List of articles | Spring 2019
SIAE PROJECTS AND EVENTS
- First further training for quality counsellors in 2019 (4/2/2019)
On Wednesday 6 February, the first meeting of quality counsellors network took place at the SIAE. It was attended by 19 representatives of organisations with active quality counsellor.
The key joint activity in the quality counsellors network for 2018, which the counsellors implemented under the expert guidance of the SIAE, was focused on the teachers and their role in assessment and development of quality of their work. Quality counsellors prepared content descriptions for already established quality assessment model at teacher level in their organisations. Their analyses or status reports were reviewed and redacted by SIAE. Based on this, the counsellors prepared a final version of the report for their organisation. At the end of the year, they met in a virtual classroom to vote on three common minimum standards for quality assessment of the teachers work.
This year, the counsellors will continue with their joint professional activity, mainly to attempt to introduce or/and upgrade the selected common minimum standards in their organisations. They will define concrete activities for their organisations to reach the following objectives:
- to establish or upgrade a regular system of assessment of the quality of support provided to the participants by the teachers,
- to develop suitable approaches and ways, so that the teachers can start systematically self-assess the quality of their work,
- to establish or upgrade a regular system of assessment of the participant’s satisfaction with various aspects of the teacher’s work.
At the further training in February, the counsellors already performed initial considerations regarding the planning of more concrete activities in 2019. For that, the participation of teachers is crucial, not only in planning the assessment and implementation, but also in the evaluation of achieved results.
In the afternoon session, we were joined by Dr Mateja Brejc from the National School of Leadership in Education. She introduced a national project to establish, supplement, and test a model to identify and ensure quality in the area of education, and explained the starting points to place adult education into a common framework. The point of the improvements that they are trying to achieve with the establishment of a common model to identify and ensure quality, is to find out what the teachers and heads of schools need, in order to improve teaching and guidance.
Before the day ended, the counsellors also learned about the proposal for new promotional activity in 2019. As part of the Lifelong Learning Week, we are planning a joint campaign called We all create quality, in which organisations with quality counsellors and also other organisations will participate. The activity will be coordinated by the SIAE.
Further training in February has taken place as part of an European Social Fund project: Strengthening the competences of professionals in the field of managing innovative educational institutions 2018–2022. The autumn training for quality counsellors is planned for October.
Petra Šmalcelj (petra.smalcelj@acs.si), SIAE
- “In the future, there will be more smart devices than smart people” (4/2/2019)
The quote is by Prof Dr Aleksander Zidanšek of the Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School at the Closing Conference of Competence Centres for Human Resource Development, which took place on 13 February 2019, in Ljubljana. The professional public in the area of education will surely gasp for breath at the statement and feverishly think about the best response to words that we recognise as provocation. Despite the boom in smart technologies and artificial intelligence, humans are still the ones who create, invent, and develop technology, and not the other way around.
With his strong statement, Dr Zidanšek emphasised the need for continuous learning, high-quality knowledge, and a wide range of developed skills that we need to live in modern society and keep up with technological powers on our way to the society of the future. The conference introduced impressive results of the education and training of those employed in the KOC 2.0, which the Public Fund implemented with the support of the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, and the ESF, between 2017–2018.
What are competence centres?
Competence centres link Slovenian companies into partnerships for strategic HR development and represent an important incentive for employers to use employee training as a strategic tool to achieve better business results. In that way, they also interconnect within industries, enabling a transfer of knowledge.
What do the competence centres and the companies involved in KOC 2.0 most appreciate?
- That the interconnecting and partnerships allow them to do more for employee training that would be possible if they viewed each other as competition.
- That they became a learning company in the project, and that the training helped them strengthen the feelings of belonging to the company, increasing employee satisfaction.
- That the time invested in training all types of employees is an investment with high returns.
- That “soft skills” turned out to be important for all employees, not just the management, since most customer contact is done by entry-level employees who therefore create the public brand of the company.
- That interconnecting companies in the same industry prevents the fear of “stealing” good employees.
- That investing in the development of basic, professional, technical, and specialised competences of all its employees makes the company “future proof”, which is especially true if they continually check which competences would be globally the most desirable in the coming years.
Companies have expressed great interest to continue participating in the project, not only as a result of the positive effects of the training, but also because their employees (even those who first resisted training in their free time) ask when the next training will take place.
And what’s more: in 2019, the Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School will develop a web application that will help in the selection of the right training …
Nevenka Alja Gladek (Alja.gladek@acs.si), SIAE
- Managers adopted the concept of lifelong learning (4/2/2019)
In her initial address, Katja Dovžak, MSc, Head of the Higher Vocational and Adult Education Unit at the MESS, praised adult education centres and other adult education providers who contributed in the improvement of basic and professional skills of individuals over 45 who have not obtained more than lower secondary education. Numbers, shares, and other optimistic data, and mainly the carefully selected speakers with interesting and even whimsical performances, contributed to the positive atmosphere at the Closing Conference of Developing Basic and Professional Competences 2016–2019, on 15 February in Brdo pri Kranju. Even when the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia, Boštjan Gorjup, challenged the participants with his question about a glass of water, most of the people in the hall turned out to be optimists.
