The EAEA Younger Staff Training offers the participants a compact overview of European adult education policy and practice, shares information on how to influence it and provides networking opportunities. Every year, the training has a different thematic focus. In 2022, the overarching theme will be guidance for learning and career. Participants will explore the topic through a workshop on improving guidance for adults and by visiting guidance centres based in Brussels.
Participatory approaches are at the heart of the training, which is why in 2022 all on-site activity in Brussels will be dedicated to hands-on workshops, peer-learning sessions and study visits.
“This year for the first time we will be organising the training in a blended format. In early September, participants will be invited to meet with us online for input sessions about European policy and funding opportunities Erasmus+,” says Aleksandra Kozyra, EAEA’s Head of Capacity-Building. “They will then spend a week in Brussels putting the theory into practice, for example by planning their own advocacy campaigns and practicing drafting project applications.”
Group work during YST 2021.
In the words of the participants
“What I liked most were the many interactive sessions in which we learnt about adult education in each country and shared our experience. I particularly appreciated the peer learning in small groups that encouraged reflection without any fear,” said Bruna Romano Pretzel from Arbeitskreis deutscher Bildungsstätten, Germany, who participated in the training in 2018.
“The programme of the YST was very rich and really insightful. At the same time, I learned a lot from the fellow participants when they talked about their home countries and their experiences. It was an interesting exchange,” said Saambavi Poopalapillai, a participant representing the Swiss Federation for Adult Learning, who attended the face-to-face edition of the YST in 2021.
“The course gave me new perspectives on the approach of ALE providers and useful tools for ALE advocacy. I will for sure use them in the near future,” shared Anna Delort from ACEFIR, who attended the training virtually from Girona last year.
This article was originally published on EPALE – Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe.