Non-formal Education Settings Research Articles

Visual Materials in Classroom Teaching Learning: A Case Study on Nonformal Primary School

The evolution of technology and the paradigm shift triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic have reshaped educational practices, transitioning from conventional to digital mechanisms. The integration of digital learning resources has introduced a new dimension to the classroom environment. This paper aims to investigate the practicality of utilizing existing visual learning materials in non-formal educational settings. The case study focuses on non-formal primary schools operated by the JAAGO Foundation in Dhaka, serving as a representative sample. Data for this study were gathered through semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and observation notes from teachers, learners, and experts in the sampled non-formal primary schools. Thematic analysis was employed to analyze and present the collected data. The findings of the study underscore significant positive effects of employing visual learning materials in non-formal primary classrooms. These effects manifest in the areas of motivation enhancement, assessment of prior knowledge, and promotion of active participation, particularly among disadvantaged learners. The study also highlights the effectiveness of visual materials in facilitating clear comprehension, fostering creativity and imagination, enhancing critical thinking skills, and promoting digital literacy as essential 21st-century skills. Moreover, the research reveals that visual learning materials play a crucial role in achieving desired learning outcomes, aligning with both learners' psychology and pedagogical perspectives. However, the study identifies key challenges hindering the effective use of visual materials in non-formal classrooms, including infrastructural inconveniences such as poor projection systems, noisy sound systems, and inadequate seating arrangements for students. In light of these findings, the study recommends the implementation of professional training sessions for educators and emphasizes the need for school authorities to take responsibility in addressing identified challenges. By doing so, the study advocates for the creation of an environment conducive to effective classroom practices utilizing visual materials in non-formal educational settings. Teacher’s World: Journal of Education and Research, 49 (2),37-51

Assessing the impact of an integrated educational program on Greek students' knowledge about coastal lagoons and attitudes towards marine environment conservation

The primary objective of this study is to contribute to the conservation and sustainable use of seas by promoting Ocean Literacy. It investigates the impact of an educational program on Greek primary and secondary public school students' knowledge about coastal lagoons and attitudes towards marine environment conservation. An educational resource titled “Exploring the Coastal Lagoons” was developed to facilitate the non-formal educational intervention. The program involved classroom, fieldwork/outdoor and laboratory activities, focusing on enhancing understanding of coastal lagoons' abiotic and biotic characteristics and human interconnection. Results showed improved knowledge and slightly more positive attitudes after the didactic intervention. The study underlines the effectiveness of targeted educational interventions in marine sciences, suggesting that non-formal educational settings influence student outcomes more than family or informal sources. Younger students appeared more adaptable and responsive to educational stimuli. The study advocates for refined educational strategies integrating cognitive and emotional elements, emphasizing real nature experience.

Cultural education of children and teenagers and the challenges ahead of cultural institutions

Development of talents and competence in the contemporary culture and aesthetic education of children and adolescents occupy a special place in the educational research of the twenty-first century. Recommendations for how to best shape these competence from early childhood have become a driving force behind the designing and implementation of various educational initiatives at schools and in non-formal educational settings. In the difficult time of the new pandemic (2020), activities aimed at developing social skills in young audiences have become particularly relevant. Even though, due to spreading restrictions, these were mostly transferred to the Internet, many cultural institutions have tried to re-establish and maintain effective relationship with their audiences. Recent years have shown how important it has become to build relationship and develop social skills in direct contact with culture, art and other people. In their research analyses, the authors of this paper have focused primarily on the programs of leisure activities addressed to children and adolescents. The research involved the analysis of the websites of selected cultural institutions (programs), educational websites (reviews) and community portals (comments), with a particular emphasis on the competition for the most development-enhancing initiative for children. Data were also obtained via interviews with program organizers. Analysis of cultural institutions’ programs show their involvement in the cultural education of children and youth. Non-formal education in cultural institutions is focused on the development of creativity and cultural and social competence.

