Presented at INTED 2015 9th International Technology, Education and Development Conference http://iated.org/concrete3/paper_detail.php?paper_id=40809

1. KeyCompetencesandSkillsforyoung
lowachievers’:hearingthevoicesof
students,trainersandteachers
Marta Pinto, João Caramelo, Susana Coimbra, ManuelaTerrasêca, Gabriella Agrusti *
Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto (Portugal)
Laboratorio di Pedagogia sperimentale of University UniromaTre (Italy)*
INTED 2015
PROJECT REF. NO. 543058-LLP-1-2013-1-IT-KA3-KA3MP
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication reflects the views only of the author, and
the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

2.  Introduction
 Methodology
 Key competences and skills of low achievers
 Final Considerations
INTED 2015

3. Introduction
European project LIBE
“Supporting Lifelong learning with ICT Inquiry-Based Education”
INTED 2015
Problem tackled
European countries
dealing with issues
deriving from low
educational achievers
(16-24), in literacy,
numeracy and problem
solving in ICT rich
environments (OECD, 2013).

4. It is important to reduce the proportion of low achiever students who
struggle to master basic skills at age 15 (according to PISA) because they are
more likely to be held back in the future of job opportunities.This will reflect
on the future of countries and economies.
Introduction
INTED 2015
Reason:There is a need of Life-long Learning mainly for those considered to
be low achievers, typically 16 to 24 year olds (and to a lesser extent 25-30
year olds) who face higher unemployment rates (OECD, 2013).
Day-to-day demands of work and life events demand citizens to have of
specific set of competences and skills such as information processing,
literacy, numeracy and problem solving, applied in technology-rich
environments.
Aim of LIBE project:
Offer low achiever students, innovative and effective e-learning solutions
with specific focus on digital competences.

5. The paper for INTED 2015, presents the content analysis of 3 Focus Group
sessions developed with two main groups of participants, in Portuguese
educational context: trainers and teachers of low achiever students; and
young adults who are low achiever students (16-24).
Introduction
INTED 2015

6. Methodology
INTED 2015
Aim
Understand and define
the skills, competencies
and learning needs of low
achiever students,
concerning literacy,
numeracy and ICT skills.
3 topics
Topic 1 – Low achievers
knowledge and skills
Topic 2 – Activities and
topics
Topic 3 – Successful
experiences with low
achievers
FG Guidelines
1 for teachers and
trainers
1 for students
3 Focus Groups (FG)

7. Methodology
INTED 2015
Topics of Focus Group withTeachers andTrainers
Topic 1 – Low achievers knowledge and skills
1.1. Which knowledge and skills low achiever students achieve with more difficulty? What do you feel are the most
important skills low achiever students should learn?
[Probe: reading comprehension, word knowledge, use and understanding of connectives, grasping the general
meaning of the text, mathematical reasoning, lack of specific contents and notions, retrieving reliable information
and discarding off-topic information]
Topic 2 – Activities and topics
2.1. On the basis of the table that we handed you (table 1 “Which are the most important skills low achievers
should achieve?”), do you think that contents envisaged are relevant for low achievers?
2.2. Which topics, other than those already included, could be added?
2.3. For each domain, which activities are more suitable for an e-learning course? Please fill in table (table 2
“Summary of OECD PIAAC and IEA ICILS domains included in LIBE learning outcome framework”). […] Now could
you briefly indicate them?
Topic 3 – Successful experiences with low achievers
3.1. At your school, are there specific courses/programs devoted to foster computer and information literacy, i.e.
the ability to retrieve information in internet and to use them for study and personal development? If yes, which
pedagogical approaches are implemented and on which specific contents?
3.2. Do you have successful teaching/learning classroom experiences related to the use of internet for retrieving
and communicating information? If yes, which methodologies did you use and which contents did you deal with?
3.3. When students (broadly speaking) make researches on the Internet, which skills are involved and which of
these are prerequisites for a good search?
[Probe: use of search engines, access and retrieve information, evaluate the content of a text, find reliable
websites]