Most importantly, his speech ensured the representatives of schools, adult education centres, and other adult education organisations, that companies need them. That is the only way they can provide more and better engagement with employees, prepare training programmes, and ensure their professional development and motivation. Gorjup emphasised the fact that some competences, such as managerial skills, are not developed during formal education, and trends indicate that in a job, soft skills will soon become as important as professional knowledge.
Laughter from behind the classroom door.
Bojan Hajdinjak, MSc (The Association of Slovenian Adult Education Centres), as well as Biserka Neuholt Hlastec (UPI – Žalec, AEC), emphasised the role of adult education centres that are familiar with the local environment and can adapt their programmes to it. Participant target groups have at least two points in common – poor self-esteem and lack of trust in themselves – which, as we know, can be successfully eliminated through lifelong learning. In Žalec, the employees are guided following the IGAE (ISIO) method and trained as part of the Developing basic and professional competences programme. The project implementers have something in common – it is very hard for them to get closer to companies. The enterprises already have their own culture, which either does or does not include lifelong learning. Numerous doors have opened because the provided education is free, and did no’t close after the first experience. In the end, everyone is satisfied – the employees, because someone is actively engaging with them, and the managers, because they can hear laughter from behind the doors of the classrooms, workshops, and conference rooms.
The employee is king.
Sanda Jerman, project manager at Optius Moja zaposlitev, introduced the term VUCA-environment. Human resources trends indicate that bosses are being replaced by leaders who can work better with employees. Finding committed job candidates is becoming more and more important for companies where the customer comes first, which puts the employees in an increasingly important role in the company. Employees are the ambassadors of the company’s culture and organisation.
Sustainable employability ≠ sustainable employment.
Children born today will work until they are 75. Why not? The Rolling Stones are still working, even though they are all older than 75, and they have around 58 years of work behind them. And they don’t look like they want to retire … Occupational and sports physician, Zdenko Šalda, enhanced his presentation on working longer and sustainable employability with interesting calculations and examples that placed the initial statement into a suitable context. Education and well-being are crucial for sustainable employability. But we should be worried about individuals who are merely sustainably employed.
Zavarovalnica Triglav takes good care of its employees. They encourage formal as well as informal education; in collaboration with a higher professional education institution, they adjusted the insurance module in the economy study programme, which enables students to obtain a higher professional education, with which they helped 150 of their workers to not only get the title, but a higher level of education. The employees are involved in coaching and the implementation of internal training programmes, many of which are conducted online and in individual-friendly forms. They realised that older employees participate less in the education, which is why they introduced a mentorship programme. That is how they ensure intergenerational cooperation. Workers with more experience and years of employment can transfer their knowledge to the younger employees.
From apathy to motivation.
Good practice examples confirm that the Developing basic and professional competences project has justified its purpose. The companies Alpina Žiri, Tik Kobarid, Adria Mobil, and Jesenice General Hospital have experienced positive results. They took on the initiative of local adult education centres and the employees’ stance improved. Since the programmes also function as team building, there was improvement in interpersonal relationships.
The first impression is decisive, but the last impression is lasting.
We are optimistic about the future. The MESS envisages the inclusion of more target groups – including the unemployed – in the new call for tenders. This was welcomed by employee representatives and educators alike. The individuals who have already gained new knowledge, improved their self-esteem, connected amongst themselves, and improved mutual relationships, as well as relations with the management as part of the Developing basic and professional competences programme, all confirm that they not only gained professional competences, but also life skills that improve their personal lives and free time. Many eagerly await new education programmes.
Ana Peklenik (ana.peklenik@acs.si), SIAE
- New videos on the Self-Directed Learning Centres portal (4/1/2019)
Forty-four new videos are available on the Self-Directed Learning Centres portal. Most are intended for learning simple computer programming by using the Scratch graphical user interface, and one concerns paying for parking by using a mobile phone. The videos will help you learn about basic programming concepts and orders, learn to draw, working with variables, coordinates, branch points and conditions, random numbers, messages, and the concept of fragmenting problems into smaller problems. The content of the videos corresponds to the European Digital Competence Framework for Citizens (DigComp 2.1, competence area 3: Digital content creation, 3. 4. Programming). Forty-three videos are published in the section Video guides for digital creation and programming, while the videos showing how to pay for parking (in Slovenian) with a mobile phone can be found under the Smartphone Use section.
The Self-Directed Learning Centres portal now has a total of 161 videos – 70 are aimed at learning how to use a computer, 48 are about smartphone use, and 43 are intended to learn programming. In addition to the videos, each section also includes short instructions, as well as a description of the knowledge and skills which could be obtained by learning from videos.
Margerita Zagmajster, MSc (margerita.zagmajster@acs.si), SIAE
- Digital literacy as a basic competence (4/1/2019)Digital literacy is a basic competence within key competences, as they are understood in Europe. The core team of the SIAE, which is responsible for literacy and consequently competences, has in the past created and implemented action research to form descriptors for this basic competence.
What does digital literacy entail?
In order to reach in-depth understanding of the meaning of the term, we considered numerous expert research studies, also including external specialists, very experienced practitioners.