Sowing the Seeds of Commons in Education: Three Case Studies from the Horizon Project 2020 SMOOTH

This paper explores how educational commons, in which education and learning are shaped by the members of the educational community in terms of equality, freedom, and creative participation, contribute to addressing inequalities, empowering democracy, and enhancing inclusion. The discussion focuses on the crucial debate around public formal education and the potential for radical democratisation it offers through three case studies carried out in formal and non-formal educational settings in Thessaloniki, Greece. The research was conducted in three different types of education centres: a public kindergarten, a self-organised autonomous libertarian educational community, and an after-school programme of a primary school where Workshops for Nurturing and Developing Environmental Resilience (WONDER) were implemented by the environmental organisation Mamagea. Through patterns of commoning practices, like peer governance, co-creation of knowledge, and peer learning, the case studies aimed to establish the prerequisites for the co-creation of a community that offers pupils and students, teachers, and educators the chance for self-formation and equal participation. The article makes the case that educational hierarchies and governance models can be reconfigured in order to incorporate the democratic values of solidarity, equality, self-organisation, and self-formation even in structures that are still tailored to formal schooling. The article argues that educational commons can make a decisive contribution to tackling inequalities, and the commons logic can grow effectively in school education under specific conditions. The pedagogical practice is shifted in educational commons in ways that balance out contemporary enclosures based on several inequalities.

Designing a transmedia educational process in non-formal education: Considerations from families, children, adolescents, and practitioners

Transmedia storytelling has the potential to be an effective approach for non-formal education. Previous research has suggested that there may be a reciprocal relationship between transmedia storytelling and the characteristics of non-formal learners. However, there is limited literature on how to structure and design educational processes using this approach in non-formal settings, and even less literature that integrates the perspectives of stakeholders on the necessary components for instructional design. To address this gap, a qualitative analysis of multiformat focus groups was conducted to describe the necessary items to be considered when developing transmedia educational process (TEP) in non-formal educational proposals when these are designed to families, children, and/or adolescents. Based on the findings, seven important levels were identified for instructional designing of TEPs: level of intentions (1), level of facilitators’ indications (2), level of participants’ needs (3), level of narrative integrations (4), level of elaboration and production (5), level of means and technological/physical support (6), and level of sharing willingness (7). The study discusses the importance to consider multiple perspectives, including those of facilitators, children and adolescents, and parents, when designing TEPs. Additionally, it is important to use a variety of media platforms, formats, and channels to engage diverse and heterogeneous groups of participants in non-formal educational settings. Further research could focus on developing and validating tools and strategies to guide instructional design in these types of educational processes.

A Review of Program Inquiry for Refugee Adult Education in the United States

According to the UN Refugee Agency's annual Global Trends Report, 68.5 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide as of June 2018. This humanitarian crisis raises the question of responsibility on host countries to address the dire need for education access. Questions around how existing adult refugee educational programs should be evaluated remain relatively unexplored. The purpose of this review is to examine existing bodies of academic literature on how evaluation is applied in adult educational programming for refugees within community organizations and how programs utilize evaluation to improve their effectiveness in serving adult refugee populations in the United States. This literature review explores two questions: (1) how is evaluation structured in practice in nonformal educational programs for refugee young adults and adults in the United States? (2) What outcomes typically follow the implementation of evaluation within these programs (i.e. does evaluation influence the effectiveness and accessibility of adult educational programming, such as by providing educational and vocational training?). Considerations which emerged from this review include utilizing theory knitting in evaluation to reduce theoretical segregation and accumulate additional theory that may be present within the current literature. Exploring socio-cultural capital frameworks such as Yosso’s Community Cultural Wealth can further categorize and investigate additional experiences based on specific ethnicities in emerging literature within refugee integration in a country of resettlement in addition to Ager and Strang’s Understanding Integration Framework. Lastly, to better identify the approaches on use of evaluation within the scope of nonformal adult educational settings for adult refugees, expanding Alkin & Christie’s Evaluation Theory Tree to include international perspectives from the development sector should be considered.

Cultural heritage as interpreted and practiced by young people in non-formal associations in Latvia

ABSTRACT This article aims to shed new light on young people’s participation in non-formal associations aimed at safeguarding traditions and national culture. Focusing on two case studies from Latvia within the international project CHIEF (Cultural Heritage and Identities of Europe’s Future), the study provides an in-depth analysis of how ‘culture’ is understood, practiced, and transmitted in non-formal education settings. The article also discusses what motivates young people in Latvia to get involved in associations aiming to preserve cultural heritage, and how these activities are connected to identity and attitudes toward other cultures.

