Testing of the LEK-AE curriculum during a workshop in Brussels on 5 October 2017
12.10.2017 LEK-AE, professionalisation

LEK-AE curriculum for adult educators tested in Belgium

For adult educators, their work is very often not only a job, but also a passion, and, in many cases, a true vocation. However, in comparison to primary or secondary school teachers, very little is known about this profession and what the work entails. To bridge this gap, the LEK-AE consortium has produced a curriculum to train adult educators and other adult education professionals in communication and public relation work to make this field known. The curriculum was now tested in Belgium.

“I liked that the training materials encourage creative work and that the training format provided a space to immediately try out what we learned, for example finding a headline for an article and drafting a text for the press,” said one of the participants of the workshop that took place during the World Teachers’ Day event organised by LEK-AE and EPALE Belgium on 5 October 2017. At the workshop, a few selected modules from the curriculum were tested in French, Dutch and German.

“I always thought that there is so much from our work that we could share with the world, but I never knew where and how to start,” said another participant. “This training gave me more self-confidence to use social media to let other people know about adult education.” Very few people are born communicators, but this does not mean that the door is closed to those without these natural skills. Communication skills can be learned, and the LEK-AE curriculum helps adult education professionals to communicate about their work more widely to let Europe know about the benefits of adult education.

Professionalisation of adult education staff is, due to budget constraints in many organisations, often neglected but remains very important nonetheless. Therefore, the LEK-AE curriculum can also be used by adult educators to train their colleagues and to learn from and with each other. The full curriculum will be published in English, German, French, Dutch, Portuguese and Romanian in 2018. More information will follow on the project page.

 

Text: Raffaela KihrerPhotos: LEK-AE project

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