“Digital literacy is the basic capability of an individual to navigate the digital world. Digitally literate individuals know and use digital devices and gadgets, understand the laws of the digital social environment, and can navigate it.”A narrower set of general and concrete descriptors, introduced in a special publication (in Slovenian), was selected from an initial set of 97. We found that digital competency – much like other key competences – has core descriptors that clearly express the crux of the competence, as well as peripheral descriptors that can be similar, or even the same as the descriptors of a different competence. Digitally literate individuals know and use digital devices and gadgets, such as computers, smartphones, and online tools, which they can synchronise and update, and which are used for personal needs, while at the same time being skilled enough to be able to easily perform their jobs with these skills and knowledge. Individuals can use digital technology to search for and manage data, communicate in different ways, and perform different tasks. They can use various mobile apps and computer programs. They can choose the correct way to accomplish an objective and can separate the real from the virtual. They understand the laws of the digital social environment and can navigate it. And to put it clearly: Digital literacy in everyday life means that individuals can, for example, download a suitable game on a tablet for their child, share nice photos from holidays with their friends, independently shop online, etc.
Through this, we can help adults with poor digital literacy competence to improve in this area. They can become more confident and critically thinking users of ICT.
Dr Petra Javrh (petra.javrh@acs.si), SIAE
LIFELONG LEARNING WEEK
- Lifelong Learning Week 2019 is taking shape (4/1/2019)
The foundations for this year’s all-Slovenian learning festival were laid in December last year with the launch of a call for tenders by the MESS, concerning co-financing local and thematic coordinators of the LLW and the coordinators of the Learning Parade. Both, the official (10–18 May) and the broader (10 May–30 June) timeframes have been set.
The first meeting of the LLW network took place on 22 January, when 60 of us met at the SIAE. We first focused on presenting the achievements and highlights of the 2018 LLW on a national level, after which the participants talked about their successes and findings on a local and thematic level. In the second part, we used the VoxVote system to collect ideas for the so called joint campaigns of the 2019 LLW. The list and the updates are already published on the LLW website. The highlight of the interaction among the participants was the closing presentation by the SIAE Award Winner 2017 and an avid ambassador of learning, Darja Smrkolj, and the Directress of the Zasavje AEC, Polona Trebušak. The presentation was a great success. More on that in Darja’s contribution.
The European Year 2019 was not announced, so as far as content goes, the LLW will only be defined by the joint campaigns. We will also get support in the recently published and updated Manifesto for Adult Learning in the 21st Century. The first version of this publication by the EAEA from 2016, was updated and supplemented with Slovenian examples of good practices. This time, we plan to do the same, and we will try to inspire LLW providers at the local level to use the Slovenian version of the publication as well as its motto The Power and Joy of Learning when creating their LLW events and performing other work in the area of awareness-raising and advocacy.
The LLW network will meet again on 16 April. An integral part of this gathering will be the training to prepare incisive promotional materials and approaches – we will be joined by Maja Novak, MSc, from the We4you educational institution, an expert in innovative marketing approaches.
The LLW website, as well as the Facebook profile, both have high levels of activity – which is a good sign for this year’s learning festival in Slovenia.
Zvonka Pangerc Pahernik, MSc (zvonka.pangerc@acs.si), SIAE
- Learning gives meaning to life (4/1/2019)
I enjoyed participating in the preparatory meeting for the LLW 2019 at the SIAE. I was invited as the the SIAE Award Winner for the promotion of adult learning and knowledge 2017.
It was a great honour and pride to take part in preparations for the Slovenian LLW, along with the Directress of the Zasavje AEC, Polona Trebušak. I have immense respect for all learners and teachers. They made me feel welcome and very relaxed, and the atmosphere was charged with positive energy. That is why my initial stage fright quickly dissipated when I was given the opportunity to say a few words about myself and my lifelong learning path.
Since my birth, destiny has intended a different life path for me, a path that demands hard work, willpower, and constantly having to prove myself to those around me. Looking back, I can say that I am proud of myself and how far I have come. My path was often marked by less than perfect moments that life sometimes brings. However, they give me power and the faith to form myself into an independent and confident person with an empathetic heart that can reach out to others.
I am an honest, energy-filled person who likes to joke, even about myself. Humour helped me spice up my story, and while speaking I felt truly accepted by everyone present. The audience rewarded me with loud applause and a feeling of understanding and support.
I would like to thank everyone for a wonderful day, one of those that I love to remember, a new pebble in the mosaic of my life.
Darja Smrkolj (d.smrkolj1966@gmail.com)
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
- When you get off a tram and find yourself among books… (4/2/2019)
And not just books, but also much more, such as games, puzzles, online tools… – all to be used to study and create, was waiting for the guests of the study visit to the Netherlands at the Zoetermeer Forum. We learned that, in addition to the Zoetermeer Library, the building hosts around 45 other partners, including the Zoetermeer AEC, Literacy House, a Reading and Writing Foundation unit, the social work centre, schools, non-government organisations, etc. With joint forces and strong support from the local community, they provide opportunities to develop basic skills to the approximately 120,000 inhabitants of Zoetermeer. “Language (with emphasis on Dutch) and digital skills are the most important, as well as everything else needed for a quality life”, said one of the institution’s representatives. They also provide a safe and encouraging environment – especially for immigrants, so they can integrate into society as seamlessly as possible, eventually gain employment, share their talents with others (e.g. culinary, musical, etc.), helping them to establish and strengthen social networks. Zoetermeer Forum employees visit homes and raise awareness that for the well-being of a family, lifelong learning of all family members is crucial, and the best way to – happiness! For that, they rely on a wide network of volunteers, which eventually also includes the learners, following the principle that whoever receives knowledge, should eventually also share it to the best of their ability.