8. Methodology
INTED 2015
Topics of Focus Group with Students
Topic 1 – Low achievers knowledge and skills
1.1. What is most important to learn in school?
1.2. For you, which were the most important learning experiences made in school?
1.3. Indicate 3 of those learning experiences and explain why you consider them the most important.
1.4. At the school you are in today, which learning experiences did you like the most?
1.5. Which ones do you consider most important for your future (school, professional, personal)?
1.6. How do you achieve good results in these learning experiences?
1.7. What have been the greatest difficulties in achieving good results?
Topic 2 – Activities and topics
2.1. When you search or browse the Internet, what knowledge and skills do you use? Give examples.
2.2. Those knowledge and skills are learned in school or out of school?
2.3. Do you consider the content inTable 2 relevant for you? (Table2 “Summary of OECD PIAAC and IEA ICILS
domains included in LIBE learning outcome framework”)
2.4. Which other topics could be added toTable 2?
Topic 3 – Successful experiences
3.1. At your school, are there courses / programs where you can learn how to search the Internet, use a computer
or present a school work based on ICT? If so, how does it work? Do you consider it is necessary or effective?
3.2. In the other classes, have you had learning experiences related to searching on the Internet, using the
computer or present a school work based on ICT?
3.3. For you future (school, vocational, personal) how useful is it to know how to make a good use of ICT's?
What are your expectations / plans for the future?
3.4. Thinking about the contents inTable 2, which are most important for your future (personal and professional)?

9. Methodology
INTED 2015
Focus Group 1
Participants: 6 trainers
from 3 vocational training
centres.
Experience of working with
low achiever students,
notably migrants and
students that drop out from
regular schooling paths.
Curriculum Subjects:
Wood;Textile; Portuguese
Language, ICT;
Mathematics; Psychology
and Parental training and
social support.
3 Focus Groups - Total 18 participants
Focus Group 2
Participants: 6 teachers of
4 urban secondary schools.
Experience working with
low achiever students with
below average grades in
national standardized
exams.
Curriculum Subjects:
Biology; Project of Design
product; Geometry;
Graphic Arts;
Physics and Chemistry; ICT;
English.
Focus Group 3
Participants: 6 students of
training vocational courses.
Low achiever students from
one training centre
integrated in the European
Association for Cities,
Institutions and Second
Chance Schools.
Course Areas:
Wood and carpentry;
Textiles; Kitchen.

10. Methodology
INTED 2015
Thematic Content Analysis (deductive and inductive)
Main categories of analysis emerged
from the FG guidelines and concerned
the basic skill domains deriving from
project LIBE framework:
1. Literacy
2. Numeracy
3. ICT competences: joined the
definition of “Problem solving in
technology-rich-environments”
and “Computer and information
literacy”.
An inductive approach of the
empirical data analysis highlighted
three new categories:
1. Social competence
2. Pedagogical support
3. Self-efficacy.

11. INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
MOST SIGNIFICANT
SKILLS
&
COMPETENCES
FOR LOW ACHIEVERS

12. 1
Literacy skills
“The ability to understand,
evaluate, use and engage with
written texts to participate in
society, to achieve one’s goals,
and to develop one’s
knowledge and potential” (OECD,
2013).
12 participants (n=18): 3 teachers, 3
trainers and 6 (total) of students.
INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
The most significant skills:
Activities described by students:
• Create a Curriculum Vitae
• Fill out an application
• Read and interpret receipts
• Evaluate and reflect about
information in the news
• Write an email to communicate
with others in school of work.
Activities to develop literacy
skills:
• Reading
• Writing
• Integrating and interpreting
related parts of text to one
another
• Accessing and identify written
information
• Evaluating and reflecting about
written information
• Making semantic and lexical
inferences.

13. INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
Literacy skills
Correlation:
ICT
competences
Activities:
+Web search for information with the
goal to develop reading and
interpretation
+ Web search for various texts with the
goal to identify and extract the most
relevant information
+ Write an email
+ Write a CurriculumVitae using an
online tool (Europass)
+ Use software (desktop and in the
cloud) to make writing exercises
appealing.

14. INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
2
Social Competences
“The ability to manage
thoughts, feelings and
behaviours in order to cope
efficiently with the demands of
the context and of
interpersonal situations, taking
in consideration one’s and
reference group’s values and
goals” (Dodge, 1985; Trower, 1995)
The most significant competences student low achievers should learn:

15. INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
3
ICT competences
“The ability to use computers,
digital technology,
communication tools and
networks, to investigate,
create, acquire and evaluate
information, communicate
with others and perform
practical tasks at school, in the
workplace, and in society”
(OECD, 2013;
Fraillon, Schulz & Ainley, 2013).
• Access, use and evaluate
information (e.g. text, video
and image format).
• Search for information using
search engines (e.g. text,
video, images).
• Use software to process text,
create graphs and make
presentations (desktop and in
the cloud).
Main activities:
• Using search engines.
• Using video and image sharing
sites.
• Using web tools to
communicate, mainly email.
• Using computer software in
the desktop (e.g. Microsoft
Word, Excel, Power Point) and
in the cloud (Google doc).
Correlation:
Literacy

16. INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
4
Pedagogical Support “individual or
peer support during the learning
process, given to students by a
teacher or colleague”.
Considered very important in a e-learning
context.
Type of pedagogical support Trainers Students
Individual (teacher/student) 5 5
Peer (e.g. pair, group work) 4 3
Correlation:
individual social
competences - When
students have mainly
individual pedagogical
support, they can
establish a relationship
of compromise with
their own learning
experiences.

17. INTED 2015
Theoretical
Framework
5
Self-efficacy
“the perception of personal
competence to succeed in a specific
activity or domain in a prospective
situation. Previous experiences in
specific domains, and in particular the
interpretation of previous success or
failure, are the most important sources
of self-efficacy beliefs Self-efficacy is
one of the most important motivation
theories. Motivation is the dynamic and
energizing dimension of the action: it
determines the initiation, sustainability
and perseverance of an action or set of
actions to reach a specific goal”(Bandura,
1995, 2006; Maddux1995)
Correlation:
pedagogical support
- The need to
propose activities
with a learner-
centred approach,
fostering students
motivation, sense of
worth and success.
Correlation: social competences -
The role teachers and trainers
have in helping students build
their self-efficacy, enhancing the
development of individual social
competences. By proposing to
students activities in which they
recognize their interests and
experiences, and relate more
significantly, may help students
gain confidence in their work and
better integrate in school and
society.

18. CONCLUSION
INTED 2015
• The most important category of analysis, across different participants’ points of view, was literacy
skills  the ability to communicate effectively with others, read better and interpret what they read
was considered as the most relevant.Thus would imply a stronger series of activities on this area in
LIBE modules.
• ICT competences, which also integrates literacy skills, the needs have a specific focus on the ability
to access, retrieve and evaluate the information on the Internet  it was described a common lack
in distinguishing trustworthy from unreliable information; also the ability to communicate and
manage information online was addressed, and can somewhat be linked to the social competences
needed to be learned for the school context and for an internet (mainly use of social networks)
context.
• The need to offer low achiever students pedagogical support from teachers, trainers and from
peers. This support seemed quite relevant and determinant of studentsself-efficacy.The more
students feel confident, motivated and supported, the more enhanced is their participation in school
and learning. This is unquestionably relevant for the proposal of LIBE courses, that will need to
ponder the type of support given in a virtual learning environment.
• Learner-centred approach where commitment to learning is mainly due to the motivation towards
the activity is based on different topics related to students day-to-day lives.
The most relevant highlights from the data analysis raises awareness to:

19. CONCLUSION
INTED 2015
LIBE Courses foresee…
the results of analysis of the focus groups from Portugal and other partners
(Italy, Norway) will have implications with the developed learning activities for
LIBE courses.

20. Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto - Centro de
Investigação e Intervenção Educativas (CIIE)
Laboratorio di Pedagogia sperimentale of University UniromaTre
INTED 2015
PROJECT REF. NO. 543058-LLP-1-2013-1-IT-KA3-KA3MP
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication reflects the views only of the author,
and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Thankyou.
#LIBEproject
http://libeproject.it/
https://www.facebook.com/libeproject
https://twitter.com/libeproject
MartaPinto
martapcarvalho@fpce.up.pt