TEACHING GREEK AS L2 IN NON-FORMAL EDUCATIONAL SETTINGS: INVESTIGATING TEACHERS’ INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE

For immigrants/refugees, it is important to learn the language of their host country and to familiarize themselves with its culture. This is closely related to the intercultural competence not only of the immigrant/refugee students but also of their instructors. The present study attempts to examine the attitudes of instructors who teach Greek in non-formal educational settings regarding the importance of intercultural competence and the approaches they use. The findings show that, although the instructors have very positive attitudes toward intercultural competence, multiculturalism and multilingualism, in practice they do not really adopt intercultural practices.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0225/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Preparing Children for an Unpredictable World in the Middle of a Crisis: La Aldea's Approach

No one was prepared when COVID-19 hit. While education systems all over the world turned to distance learning, countries like Colombia faced a significant challenge: only 75 percent of Colombian teachers had received training in online teaching, 64 percent of school principals considered the technology available to schools to be insufficient, and only 67 percent of 15-year-old students had internet access (OECD 2019). And what about the families living in at-risk contexts and facing additional economic and health pressures? The time was ripe to scale up La Aldea—a flexible, learner-centered strategy whose content and methods are designed to meet the needs of the child at the end of the proverbial "last mile." La Aldea is a strategy created by ClickArte, a Colombian organization that specializes in designing and implementing educational projects. Using its print books, radio shows, digital content, songs, and games, La Aldea was disseminated throughout the country via UNICEF Colombia's education in emergencies strategy. It also provided online training sessions to 4,220 teachers. It ultimately reached 87,667 families and children. This immediate, comprehensive, multimedia, multistakeholder plan was adapted to reach every child in Colombia's formal and nonformal education settings in migrant and conflict-affected communities. La Aldea education strategy is composed of carefully crafted stories whose main characters are animals found in Colombia (such as macaws, tapirs, owls, anteaters, among others). The stories and activities that make up La Aldea are metaphors of society: children, families, and teachers can self-identify with the situations being portrayed, hence giving schools material to integrate playfully into the teaching curricula, while at the same time nudging children's cognitive, citizenship, and social-emotional skills—and, of course, COVID-19 awareness.

Global Competence Measurement in Non-Formal Educational Settings

This research comes to measure the level of knowledge, understanding, skills, attitudes and values of educators on global competence. The quantitative methodology was followed and the questionnaire tool was selected. Random sampling technique was used, and the questionnaire was delivered through google forms. The sample consisted of 310 educators who taught in public and private Vocational Training Institutes in the region of Western Greece during 2021-2022. Research findings show that the average value for global knowledge is 3,69 (a lot), for understanding globalization 4,10 (a lot) and for international academic knowledge 3,91 (a lot). Regarding participants' answers for the Skills sub-factors, the average value for the use of tools is 4, 27 (a lot), for the cross-cultural communication 4,03 (a lot) and for the international academic knowledge 3,29 (enough). Regarding the factors of Attitude and values, the average value for intent to interact is 3, 95 (a lot), for open attitude 4,46 (a lot) and for the values 3,94 (a lot). In addition, the control of the Pearson correlation coefficient of the nine factors for global capability shows a statistically significant positive correlation between them. Finally, gender, additional studies, employment relationship and years of service seem to affect the results of the scale.

Muslim Youth Negotiating Boundary Maintenance Between the Sexes: A Qualitative Exploration

Studies on Muslim youth suggest that they experience difficulties with balancing Western culture and Islamic religious norms. This study focuses on boundary maintenance between the sexes, which entails physical or social distance and avoidance of touching and gaze. These aspects of everyday social life are imbued with much symbolic significance and value. The study examined the values and norms on this subject that Muslim youth were taught and socialized into at non-formal Islamic education settings, and then compared these with values and norms conveyed at secondary schools in the Netherlands. Due to its exploratory nature, the study adopted a qualitative approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 34 young adults and 28 students enrolled at secondary schools from four Muslim communities. The findings revealed that Muslim youth were taught and socialized into contradictory values and norms in these two learning contexts. While sex segregation was observed in non-formal Islamic education settings, participants’ mainstream schools were coeducational. Islamic ethos as practiced in this community required physical and social distancing between the sexes, avoiding male gaze, and refraining from physical touch. However, at schools, boys and girls were expected to work in groups, interact, discuss, and socialize, and handshaking with teachers before lessons was observed at some schools as a ritual. Moreover, the study explored four pathways Muslim youth adopted as they negotiated such competing values: conformity to religious values, code-switching, peer surveillance, and breaking away. The findings have implications for the social and cultural integration, mental health, and wellbeing of Muslim youth.