The exchange of experiences confirms what we already know, opens new possibilities, and warns of potential traps
The study visit, also called PLA is an integral part of the EAAL project implemented in all EU member states. We do not always carry out the same activities, but some things remain the same: our target groups are adults with a low level of education and with poor basic skills. We help the participants obtain these skills through participation and collaboration of various stakeholders on national, and especially local level, since we believe that the lack of those skills extends to all areas of life. The event in the Hague (and Zoetermeer) in the Netherlands on 25 and 26 February, was hosted by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Cultural Affairs and Science, which is also in charge of coordinating the implementation process for the EAAL project in that country. The participants were national EAAL coordinators from nearly all EU states.
The main part of PLA focused on the exchange of experience, views, and examples, concerning the networks of stakeholders providing opportunities to develop basic skills. How to establish these networks, what requires special attention, how to ensure their continuous growth, how to maintain them and keep motivated – on an institutional as well as personal level? The pieces of paper on the walls intended for our views were soon covered with writing. First, we listened to the presentation of the Count on Skills project, used to promote the development of literacy, especially reading, in the Netherlands. This project (which has been running since 2012 and is currently in the final 2016–2019 phase) is based on strong collaboration of various departments (education, culture, science, social affairs, employment, health, well-being and sports, internal affairs) with local communities and stakeholder networks on a local level.
And what did we learn?
A common mission, clear vision, concrete goals, optimal distribution of roles and responsibilities, defined financing, mutual benefits and broader effects – all are crucial in establishing the network, as well as later in the process. Partnerships should be wide-reaching, because while homogeneous ones are easier to manage, heterogeneous ones broaden horizons and better reflect reality. When searching for partners, one must look beyond the established flows, and provide continuous training to all involved (including the volunteers!). The formula for success includes regular evaluation of achieved goals, flexibility, and continuity. And the success should truly be based on small, but firm steps that happen with strong political support on national and local level.This is only the tip of the iceberg we addressed in the Hague, which we will continue to tackle in April at a similar event in Luxembourg. There, our attention will be focused on the meaning of collaboration in the awareness-raising, promotion, and guidance in adult education. Slovenia is among the countries contributing plenary presentations, and we also plan to record a short documentary. There are plenty of reasons to follow our progress!
Zvonka Pangerc Pahernik, MSc (zvonka.pangerc@acs.si), SIAE
- Closing Conference for the Family Literacy Works! project (4/1/2019)
On Tuesday 29 January, the Closing Conference for the Family Literacy Works! international project took place at the Kranj City Library. The purpose of the project was to develop a professional profile of a family literacy facilitator. The project began with an analysis on family literacy in the participating countries, presented in an extensive report available in electronic format. The project found that several organisations are engaged in family literacy, but that they are mostly promoting reading literacy in children. Based on these findings, they created a training programme for family literacy facilitators in libraries. The 30-hour programme is composed of six modules, related to the areas of expertise, children and adult education, facilitating, interpersonal relations, as well as the social field, management, and personal growth. As part of the project, pilot implementations were carried out in the participating countries. In Slovenia, libraries from all around the country took part in the pilot facilitator training. The librarians then prepared meetings with families in their local areas, where they connected reading with learning for both parents and children.
The Conference started with an address by the Directress of the Kranj City Library, Breda Karun. A presentation of the project followed. The project lasted for two years and involved five countries (Austria, Slovenia, Portugal, Romania, and North Macedonia). Maja Lesar introduced three key results: programme analysis, the development of a facilitator’s professional profile, and the implementation of training for facilitators and parents.
The presentation of the project was followed by a workshop. Tilka Jamnik, MA, a promotor of reading and an expert in the area of youth literature, showed a good example of working with children and their parents in a conversation with two families. Then, Dr Wolfgang Moser of Graz (Austria) introduced various activities implemented in his local area to encourage family literacy in libraries. I would like to highlight the so-called “bookstart”, a starting package that all families with pre-schoolers receive for free, and which acts as a family guide to the library for parents and children. The project also included STEM activities intended to attract fathers and children to the libraries.
Estera Možina, MSc, of the SIAE introduced a stakeholder network for literacy and reading culture in families, which was active in 2018, and the envisaged family literacy portal.
Špela Kocjančič (spelca.kocjancic@gmail.com)
- On social trends and learning in the coming decade (4/1/2019)
The European Commission convened a Forum on the Future of Learning
The event, somewhat reminiscent of last year’s First European Education Summit, was organised on 24 January in Brussels, on the first International Day of Education. The latter was announced last year by the United Nations General Assembly, as recognition of the significance of education and to support Sustainable Development Goals (Agenda 2030). It is worthwhile mentioning that the fourth of the 17 goals concerns a quality education and lifelong learning for all.
