Tag Archives: Adult education

Adult education refers to the idea that adults (older than 16 or 18 years) engage in learning activities to gain more knowledge and skills for their professional and personal lives. Adult education can be part of the formal education system, e.g. vocational education and training, or courses to acquire a Secondary School diploma. However, very often it refers to ‘non-formal adult education’ which encompasses all forms of structured learning activities outside of the formal education system, e.g. language or cooking classes. ‘Informal adult education’ includes all learning activities in adult lives that happen non-structured, e.g. visits to museums, community baking classes etc.

How to prepare an Erasmus+ KA2 project proposal on adult education?

From the network - 25th June 2019

The course is addressed to adult education trainers and teachers, e-facilitators, project managers, researchers and all actors (digital competence centers, SMEs, NGOs, VET providers, universities, public entities etc.) interested in applying for Erasmus+ KA2 Strategic Partnerships project funding to improve the educational experience and digital skills of adult learners.

Strategic Partnerships are open to any type of organisation active in any field of education, training and youth or other socio-economic sectors as well as to organisations carrying out activities that are transversal to different fields (e.g. local and regional authorities, recognition and validation centres, chambers of commerce, trade organisations, guidance centres, cultural organisations).

Overview of the course
 The goal of the course is to provide guidance for successful Erasmus+ KA2 Strategic Partnerships project proposals submission in the field of adult education, with a focus on digital skills development.

This is the 1st blended training on EU proposal writing in Europe with intensive preparatory phase and actual proposal writing. The course is hands-on and practical: participants will leave with a developed proposal, almost ready to be submitted to the funding Agency. Each proposal developed during the course will be reviewed by expert mentors before submission.

Participants will acquire theoretical knowledge, as well as carry out practical work, gaining valuable experience in project proposals. Divided into smaller groups, they will complete different tasks related to planning and writing a project proposal with the ultimate objective to have a ready-to-be-submitted proposal at the end of the course.

During the training, different tools will be made available by the organizers: work plan for the submission process; project concept note template; detailed work plan template; internal detailed budget template; an online collaboration platform for group work (e.g. Basecamp), etc.

The course is an excellent networking opportunity for participants who want to establish potential partnerships for future applications.

Learning Outcomes
Participants will learn about:

How to read and understand the E+ Call, guidelines, e-form and tools.
How to plan the submission process (steps, roles, deadlines for tasks, division of responsibilities, collection of documents etc.) and accomplish the essential procedures to submit the proposal.
How to design an innovative project idea in the field of adult education (goals, objectives, activities, expected results, impact, dissemination, etc.).
How to identify Intellectual Outputs and produce a detailed project work plan.
How to plan a sound project management and quality assurance
How to plan dissemination and exploitation
How to plan the financial aspects of the project and produce a balanced budget.
How to build a strong partnership.

Duration of the Course
The overall duration of the blended course is six months with a total of 80 hours: 55 hours of online activities and 25 hours (5 days) of face-to-face practical sessions and group activities. The course will start in September 2019 and will end by February 2020 with the following schedule:

September 2019: 10 hours of online preparatory activities (sharing and review of project ideas on Basecamp, organization of a webinar)
October 2019: 10 hours of online preparatory activities (setting up working groups for each selected project proposal)
November 2019: 25 hours of face-to face training in Italy (5 days) + 5 hours online preparatory activities
December 2019: 10 hours of online follow-up activities (review and finalizing project work plan and partnerships)
January 2020: 10 hours of online follow-up activities (review and finalizing budget and project proposal
February 2020: 10 hours of online finalisation activities (closing and submitting the proposals)

Read more here on ALL DIGITAL’s website

Teachers training on intercultural learning with EFIL and ESHA

From the network - 20th March 2019

The European Federation for Intercultural Learning – EFIL is offering a training course for secondary school teachers and school leaders based on the model of the training ‘Intercultural learning at School’ developed in the Erasmus+ project Intercultural learning for Pupils and Teachers: www.intercultural-learning.eu

The training course will be in English and will take place on 21-24 August (including travel) in Berlin, Germany. The participation fee will be approximately 550 euro including accommodation in a double room and meals. For a single room there is a 100 euro supplement.

By filling in this form you show interest to attend the teacher training. At the beginning of April you will be contacted to confirm your participation. The training will take place only if a minimum of 20 people confirm.

Please fill in this form by 31st March.

By filling in this form you agree that the data provided will be used only for the purpose of informing you about the teacher training ICL@School.