Counseling Services In Settings Non-Formal Education

Nowadays, the development of the counseling profession, especially in Indonesia, has begun to be seen clearly. This is marked by the recognition of the counselor profession as one of the educators in Law Number 20 of 2003 concerning the National Education System. Current counseling activities are not only limited to formal education, especially in schools, but have also penetrated into various settings/areas, including in the business/industry world, agencies, and the wider community, including non-formal education settings. The need for counseling services in non-formal education settings is not unreasonable. Citizens learning in non-formal education settings are also faced with various problems that are more or less the same as the problems faced by students in the formal education environment. Some of these problems are general in nature and some are related to learning activities. These problems can certainly hinder the smoothness of learning activities in particular and can hinder the achievement of the happiness of the private life of citizens in general. One of the services that can be provided to help them develop themselves towards a better and happier life is counseling services.

Effects of a Simulation on Eighth Grade Students’ Business Management Knowledge and Entrepreneurial Intent in an Exploratory Agriculture Course

Entrepreneurship education has historically been part of agricultural education; yet few researchers have studied entrepreneurship-related outcomes for youth in formal and nonformal educational settings. Entrepreneurship education programs develop entrepreneurial attitudes and intentions, but limited studies exist regarding junior high school youth. This quasi-experimental study utilized a business management simulation with eighth grade students and focused on teaching, learning, and outcomes of entrepreneurship in an exploratory agriculture course. Junior high school students had higher business management knowledge when an educational simulation (playing a board game using double-entry accounting and computing financial statements) was used compared to students who were taught using a board game and tracked a cash balance. Students’ entrepreneurship intent was similar between the control and treatment groups after the two-week unit. However, students who previously completing a 4-H animal science project had higher entrepreneurship intent than their peers who did not complete a 4-H animal science project. This study supports the premise that educational simulations can effectively teach business management skills and offers educators an enhanced understanding of how to capitalize on the value of SAEs and 4-H animal science projects when building entrepreneurial skills in youth.

Mindfulness Moments: Today and 4-Life Program for 4-H Camp Youth

This evaluation research addressed the gap in the stress management education literature related to short-term mindfulness programs for youth in non-formal educational settings. The Mindfulness Moments: Today and 4-Life program was adapted from existing curricula and delivered in Ohio and Pennsylvania during summer 2019. The purpose of the program was to help youth participants develop an understanding of the concept of mindfulness and instill a desire in them to apply mindfulness practices in their daily lives. Sixty-eight youth ages 10 to 18 participated in the program. We utilized a non-experimental study design, with a simple 1-group pretest posttest design. One portion of the survey instrument was posttest only. A new outcomes evaluation instrument was developed. This study demonstrated that program participation increased perceived knowledge of mindfulness and intention to apply mindfulness practices. The application of Pearson correlation showed there is a substantial significant relationship between desire to continue mindfulness practice and intention to practice mindfulness (r = .62, p = .01). Study results suggested that mindfulness program practitioners should first focus on helping youth learn the benefits of mindfulness in order to instill the desire among youth to practice mindfulness in daily life. Other recommendations for program practitioners and the evaluation instrument are discussed.

Der Campus als offene Bildungslandschaft

The development of educational infrastructure is increasingly linked to aspects of urban planning, urban design and architecture and discussed within the concept of educational landscapes, which links formal and non-formal educational settings and learning processes to spatial design. In practice, the Leitbild and design of educational campuses that are favoured by multi-professional stakeholders is one that also serves and is open to the neighbourhood. The aim of this research is to investigate the significance of the campus model and how the different interests and goals of the stakeholders in relation to the guiding idea of an initially openly conceived educational campus are negotiated in the process of planning and implementation. Empirical results from a case study are derived from an analysis of planning documents, site visits and interviews. The campus offers a robust model for educational policy and pedagogical as well as the planning and urban development goals of the stakeholders, and can also withstand ambivalent feelings and actions about aims and objectives within a campus development. The open educational campus can only be implemented in part because there is a lack of management strategies regarding how the openness can function and be maintained in everyday life on the campus. Instead, stakeholders see and accept the necessity of internal and external boundaries (especially fencing) without developing and negotiating far-reaching ideas about how these boundaries can be created productively as an educational space. English title: The campus as an open educational landscape. Perspectives and expectations for the design of neighbourhoods as educational spaces