The Forum on the Future of Learning (hereinafter: Forum) is an integral part of the consultation process of the European Commission in the finishing phases of the Education and Training 2020 programme. The Commission, along with the member states and selected experts, are currently striving to define:
- the most important social trends and possible reactions to them, with European collaboration in the area of education and
- strategic objectives of this European collaboration by 2030, and the priority areas.
An important stakeholder in this process is also the European education and training expert panel. The 18-member group, including a representative from Slovenia, Dr Eva Klemenčič of the Educational Research Institute, has spent the time between October 2018 and January 2019 considering and preparing written materials for the Forum on six topics: digitalisation of society, demographics, inclusion and citizenship, environmental concerns, technological changes, and the future of work, investments, reforms and governance.
Additionally, discussions took place in the plenary part of the Forum and work groups – all with the intention to strengthen the Panel’s views and illuminate them from new angles.
I wrote more on the topic of digital transformation of society in the EPALE platform. Here I would only like to emphasise the basic finding that prioritising education should be strategic for the development of digital skills (also) in the new decade. Lifelong learning and education should be central to these efforts. Below, I will outline short summaries of the viewpoints regarding the other five themes/trends.
Demographics (ageing society and migration) is a complex phenomenon, which is why the approach to forming suitable policies should be equally complex. Adult involvement in education is not researched enough, and the data is often unreliable. Most statistics do not show data for people over 65, which is a growing target group. Intergenerational learning and establishing learning societies are also proving to be efficient ways of eliminating obstacles that immigrants face, while lifelong learning is emerging as the only right way to face demographic challenges.
Increased social inclusion and active citizenship in the future is an important part of equal access to a high-quality education system that encourages respect of mutual values, as well as common differences. Educators have the opportunity to play a crucial role in this, but only in close cooperation with the parents, learners, and other stakeholders. Interconnectivity, a holistic and open approach is key to the forming of inclusive communities, with schools (and other educational centres) playing a crucial role.
Environmental concerns are based on three pillars (environmental, economic, and social), concerning individuals and their mutual relationships. The main role of the education system is to raise awareness for a sustainable way of life, and to empower people to take responsibility for the environment. Once again, it is about values and mutual respect, acknowledging diversity and everything the current and future generations have in common … Developing these skills is important for us educators, so that we can teach them, as well as for all other individuals throughout their entire lives. What we need are different teaching methods that would promote greater understanding of the effects of our (ir)responsible treatment of the environment. Formal, non-formal, and informal learning should be aimed at benefiting all of that!
The aforementioned demographic trends are among the things that will most affect the future of work, in addition to technological changes. What we need are new skills that need to be consistently upgraded, which means that learning needs to be a lifelong process and that adult education needs to be sufficiently supported. Predicting new skills and knowledge is crucial, but the development of entrepreneurial spirit and greater creativity remains a constant challenge. The participation of stakeholders – the educators, employers, social partners, etc. – is a reliable key to success. They should all be a part of an ecosystem based on integration and flexibility. And our children should be raised in the spirit of lifelong learning from their earliest years.
Investments, reforms, and management – all for a higher quality and more fairness in the education system! The quality is based on the teachers and other educators, which is why it is necessary to invest in their continuous development. That is what will encourage them to undertake new roles in the aforementioned challenges and circumstances. These will bring a new structure of participants and open opportunities for different partnerships with the environment. Management models should support the necessary changes. There should be new opportunities in shaping reforms related to the progress of technology, innovative approaches to financing, needs to tailor educational models to global and local circumstances and other challenges.
I already mentioned the feeling that there are obvious paradigmatic shifts on the European level in the perception of the role of adult education and lifelong learning in the article on my experience at the European Vocational Skills Week 2018. In a way, this is also indicated in the use of the word ‘learning’ in the title of the Forum, which I interpret as proof of a new, wider viewpoint (‘lifelong’ and ‘lifewide’). A similar notion results from the above, as well as from the presentations and discussions at the Forum. More and more of us believe that learning in the period after completing initial formal education is imperative and virtually the panacea for the serious challenges we will face in the future. However, it (lifelong learning) should stem from curiosity, sincere need, and respect for great wisdom and eternal values!
Zvonka Pangerc Pahernik, MSc (zvonka.pangerc@acs.si), SIAE
- Life skills and participation – EAEA theme of the year 2019 (3/22/2019)
The skills of adults have become the central theme in European adult education policies, after the publication of the results by the PIAAC study in 2013 (in 2016 in Slovenia). The Study showed that one in five adults is facing issues in the area of basic literacy and numeracy skills; one in six adults has a very low level of digital skills. These results led EAEA to propose and be able to launch the LSE project (2017–2018), the purpose of which was to promote research and reflect on the existing educational approaches for the above mentioned groups of adults. As a European organisation, EAEA is well aware that some countries have already formed initiatives to expand the concept of basic skills to introduce more comprehensive practices to develop basic skills. By providing appropriate and suitable programmes for this target group, we can help them to improve low skills levels, while empowering them to contribute to their personal growth and family, and community development. They have also realised that the concept of life skills is wider than the concept of basic skills, because it does not focus on mere survival. Therefore, it is not surprising that life skills and participation are the main themes for EAEA efforts in 2019 in adult education. The organisation committed to promote the concept of life skills in connection with participation in adult education. It promotes non-formal adult education as the driving force for change and development of skills. It’s based on a vision of life skills as building blocks to increase the opportunities of individuals in the labour market and in society in general. EAEA will promote the theme of life skills on a European level with the following activities:
- Grundtvig Award for Life Skills for 2019,
- EAEA Annual Conference on life skills, which will take place on 27 June in Copenhagen,
- a workshop on life skills at the EAEA Younger Staff Training in September.
