SONETOR aims to enhance the knowledge, skills and competencies of Cultural Mediators through the development of innovative Vocational Education Training content and programmes. In addition to the formal modules the recognition of informal and non-formal learning will be a key element of the project.

It will firstly study the actual professional needs of Cultural Mediators and draft a job profile, listing the necessary, knowledge, skills & competences they should possess. Based on these, the project will develop a set of learning scenarios aimed at developing the Cultural Mediator in terms of continuing professional and personal development. A key element of the project is the concept of peer or shared learning and the project will facilitate participants with the opportunity to share real-life experience and adopt best practice.

To this end, the project will develop and deploy a special multi-lingual social networking platform, which will foster the development of a European Cultural Mediators community, by providing a universal focal point for the exchange of working experiences between the community members and other stakeholders. The platform will support peer learning via the realization of training scenarios tailored to the specific job needs and personal attributes required of Cultural Mediators. The project is committed to using techniques and learning strategies which are recognised to be in line with the best practice and principles of adult education and will make use of high quality digital training content, as well as of communication tools, such as forums, blogs and wikis, developed and maintained by the registered members of the community. The training services will be accessible via the Internet, thus supporting distance learning in the workplace or at home making the product a very flexible one.

SONETOR will become the vehicle of choice for improving the quality of services provided Cultural Mediators and their organisations through up-skilling and re-skilling. It will promote innovation in vocational training of Cultural Mediators through the social networking training platform. The primary products of the project (job profile, training content and scenarios, social networking platform) will ensure that the material is available to as wide an audience as possible in what is a fast changing educational landscape.