<< Background >>General statistics indicate that 47% of adult prisoners report holding no qualifications, 42% having been permanently excluded from school (i.e., educational failure), and 13% stating never been employed (Coates, 2016). On average, prisoners are likely to be under-educated and lack educational skills (Davis et al., 2014). Most correctional facilities are unaware of prisoners with learning disabilities and difficulties (an estimation between 20% to 30%, or at worst cases reaching 52%) (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 2009). The participation willingness in educational programmes inside prison is problematic, given that the majority of European countries register a participation rate below 25% (Hawley, Murphy & Souto-Otero, 2013).The Vocational Education and Training (VET) programmes “are designed to teach prisoners about general employment skills or skills needed for specific jobs and industries.” (Davis et al., 2014), and its implementation has had a positive impact on reoffending likelihood. A 43% lower recidivism rate was reported due to the prisoner’s participation in VET programmes compared with those who did not participate. Furthermore, prisoners who receive vocational and education training have a 13% higher chance to obtain employment post-release than peers who did not (Crabbe, 2016). These findings demonstrate that VET programmes help prisoners gain vocational and educational training qualifications while incarcerated and increase their adherence to these programmes. Prison staff are fundamental bridges between prisoners and the required outcomes of prisoner-oriented VET programmes because they establish daily contact with prisoners. Thus, attention should also be given to prison staff training and learning, providing prisoners assistance to their rehabilitation.Virtual Reality (VR) is one of the latest digital tools generally defined as “an artificial or computer-generated, three-dimensional representation of reality, which is experienced through the senses and which is interactive.” (Van Gelder & Luciano, 2014). The goal of virtual scenarios is to provide the best possible realistic representation of the real world, immersing the user in a sensory system where interaction takes place (Ticknor, 2019a). This technology holds potential in pedagogical settings due to features that improve the learning process (e.g., gamification, multisensory interaction scenarios and real-world visual representations) (Mikropoulos & Natsis, 2011), and users feel motivated to engage in a continued educational context (Monahan, McArdle & Bertolotto, 2008).VR has the potential to be a beneficial integration of prison VET programmes. VR settings may support career and educational training with “real life” scenarios, preparing future ex-prisoners for adversities they may encounter upon release. Thus, the use of VR technology to provide rehabilitation services not only contributes to reducing the prisoner’s apprehensions/anxieties related to society’s challenges (Schultheis & Rizzo, 2001) but also may reduce the likelihood of repeated offences due to an increase developing in employment skills (Ticknor & Tillinghast, 2011). Also, virtual scenarios can be programmed and adapted to specific prisoners’ needs, resulting in a personalized environment intervention that cannot be accessed inside correctional facilities without the use of VR (Kip et al., 2019; Botella et al., 2017).The VISION project aims to mitigate one of the most felt difficulties of prisoners’ post release, which is obtaining rewarding employment. For this purpose, we seek to develop prisoners’ competencies through VET programmes, supported by the application of VR technology. This rehabilitation intervention predicts the achievement of positive outcomes by developing an adequate training programme for educators/trainers which, therefore, will provide the necessary training prisoners need.<< Objectives >>The VISION project aims to mitigate one of the most felt difficulties of prisoners’ post release, which is obtaining rewarding employment. For this purpose, we seek to develop prisoners’ competencies through VET programmes, supported by the application of VR technology. This rehabilitation intervention predicts the achievement of positive outcomes by developing an adequate training programme for educators/trainers which, therefore, will provide the necessary training prisoners need. Consequently, by achieving the proposed goals of the project, we will support prisoner’s in being better prepared to find and retain a job, leading to a successful society reintegration and the avoidance of reincarceration.Specifically, this project aims the following:1.Increase adherence to VET programmes (through the development of different virtual scenarios related with course enrolment and motivation);2.Increase Commitment of prisoners in VET programmes (prisoners’ education and vocational skills development);3.Increase success (prisoners’ preparation for labour market integration, employment post-release, reintegration, and avoidance of reincarceration);4.Improve trainers/educations skills to train prisoners.The VISION project forecasts the engagement of 320 prisoners/professionals/stakeholders in the implementation of the project activities and events. The project result includes several activities in which they will be enrolled to provide inputs to the project result's development and pursue project aims.In the PR1 - Mapping Prisoners Motivation Assessment and Enrolment Strategies - small groups of trainers and prisoners are foreseen to support the PR validation and fine-tuning process.In the PR2 - Enrolment and motivation Virtual Reality resource – a total of 75 trainers/professionals/trainers will contribute to the PR delivery.PR3/PR4 - VR Resource User Manual/ PR4: Train the Trainers (ToT) – the 90 trainers/educators/professionals will participate in the PR piloting, and within the ToT, the VR Resource will be piloted to a group of 150 prisoners.90 trainers/educators/professionals will participate in the PR piloting, and within the ToT, the VR Resource will be piloted to a group of 150 prisoners. On what concerns multiplier events alone, VISION will organise 2 and will gather a total of 180 participants, 15 stakeholders per event and two STJSTE that foresees to collect a total of 26 participants from sending organisations.