The role of the SIAE in the LSE project was to prepare the methodology and instruments to collect definitions of life skills among experts and practitioners in Europe, collect good practices and educational approaches, and especially to collect innovative tools to develop life skills in Europe. All project partners participated in the collection of definitions, good practices, and tools. Based on the collected data and document analysis, the SIAE prepared The Report on the Life skills Approach in Europe. To prepare the report, the conceptually coherent methodology was applied, which provided a good overview of the understanding of life skills in Europe and third countries, while also providing a collection of good practices and innovative tools already used in partner countries to develop life skills. In preparing the definitions of life skills in the project, we followed the framework proposed in the Council Recommendation on key competences for lifelong learning. The proposed key competences are included in the concept of life skills for Europe, but are classified in a somewhat different way.
As part of the project, the definition of life skills and the LSE learning framework were created.
Life skills are an integral part of the capability to live and work in a particular social, cultural, and natural environment. Skills are formed in response to an individual’s needs in a particular living environment. The term capability was used to supplement the definition of key competences. It was necessary to emphasise that the critical and ethical dimensions are an integral part of key competence development, which are well represented by the term capability.
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The LSE project aimed to shed light on the areas that help adults actively participate in the activities of everyday life and work, which is why the life skills learning framework was created as part of the project – LSE learning framework that can be used anywhere in Europe. The goal of the framework is a common understanding of life skills, which is why it defines eight basic capabilities: numeracy, literacy, digital capabilities, civic capabilities, personal and interpersonal capabilities, financial capabilities, health capabilities, and environmental capabilities. Each capability has two aspects: difficulty of skill/capability level and familiarity of context, which allow for a range of starting points and support the recognition of learners’ progression.In Slovenia, the term life skills is closely related to basic capabilities of adults. These are various capabilities that can help individuals achieve personal development. The combination of skills that each individual needs, depends on their current needs and interests. The goal of adult education is to obtain the life skills and basic capabilities that will allow them to achieve long-term effects. These are reflected in the individual’s autonomy, behaviour, and understanding of circumstances, as well as their new educational needs. Adult education researchers in Slovenia believe that this is the only way to reach target groups and implement goal-oriented educational programmes, as it is a way to make education for adults meaningful.
Estera Možina, MSc (estera.mozina@acs.si), SIAE
RELEVANT PUBLICATIONS
- New Publication Adult Skills (4/1/2019)
At the end of 2018, the SIAE issued a scientific publication, Adult Skills, edited by Dr Petra Javrh. The 14 diverse scientific articles provide a new and in-depth consideration of the results of a study presented in thematic studies (in Slovenian) by the members of the research group PIAAC. Several other authors, who reviewed the study from completely new angles, were invited to participate in the preparation of the publication.
The publication was peer-reviewed by Dr Nives Ličen and Dr Katarina Popović, the latter of whom included an intriguing statement: “Considering that the OECD is one of the key stakeholders in forming a global adult education policy that does not rely on traditional and formal ways of introducing and transferring its policies, the two studies performed by PISA and PIAAC, became the principal instruments of OECD’s ‘soft power’ and the main catalysts for numerous national educational policies, which is why we can state that PISA and PIAAC are ‘good servants, but poor masters’. The importance of this publication is in its ability not to make absolute the results of the PIAAC study, but to place them in the service of the development of society, the education system, adult education profession, and science, as well as in the service of progress and development of society and the individual in an exemplary way.”
An electronic version (in Slovenian) is available in our digital reading room.
Estera Možina, MSc (estera.mozina@acs.si), SIAE
- Two new manuals to guide adult learners (4/1/2019)
The manuals, titled Counsellor Competences for Guiding Adult Learners and Guidance Process for Adult Learners, were the result of the Erasmus+ KA3 GOAL project, which was successfully completed in 2018. In Slovenia, the project was led by the MESS (Ema Perme), in collaboration with the SIAE and the IRSVET. In addition to the aforementioned manuals, the manual Outreach in Guidance for Adult Learners was already published in 2018, and a fourth one on partnerships in guidance activities for adult learners is forthcoming. They are used to present the results of the project, which encompassed various areas of guidance work development. The objective was to increase participation of low-skilled adults, and other vulnerable groups of adults in education and learning.
The evaluation of project activities showed that guidance in adult education is complex. Adequate counsellor training, a systematic and comprehensive approach in planning, implementation, and evaluation of the results and effects of the guidance process, are key factors in providing a good guidance process and achieving the expected results and effects. The manual Counsellor Competences for Guiding Adult Learners, prepared by Tanja Vilič Klenovšek, MA, and Andreja Dobrovoljc, MSc (both of the SIAE), introduces the particularities of guidance activities for adults, implemented in various organisations: guidance centres for adult education (ISIO centres) and adult education units in secondary education centres, as well as the tasks performed by the counsellors. Counsellor competences were defined on the level of the project and practice in Slovenia, intended to serve as a starting point to prepare a single profile of counsellor competences in adult education. The particularities of individual types of educational organisations, as well as their guidance activities, were taken into account.