For more information, please contact marieceline.falisse@afs.org and valeria.di_muzio@afs.org

Partnerships and Cooperation in Adult Learning

From the network - 29th January 2019

EAEA and its members strongly believe that the challenges faced by the adult education sector, and society at large, can only be solved in cooperation. The policy paper “Partnerships and Cooperations in Adult Learning” concludes the thematic work of EAEA on the topic in 2018.

Based on the collection of best practices, interviews and feedback from EAEA members, as well as desk research, the paper looks at the benefits of collaborative partnerships. It closes with recommendations for the policy level and adult education organisations.

Recommendations for building partnerships

Define clear objectives. Our members agree that a partnership cannot be an end in itself. It needs clear objectives.

Start building a network. Joining an existing umbrella organisation, such as EAEA, or an informal network, might be a good idea when starting to look for potential partners. Attending events and conferences or being active on relevant online platforms (for example EPALE) can also be helpful.

Take one small step at a time. Start building partnerships with similar organisations, those that share your vision. Build up partnerships starting with organisations that you already trust, and then branch out to new partners that could offer expertise needed.

An intermediary might help. EAEA members suggest taking the time to explain your background as an organisation, and sometimes even the role of the adult education sector as such. Using the help of somebody who knows both organisations might be useful in establishing the first connection.

Be clear on the idea, and on the benefits for each side. Coming with an idea for the cooperation, and how it can support each side, helps to set the right expectations.

Agree on the terms of the cooperation, and be careful what you sign. A few EAEA members expressed their disappointment with partnerships where the task division was not clear, or where they were not consulted on the scope of their involvement beforehand.

Be patient and flexible: the results might not come easily or immediately. One size does not fit all, and a successful exchange of best practices does not mean that they can be transplanted from one national context to another, or even from one local context to another. Best practises are frequently about changing the attitude more than using a specific method.

Policy paper on Partnerships and Cooperations

EAEA statement on Upskilling Pathways

From the network - 2nd January 2019

The European Council adopted the Upskilling Pathways strategy in December 2016. EAEA has collected feedback from its members on the state of the implementation and the impact of this strategy, and would like to highlight some key recommendations based on the feedback.

EAEA has very much welcomed Upskilling Pathways as it is an ambitious basic skills strategy that would enable many of the adults in Europe with low basic skills to have their skills assessed, receive tailored learning provision and have their learning outcomes validated. The feedback of our members, based on the Country Reports 2018, present a diverse picture of implementation of the initiative in different countries.

Upskilling Pathways has already had an impact in quite a few member states. Nevertheless, EAEA would like to highlight some key recommendations for the broader and better implementation of the Upskilling Pathways

Read here all the recommendations

CSOs present their advocacy work on the European level to 100 learners

From the network - 29th May 2015

As part of the AE-Pro project, key civil society actors gathered yesterday to present their advocacy work in the field of lifelong learning in the online training EAEA organises. Audrey Frith, Director of EUCIS-LLL, Rasmus Aberg, Secretary General of OBESSU, Laura Lopez-Bech, Policy Officer of the European Youth Forum and Louise Høj Larsen, Programme Officer of ETUCE presented their advocacy work to the audience, composed of almost 100 adult educators and staff from all over Europe.  The webinar lasted around 1 hour and 30 minutes; presentations were followed by a Q&A round. The webinar will be available shortly online to further 200 learners that follow the course. 

EAEA European e-training for Adult Educators

From the network News - 9th March 2015

ae-proThe AE-Pro project is pleased to announce the launch of ‘European e-training for Adult Educators’, and they would like to invite you to take part. The free training begins on 14 April via the online Adult Education Learning Platform. In case you want to increase your knowledge about adult education in Europe, you lack formal training in adult education, you want to improve your professional skill, or you are interested in the topic in general, you can register now for the free training at www.ae-learning.eu. The deadline is 10 April.

EAEA Younger Staff Training & EAEA Grundtvig Award 2015

From the network News - 24th February 2015

ga2015health-04-250x354The European Association for Education of Adults (EAEA) will organise the Younger Staff Training (YST) again in December. The objectives are to learn about European developments in adult education and lifelong learning, to understand advocacy work at European level, to exchange information and knowledge etc. If you are currently writing on your applications for Erasmus+ Mobility Grants and would like to participate in the training or send someone from your staff, then feel free to include it in your application. Furthermore, in 2015 EAEA will be looking for projects that tackle health and well-being through adult education in the context of the EAEA Grundtvig Award for Adult Learning. Namely, the Award highlights project results that produce new ideas, new partnerships, new methodologies and a new understanding how we can work in adult learning.