Fundación Esplai and PUE towards the digital empowerment of the citizenship

PUE is the exclusive Certiport certifications distributor in Spain, accredited as the maximum and exclusive representative of Certiport in the whole Spanish territory. Under this recognition, PUE Academy offers support to the network of active Microsoft Office Specialist Authorized Certification Centers, committing to the certification of students in Microsoft.

That is the case of Fundación Esplai, partner in the deployment of Certiport certifications in Spain, whose mission is to promote citizen empowerment and digital literacy of society from the perspective of rights, inclusion and transformation. They achieve all this through community social intervention, socio-educational action and inclusion in the field of information and communication technologies, networking with the Third Sector and other social agents.

In the following success story, we will review the challenges that Fundación Esplai, in collaboration with PUE Academy, has faced offering technical training and certification to people over 16 years of age; and to ICT professionals with a technical profile, over the last 10 years. All this to achieve a better present and future for children and youth, by placing them at the very center of the action.

The challenge

At Fundació Esplai they have been bringing technology closer to society through training, among other topics, for years because, as Elvira Aliaga González-Albo, Head of Communication and Participation and Third Sector Area at Fundación Esplai, states, «those who do not have access to training and do not have the criteria to use technology, are left behind». In addition to the training of competencies and digital skills, they saw that it has been demonstrated that a high percentage of those who lead human resources processes value the certification of knowledge. And it is in this context that Fundación Esplai detected the need for a recognized and competent authority to advise them on this challenge and guarantee the possibility that people trained could endorse the knowledge acquired through official certifications.

The PUE Academy solution

Fundación Esplai is part of the Microsoft Philanthropy initiative, focused on empowering non-profit organizations with tools and resources to support their communities. This relationship, initiated twenty years ago, has allowed them to promote, consolidate and strengthen digital literacy projects, improve employability and digital skills, as well as promote coding and STEAM vocations.

As a result of this strategic partnership, in 2012 Microsoft put Fundación Esplai in touch with PUE Academy to include and provide access to the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification for the Beca MOS project. From this need to provide a sector of the population with free certification, along with a distinguishing model, the current partnership between Fundación Esplai and PUE Academy was born.

As an official certification center in MOS (Microsoft Office Specialist), IC3 Global Standard 5 (GS5) (Certification of Digital Competence), MTC (Azure) and MTA (Microsoft Technology Associate), Fundación Esplai has, thanks to PUE Academy, been able to facilitate access to training resources, certification exams and practice tests in digital skills and Microsoft technology for students.

Outcome

The impact up to the beginning of 2021 has been over 18,000 certifications carried out with an average success rate of 85% of people passing. But behind every number there is a story to tell. One great example is Anna Masdeu, a participant in one of the Conecta_IA program boot camps who now works in the technology sector after reorienting her education. She is an example of the systemization, steadiness and good work that have a real impact on our society, especially on those from underprivileged groups. 

As Elvira Aliaga González-Albo points out, «success is that people are better prepared in the world to get ahead. If they achieve this, it is our success. It is also our success for PUE Academy, who accompanies us during this adventure».

IC3 GS5 certifications and promotion of digital competencies among girls and teenagers in different countries

In parallel, Fundación Esplai and PUE Academy have undertaken other collaborations. 

Among them, in 2020, PUE Academy proposed Fundación Esplai to participate in the Certiport Europe Consortium project, an initiative to train and encourage 500 girls and young women to follow careers in science and technology through workshops on digital skills and entrepreneurship fostered by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. They were also offered the Certiport IC3 GS5 certifications, which meet the requirements demanded by the Common European Framework for Digital Competences (DigiComp 2.0), and are recognized by the Global Digital Literacy Council (GDLC), promoting the inclusion of women and girls in the STEAM field.

One of the main inconveniences faced by the Digital Skills Centers during this crisis has been the closure of the spaces due to the health emergency. Rather than stopping all teaching activity, PUE Academy advised Fundación Esplai in the transition from the face-to-face to the online exam model offered by Certiport’s ‘Exams from home’ certification solution. After a process of training and familiarisation with the tool, they were able to provide training and official certification to the ones most affected in these months of healthcare emergency.

There is no doubt that this is a modality that has come to stay, given its flexibility and accessibility when it comes to democratizing and facilitating access to official training and certification.

Other Projects of Fundación Esplai

Thanks to support from Microsoft, during the 2020/2021 academic year Fundación Esplai has launched the program Conecta_IA, Coding and Artificial Intelligence for the Common Good, focused on acquiring digital skills to improve employability and the socialization of knowledge on programming and Artificial Intelligence. Its goal is to reach 8,900 young people between the ages of 12 and 25 through educational opportunities, critical reflection, training and specialization in the field of digital skills, programming and artificial intelligence. They will surely succeed!

Fundación Esplai and PUE Academy, the long road ahead

In 2019 Fundación Esplai received the award for «Best MOS (Microsoft Office Specialist) authorized certifying center» at the PUE Academy Day, for its work in the certification of students in Microsoft. As Guillem Porres, technician from the socio-educational and inclusion area of Fundación Esplai told us, “you often don’t have the perspective on what you are doing, but afterwards you realize that you are reaching and helping a lot of people.”

This alliance has made it possible for PUE Academy to reach places, collectives and social groups that they wouldn’t have been able to alone. As well, it has helped Fundación Esplai fulfil its mission: to empower citizens in technological issues to overcome the digital breach.

Together we are stronger and better!