The manual Guidance Process for Adult Learners, prepared by Barbara Kunčič (IRSVET), includes expert orientations to implement a high-quality guidance process, based on the experiences and developmental approaches of the GOAL project. The evaluation of the project results showed that vulnerable groups of adults require in-depth and comprehensive guidance, more meetings, and additional motivation and support for further education and training. The results also highlighted the importance of the guidance process structure, which is why a general guidance process model for adult education was developed as part of the GOAL project, defining the key phases in the process, as well as other support factors (use of guidance tools, collaboration with experts from other organisations, etc.). The manual includes a model of the process and questionnaires to manage the guidance process, depending on the type of meeting with the learner (first, subsequent, closing). The processes that were formed as part of the project can aid the counsellors in the implementation of the guidance process.
The manuals are intended for the counsellors as well as their adult education partners, and other educators who may find themselves in the role of counsellors. They can be usefully applied by the stakeholders included in the further development of the guidance activity in adult education.
Andreja Dobrovoljc, MSc (andreja.dobrovoljc@acs.si), SIAE
EPALE
SLOVENIAN ADULT EDUCATION SCENE
- National Museum of Slovenia: museum for seniors: we visit you, you visit us (4/1/2019)
A new programme called Museum for Seniors was prepared at the National Museum of Slovenia: We visit you, you visit us. It is intended for the older population, including the inhabitants of retirement homes, activity day centres for the elderly, third age universities, intergenerational centres, pensioners’ associations, and other interested parties.
The programme’s purpose is multi-faceted: the participants can reawaken their knowledge of the past, learn new things, and get to know individual treasures of the heritage left to us by our ancestors. It is also a good way to spend some quality time.
The programme has numerous points of interest. In the first part, the professional staff act as hosts at a pre-agreed location by presenting Interesting Stories from the National Museum of Slovenia. Did you know that it houses the oldest musical instrument in the world – a Neanderthal flute? The listeners also like to hear the explanation of ivory dolls from Emona, and the popular Medieval story of Melusine, a female spirit. In the second part of the programme, the participants visit the National Museum of Slovenia, where they get to know ten famous museum items. They can see the only exhibited dugout canoe in Slovenia, the Vače situla – one of the most expertly crafted and conserved situlas, golden patches from Bled, which are also the oldest golden objects found in the territory of Slovenia … Visitors can also put on a Roman tunic or toga and hold a replica of a Medieval sword. But there is much more to find and see in the museum.
The museum is barrier free and open to persons using wheelchairs. Light, portable chairs can also be used while viewing museum exhibits.
The reactions from the participants are a good motivation to continue with the programme. Here are two entries from the museum guestbook:
“Excellent tour.”
“Admirable exhibits. We can be proud to have such a rich collection.”Tea Černe (tea.cerne@nms.si), National Museum of Slovenia
- The Intergenerational Coexistence Days (4/1/2019)
The Intergenerational Coexistence Days (14–16 May 2019), organised by the Slovenian Federation of Pensioners’ Organisations and the Exhibition and Convention Centre in Ljubljana, are the first central integrated event of intergenerational collaboration, incentives, and programmes for all generations. The event delivers the vision to follow demographic changes and maintain high social norms through mutual engagement to improve the situation of all generations in Slovenia.
The programme is being drafted by Slovenia’s Intergenerational Coalition, comprised of the National Youth Council of Slovenia, Slovenian Student Union, School Student organisation of Slovenia, and Slovenian Federation of Pensioners’ Organisations. It promotes expert and thematic discussion, where young people can become relevant interlocutors in topics concerning the elderly, while the elderly can support the efforts of young people in facing life challenges with their experience, wisdom, and responsibility. The expert programme will comprehensively focus on the problems on the job market and retiring: how young people can enter the job market, facing uncertain and precarious work forms, adapting the education system to the needs of the economy, the needs of older workers, key knowledge transfer, the necessary preparations for retirement, examples of active ageing through participation in volunteer programmes, and measures for improving the economic position of the retirees.
The event will also include a rich cultural and creative programme. We would like to invite everyone to participate in intergenerational creativity contests (making cards, lace, and a photography contest) published at: www.medgeneracijsko-sozitje.si. As part of the Lifelong Learning Week 2019, participants could attend workshops for prevention and raising awareness. Join us in promoting intergenerational coexistence at the Exhibition and Convention Centre in Ljubljana from 14–16 May.
Dijana Lukić (dijana.lukic@zdus-zveza.si), Slovenian Federation of Pensioners’ Organisations
- Prestigious titles awarded to reader-friendly municipalities (4/1/2019)
On Prešeren Day, the Slovenian Public Libraries Association, Association of Municipalities and towns of Slovenia, and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, awarded the title Reader-Friendly Municipality to ten Slovenian municipalities (Celje, Brežice, Divača, Dolenjske Toplice, Domžale, Grosuplje, Jesenice, Medvode, Vrhnika, and Zreče).
