2003, graduates of the Technical School of Nutrition and Household Management completed a six-month internship in Balve, Germany. “They were delighted,” the deputy head tells the IstotneInformacje.pl portal. “They had no problem finding work,” she adds.
Placements in Germany, an intensive German course and a Europass certificate. Are the teachers not afraid that their students will take jobs with our western neighbours? “We are trying to train them in such a way that they stay in Poland,” emphasises Edyta Chomiaczewska. – “We hope they will stay.” “I would prefer to work in Poland,” admits Wioletta, a fourth-year student at the Hotel Management Technical School.
(information ii)