<< Implementation >>The VISION project follows Erasmus+ structure and foresees five different Working Packages:•WP 1 – Project Management: a transversal set of activities lasting the entire project lifespan and include those to ensure project and risk management, communication and evaluation;•WP 2 – Research & Development: a set of activities that ensure coherent development of the proposed solutions according to the current unmet needs, both national and international and the setup of the prototypes for further piloting experience (PR1 and PR2);•WP 3 – Users’ Guides and Training Manuals: to ensure the proper suitability, usefulness, transferability and accessibility, it will be necessary to develop training manuals, pilot the training, including delivering the prototyped solutions (PR1 and PR2) to end-users (prisoners) and support their transition (PR3 and PR4);•WP 4 – Dissemination and Exploitation: based on the project’s PRs, the VISION partnership will focus on PRs sustainability: embedding on their daily activities and/or delivering knowledge, experience and practices transference actions pursuing project potential mainstreaming.PROJECT RESULTS 1. MAPPING PRISONERS MOTIVATION ASSESSMENT AND ENROLMENT STRATEGIESActivity 01-1: Development of mapping frameworks: motivation assessment and enrolment strategies (brief literature overview)Activity 01-2: Development of data collection design process and roll-outActivity 01-3: Motivation assessment and enrolment strategies online toolPROJECT RESULTS 2. ENROLMENT AND MOTIVATION VIRTUAL REALITY RESOURCEActivity 02-1: Selection VR suitable software for scenarios designActivity 02-2: Selection of VET priorities for scenarios design Activity 02-3: Development of VR scenarios and outcome analysis gridActivity 02-4: Piloting and fine-tuning VR resourcePROJECT RESULTS 3. VR RESOURCE USER MANUALActivity 03-1: Review on VR resource piloting and manual structure designActivity 03-2: Drafting the Manual: definition of requirements, selecting information and co-designing guidelines and instructions Activity 03-3: Piloting with professionals (different from the first pilot)Activity 03-4: Fine-tuning VR resource manualPROJECT RESULTS 4. TRAIN THE TRAINERS (ToT)Activity 04-1: Review pilots from PR2 and PR3 (PR 04-2: Design the ToT)Activity 04-3: Piloting with professionals (same from other PR)Activity 04-4: Fine-tuning ToT programme<< Results >>The project aims to mitigate one of the most felt difficulties of prisoners’ post-release, which is obtaining rewarding employment. For this purpose, we seek to develop prisoners’ competencies through VET programmes, supported by the application of VR technology. This rehabilitation intervention predicts the achievement of positive outcomes by developing an adequate training programme for educators/trainers which, therefore, will provide the necessary training prisoners need.Consequently, by achieving the proposed goals of the project, we will support prisoners in being better prepared to find and retain a job, leading to successful social reintegration and the avoidance of reincarceration.Specifically, the project aims to reach the following results:1. Increase the level of quality and attractiveness (adherence) to VET programmes through the adoption of VR (creating and adapting different virtual scenarios related to course enrolment and motivation);2. Increase retention in VET programmes (i.e., the length of time they are enrolled, as well as their participation willingness, contributing to prisoners’ educational/vocational skills development);3. Increase prisoners’ key competencies and level of success in VET programmes, leading, therefore, to an employability rate increase (i.e., prisoners’ preparation for labour market integration, employment post-release), and to a social/vocational reintegration. With this goal we consequently expect an increasing reincarceration avoidance;4. Developing a training programme for trainers/educators on how to deliver the VR programme (depending on the needs of each individual prisoner) and improve their skills to train prisoners (knowledge transference).Furthermore, we expect to deliver the produced outputs to:- At least 125 prisoner’s potential enrolled in VET programmes, 25 from each country;- At least 90 professionals engaged in VET: trainers, prison educators and other practitioners (e.g., NGOs), 15 from each country; Resource will be piloted to a group of 150 prisoners;- At least 150 stakeholders, being 30 from each country;- Introduce in the activities of 5 VET providers across the 5 participant countries, some of the public and with legal competencies..Project results: PR1 Mapping Prisoners Motivation Assessment and Enrolment Strategies. PR2. Enrolment and Motivation Virtual Reality Resource. PR3. VR Resource User Manual. PR4. Train The Trainers (ToT).The VISION project can be divided into its prisoners, practitioners: trainers, prison educators and professionals from NGO's and relevant stakeholders. VISION looks to promote VET enrolment and success of prisoners, better preparing them for society re-entry.Therefore, the project foresees the following impacts:EXPECTED IMPACT A - increase prisoners enrolment rate in VET opportunities while in prison and increase their motivation and contribute to their adhesion into a lifelong learning mindset.EXPECTED IMPACT B - contribute to decreasing prisoners info exclusion by giving them contact with an edge technology such as Virtual Reality (VR) and empower them to gain control of their future path by enhancing their capacity to visualise what will be their gain by accessing VET opportunities.EXPECTED IMPACT C - enhance the digital competencies of those professionals and stakeholders in the use of VR to support motivational strategies and disadvantaged groups with multiple exclusion factors and barriers.EXPECTED IMPACT D - introduce an edge technology in the major VET providers at National and European levels that increases the capacity for future investment, builds case studies to be shared and use in advocacy processes and builds on towards the digitalisation in a very complex and difficult environment.