The purpose of the public tender is to encourage the municipalities to more actively participate in the local community and to connect various organisations to improve reading literacy and reading culture. The libraries are central facilities in the local environment that can improve literacy in all generations.
All ten participating municipalities encourage collaboration and participation of the local community by promoting reading as a fundamental value in society.
Mateja Pečar (mateja.pecar@acs.si), SIAE
- Migrant Mentorship Model project in its final phase (3/20/2019)MMM is a two-year project, coordinated by AZM – AEC. It was selected at call for proposals for Erasmus+ Strategic Partnerships in adult education in 2017 (KA2).
Who is involved and where has the road taken us so far?
The project brings together four partners: two from Slovenia (besides AZM-LU also Ozara d.o.o.), Eurocultura from Vicenza and INIBIA EEIG from Germany. All partners have years of experience in adult education, VET, occupational rehabilitation and social/cultural integration. We are especially experienced in the field of work with vulnerable social groups. All partners also work in localities where migrants are present. In 2015 and 2016, when the migrants from the Middle East and Africa tried to reach the safe existence in Europe, we felt it was our commitment and also moral obligation to address this issue professionally and with a high degree of social sensitivity and tolerance. Hence the need for international cooperation, so that our allegiance to joint goals and common vision could be realized in the highest possible way. Through the progression of the MMM project all partners adhered to the following ethical principles: respect for persons from different ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds, awareness of their needs and rights and respect for their human experiences and integrity.Migrants arriving in Europe face linguistic, cultural and social barriers that make their learning and subsequent integration a slow and stressful process. At the same time, these new types of learners present a challenge to educators. Especially lingustic barriers make acquisition of new skills, needed for integration, a complicated process, even more so in the case of low-skilled migrants who represent a significant share of all new migrants. New educational tools and approaches, addressing the needs of both sides must be offered to migrants and educators.
In 2018 during a 40-hour programme we first trained 3 or 4 migrant mentors in each partner country. The migrant mentors were well integrated migrants with knowledge of host country language as well as some major migrant languages. The migrant mentors then in a 4-month 96-hour pilot programme, also completed in 2018, transferred their knowledge to the newly arrived migrants who had only began the integration process. The mentors helped newly arrived migrants who entered a new, unknown environment obtain basic knowledge of host-country language and other basic skills needed for further learning and integration. By using migrant languages to explain often abstract concepts related to basic skills, they conveyed the meaning more directly and efficiently. This is of great importance in the early stages of basic skills learning when migrants lack even the most basic knowledge. With the help of mentors, the migrants were able to put new knowledge in cultural and social context which for them is often hard to understand.
At the end of the pilot programme the newly arrived migrants took part in a 32-hour evaluation in the workplace. This helped them test their new basic skills in real life environment.
The entire pilot programme and evaluation in the workplace were closely monitored by a process of guided reflection. Migrant mentors and partner staff who took part first in 40-hour migrant mentor training and then in 96-hour pilot training for newly arrived migrants, followed previously determined guidelines to observe key elements of the mentoring and evaluation process. With the help questionnaires they were assesing various aspects of the pilot programme and thus analyzed the process from cultural, linguistic, social and other points of view.
On the basis of the guided reflection the MMM teaching plan, containing recommended standards of knowledge in the area of basic skills and competences, and Migrant Mentors Training curriculum, containing a set of guidelines for training of migrant mentors, have been created.
The efficiency of the project is constantly being measured by questionnaires for all involved: mentors, migrants, partner staff of educators. On the basis of the data obtained, Efficiency Study will be completed at the end of the project.
In the three project meetings that were carried out so far in all partner countries, all planned tasks were assigned in accordance with the project plan. Various aspects of the project, from the learning process to the preparation of the intellectual results and work efficiency were in particularly monitored and evaluated.We are pleased that even before the end of the project, we can observe the first sustainable effects, especially the recognized value of the MMM curriculum, as the German partner will start the new training of migrants in the local environment on this basis.
What still lies ahead?
The project will end in September 2019 and until then there still remain many project tasks to be done. Project’s activities, particularly intellectual outputs, will be presented in two more newsletters. We also need to complete all intellectual outputs which, for the expert public, will be available as open educational resources on the project’s website. Towards the end of the project, in September 2019, two multiplier events will be organized in each partner country: one for educators and the other one for employers, as we want to extend the sustainable effects of the project to the widest possible range of stakeholders at all levels: local, national and international. With multiplier events we want to reach organizations which in partner countries are related to education and employment of migrants (elementary schools, VET, non-governmental and voluntary organizations, employment services and employment agencies, employers’ associations…), social services, local decision makers, media, adequate ministries (education, youth, development, work, social affairs) as well as organizations which are responsible for migration issues and challenges on European level.How to approach migrants and how to address them? How to integrate them into the educational process and working environment? The most credible answer to this question, concerning the two main factors of integration can most likely be provided to the expert public by migrant mentors. This is the added value of the project, this is its intellectual result. We want innovative project results to give educators and employers a new perspective at migrants as learners and workers.
You can also follow the project on FB profile: https://www.facebook.com/Migrant-Mentorship-Model.
Tatjana Njivar (tatjana.njivar@azm-lu.si), Andragoški zavod Maribor – AEC