What is Q-ALE?
The ”Quality assurance in non-formal Adult Learning and Education” initiative is a small-scale partnership between EAEA and three ALE national organisations (sTOP from Poland, POU Varadzin from Croatia and Finnish Association of Study Centres). The initiative that aims to contribute to quality assurance in education across countries, by proposing and start assessing a co-designed, feasible and context-based approach for quality assurance in the Adult Learning and Education sector.
What do we do?
The core actions include researching and analysing existing models of quality assurance in education and in adult education, for example, certification systems, quality assurance models and training and capacity building programme for practitioners, from the perspective of non-formal ALE organisations, also in terms of technical capacity, applicability, relevance for the specific needs and challenges of the sector etc.
The main output of the initiative is the Q-ALE Code of Conduct for Quality Assurance in ALE organisations.
The Q-ALE Code addresses organisations working in adult education that are in an initial stage or still developing their Quality Assurance Systems (QAS), either for their internal needs or to respond to existing standard quality assurance requirements.
The Code is useful at all levels of the organisation, from managers who set direction, to course organisers who design learning, to educators who hold the room.
The main purpose of the Code is:
- to build a shared understanding of what quality assurance in ALE means
- to serve as a first step to building quality assurance systems for ALE organisations
- to foster a culture where quality assurance is a mindset and supported as an everyday process.
How can you contribute?
Q-ALE also organises national and international events for co-evaluation and validation of the Code and its core principles in the period February-June 2026.
The national pilots will be organised in Croatia, Finland, and Poland. The international events will be held one online (April 2026) and face to face (June 2026).
If you are interested to know more about the Code or to participate in one of these events, please, get in contact with us directly at viola.pinzi@eaea.org
Partners
sTOP (Stowarzyszenie Trenerskie Organizacji Pozarządowych) – Poland (Project coordinator)
The NGO Trainers’ Association is the only organization of its kind in Poland and Eastern Europe – working on the quality of learning process in non-formal education. The most important area of activity is training new trainers and developing qualifications for ALE professionals
The Finnish Association of Study Centres is an umbrella organisation for Finnish Study Centres, supporting their development and cooperation.
POU Varadzin (Pucko otvoreno uciliste Varazdin) – Croatia
POU Varaždin is a public institution for adult and vocational education and culture founded by the City of Varaždin. Principally is engaged in the education of adults through training programs for unemployed people or people at risk of unemployment.
Read more
Quality Assurance in education and in our work
EAEA calls for a new approach to quality in adult learning and education – 2022