Adult Education the pathway to the Europe of Knowledge

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Adult Education the pathway to the Europe of
Knowledge

• GRUNDTVIG
• - a success story -

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Who was Grundtvig?

• Nikolai Frederik Severin Grundtvig (1783-1872), a
  Danish clergyman and writer, is regarded as the
  ideological father of popular and adult
  education.
• He advocated 'life enlightenment', aimed at
  giving each individual, regardless of age or
  background, the opportunity to learn throughout
  life.
• The objective of learning was twofold, to give
  personal fulfillment to the individual and to
  ensure the active participation of all citizens
  in public life.
• As a learning method, Grundtvig advocated the use
  of dialogue and the spoken word.
• He further believed that teaching should be based
  on and relate to real-life experiences and not
  abstract matters.
• These ideas inspired the creation of  the Nordic
  folk high schools.

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Todays challenges

• In a world of relentless change, it is
  increasingly important to build up knowledge in
  order to acquire useful skills, to get a job, or
  simply for personal fulfillment.
• Education today is more and more a lifelong
  process.
• Learning and training no longer means only what
  goes on in school or university, but also in less
  formal environments and at any time of life.

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European added value

• A key feature of Europe, which is often
  mentioned, is its diversity.
• This is particularly true in the area of
  education, where systems and practices vary
  enormously from one country to another.
• This diversity is a source of enrichment for
  everyone and offers fertile ground for innovation
  and the quest for quality.
• Together we can be stronger and more creative.

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The objectives of Socrates

• Socrates is Europes education programme and
  involves around 30 European countries.
• Its main objective is precisely to build up a
  Europe of knowledge and thus provide a better
  response to the major challenges of this new
  century
• to promote lifelong learning,
• encourage access to education for everybody,
• help people acquire recognised qualifications and
  skills.
• In more specific terms, Socrates seeks to promote
  language learning, and to encourage mobility and
  innovation.

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Everyone is concerned!

• Socrates targets all the members of the education
  community, and this truly means everybody
• pupils during compulsory schooling, students,
  people
• the young and the not so young alike wishing to
  return to learning
• teachers being trained or in service
• ancillary, administrative and managerial staff
  involved in education
• educational establishments of all types
• but also all external interested parties
• civil servants and decision-makers
• local and regional authorities
• parents associations
• the social partners
• the business sector
• associations and NGOs.

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Common priorities

• Whatever the target groups and whatever the type
  of project, Socrates sets out to stress the
  multicultural character of Europe as one of the
  cornerstones of active citizenship.
• It supports the education of the least advantaged
  groups of people.
• It endeavors to counter social exclusion and
  underachievement at school.
• It promotes equal opportunities for women and men
  irrespective of circumstances.
• It sets great store by the new information
  communication technologies (ICT).
• It encourages the learning of the different
  European languages, and innovation in education.

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Cooperation

• Socrates advocates European cooperation in all
  areas of education.
• This cooperation takes different forms
• mobility (moving around Europe)
• organising joint projects
• setting up European networks (disseminating ideas
  and good practice)
• conducting studies and comparative analyses.
• In practice, Socrates offers people grants to
  study, teach, undertake a placement or follow a
  training course in another country.
• It provides support for educational
  establishments to organise teaching projects and
  to exchange experiences. It helps associations
  and NGOs in organising activities on educational
  topics, etc.
• One golden rule must be respected only
  activities which have a European dimension based
  on transnational cooperation may receive
  financial assistance.

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School in the broad sense

• Socrates targets all forums of learning
  irrespective of level, ranging from nursery
  school to university.
• This includes adult education, which often
  involves more informal pathways.
• Educational establishments cannot fulfil their
  mission behind closed doors and must open up to
  new ideas and practices, e.g. by building up
  partnerships with establishments in other
  countries or working with the various players of
  civil society.

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GRUNDTVIG

• Adult education
• and other educational pathways

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What is GRUNDTVIG?

• The purpose
• of this action of  Socrates is
• to enhance
• adult education provision
• by means of European co-operation.

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A policy of lifelong learning

• The Grundtvig action is part of the European
  Commissions aim of promoting a  policy of
  lifelong learning, at  European level as well as
  in each of the participating countries.
• It comprise all levels and sectors of adult
  learning (general, cultural and social).
• In addition to learning that takes place within
  the formal or non-formal system, it also comprise
  learning that takes place on a more informal
  basis, such as autonomous learning.
• The Grundtvig action addresses a great variety of
  subject areas and educational providers.
• It complements and interacts with other actions
  within Socrates and with other programmes, such
  as  Leonardo da Vinci, to cover the whole
  spectrum of lifelong learning.

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Aims

• Promoting the development of concrete products
  and valid results which will be of use in several
  participating countries (if possible, throughout
  Europe)
• Promoting European co-operation between bodies
  providing adult education
• Contributing to improving the quality of teacher
  training relating to persons involved in the
  teaching of adults
• Furthering the debate on lifelong learning and
  contributing to the dissemination of good
  practice.

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Implementation

• Grundtvig 1 Transnational cooperation projects
• Grundtvig 2 - Learning partnerships
• Grundtvig 3 - Mobility for training of
  educational staff
• Grundtvig 4 - Networks

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Our experience

• We started this exciting adventure in 1998
• Weve been as new born babies, coordinating a
  Grundvig 1 TCP ENVIRAE
• Even the Commission representatives at the time,
  have been curious how (if?) we will be able to
  develop and to implement the project
• Weve been!!!
• It was a true success all the tasks fulfilled,
  in time, with good impact and efficient use of
  the money.

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ENVIRAE DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADULT EDUCATIONAL
STRUCTURE ABLE TO PROMOTE THE PROTECTION OF THE
ENVIRONMENT.
A SOCRATES - ADULT EDUCATION PROJECT 71169-CP-1-
1999-RO-ADULT EDUC-ADU
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Curriculum!!!
Short courses
Adults, give a clean world to your children !!!
Methodological Guide
About us
Exhibition
Final Report (.pdf)
CD-ROM
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Growing fast

• In the year of 2000 weve been involved in
  another Grundtvig 1 project
• The Way to United Europe
• Coordinator St. Cyril and St. Methodius
  University of Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria

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Outcomes of the Way to United Europe

• better understanding of how the idea of a United
  Europe emerged and what the European Union is
• the development of a sense of shared European
  identity
• knowledge of individual European cultures
• higher educational standards and more
  opportunities for professional fulfillment for
  the two target fgroups
• CD-ROM materials with multimedia information on
  all partner countries
• a website
• 15 trained adult learners
• 15 fully trained specialised teachers

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2001 a fruitful year

• Two Grundtvig 1 TCP approved!
• Both of them going deep inside the background of
  Adult Education, addressing ambitious aims
• Large partnerships, generous budgets, high
  level outcomes
• Difficult tasks, time-consuming management

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EUPECO

• European Pedagogical College in Adult Education
  and Training
• 90403-CP-1-2001-RO-GRUNDTVIG-G1
• 50387-IC-4-2000-1-RO-ERASMUS-EPS-1
• General Aim To develop an adult education
  structure which to be able to provide a Diploma
  with European Recognition in ADULT Pedagogy.

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The Building
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ECTS in LLL

• ECTS-LLL - European methodology for accreditation
  of prior experiential learning in Lifelong
  Learning
• 90642-CP-1-2001-1-UK GRUNDTVIG-G1

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General Objectives

• The promotion of adults individual demand for
  lifelong learning through the recognition of
  skills and accreditation of prior experience and
  learning.
• Improving the supply of lifelong learning
  appropriate to the necessary expansion of
  continuing education training.
• The development and testing of a flexible
  accreditation and certification system based on
  the European Credit Transfer System ECTS for
  lifelong learning.
• Development of appropriate documentation and
  training resources.

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AGREED OUTPUTS (1)
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AGREED OUTPUTS (2)
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Another one

• Adult Learning in Environment Related Themes
• phase 2 (ALERT-2)
• 101067-CP-1-2002-1-UK GRUNDTVIG-G1

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Outcomes

• a summary document setting out the environmental
  issues faced by Europeans and the citizens role
• materials describing practical actions to reduce
  household environmental impacts and costs, in a
  pictorial form
• an advice resource highlighting national
  differences which enables learners to act as
  mentors for others
• information for adult education tutors, community
  workers, journalists and others to enable and
  encourage them to use outputs 1-3.

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Community Centres promoting Sustainable Living

• The proposed three-year project aims to initiate,
  in each participating country, community centres
  that bring together the synergistic efforts of
  formal educational institutions, NGOs, local
  councils and adults to promote sustainable living
  in their respective communities.
• This will be achieved by exploring specific
  community needs and by designing programmes that
  respond to these requirements.

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SOCRTAES / Grundtvig 2 project

• Modern Evaluation Tools For Adult Education And
  Training
• MODETA

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General objectives

• To put in common the actual knowledge and
  experience of different European countries, in
  adult evaluation.
• To improve the existing background related to
  adults evaluation (methods, techniques, tools).
• To develop and to offer modern learning materials
  for the teachers/trainers/educators in the field
  of adults evaluation.
• To share new didactic and pedagogical approaches
  in adult education.
• To produce a set of evaluation instruments for
  adult education.

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What we actually achieved?

• European spirit dimension
• European added value
• European partnerships and networks
• European inputs in our education
• European quality and standards
• European vision
• European FRIENDS
• EUROPE IN OUR HEART AND MIND !!!