The invisible enemy. Public knowledge of microplastics is needed to face the current microplastics crisis

Microplastics are emerging pollutants that threaten marine resources globally today. Being difficult to see for the human eye, their public perception and risk perception depend upon the information given to citizens. Since the psychosocial theory postulates the importance of knowledge, attitude, and perceived control to undertake pro-environmental behaviors, in this review we have analyzed relevant literature in order to look for solutions of psychosocial nature to stop microplastic emissions. We employed qualitative contingency statistics and clustering analysis of relevant terms. The consumer's knowledge about microplastics was central and directly connected with the willingness to adopt a pro-environmental behavior, while risk perception and perceived control were less important. Significant geographical gaps and differences between cultures were identified. Based on our analyses, the following measures are recommended: 1) Create baselines of knowledge about microplastics to design ad-hoc interventions for their control; 2) Explore the role of environmental values as mediators between knowledge and behavior against microplastics; 3) Enlarge the geographical scope of present studies, at least to include African countries; 4) Undertake intercultural studies to determine the scale of interventions for public awareness about the problem; 5) Study the perspective of the industry, politicians and journalists; 6) Improve scientific communication about this new threat; 7) Introduce the topic in formal and non-formal education settings.

Navigating Contradictory Narratives on Sexuality Between the School and the Mosque in Four Muslim Communities in the Netherlands

This qualitative study seeks to examine the sexuality-related values and norms that Muslim youth are taught and socialised into at non-formal Islamic education settings, compares these with values and norms conveyed at secondary schools, and then identifies the ways in which Muslim youth navigate these distinct messages and competing pressures around this subject. The data are based on 62 semi-structured in-depth interviews with young adults and secondary school students from four Muslim communities in the Netherlands (Turkish, Moroccan, Pakistani and Egyptian). The study reveals that explicit messaging as well as institutional practices in mosques convey a specific narrative about proper conduct between the sexes that prohibits sexual conduct before marriage, and in some cases, even any form of touching or socialising. This collides with the institutional practices and educational content in mainstream secondary schools, which are co-educational and provide sexuality education. Three strands of attitudinal choices young Muslims make are identified: opting for chastity, re-negotiating the norm, and embracing romantic entanglements, all having different ramifications for the wellbeing and relationships of these young people.

STEM EDUCATION IN ECO-FARMING SUPPORTED BY ICT AND MOBILE APPLICATIONS

The presented research focused on developing and testing an innovative interdisciplinary STEM didactic model. The developed didactic model was introduced in the field of eco-farming. To the participants, it offers the possibility for non-formal training, which can take place anywhere and anytime. Participants require some knowledge of STEM subjects (especially chemistry and biology) as well as knowledge of ecology, technology, and engineering, in order to provide answers and solutions to environmental challenges while using knowledge of mathematics (especially combinatorics and statistics) to search for optimal solutions (in our case, a lean business plan). The model was tested in non-formal education settings, based on an interdisciplinary approach and modern technologies, such as monitoring the effectiveness of training using electroencephalography (EEG) and mobile applications. In the presented didactic model, special emphasis was placed on an interdisciplinary STEM approach to environmental protection, ecology, connatural forms of production and sustainable development. The presented research confirms the hypotheses that non-formal education is becoming an increasingly important form of education and training, and that the use of the interdisciplinary didactic model, contemporary technologies, and mobile applications, increases the time and intensity of concentration in learning and thus improves learning effectiveness. Keywords: eco-farming, electroencephalography, environment protection, mobile learning, non-formal education, sustainable development

Using a Story-Driven Board Game to Engage Students and Adults With Cultural Heritage

Serious games are used in the field of cultural heritage as a means to transmit cultural knowledge and enable an experiential contact with cultural content. The authors' aim is to investigate whether a game design exploiting the less used combination of complex storytelling, endogenous cooperation, and competition has the potential to sufficiently convey cultural content. More specifically, through four game interventions, it was investigated how a story-driven board game functions with teenage and adult users alike. A mixed research methodology was followed in all game sessions and data were collected through observation, semi-structured group interviews, and short questionnaires. Findings confirmed the playability of the suggested design and the potential to amuse players while providing learning gains and engagement with cultural content. Nevertheless, further evaluation in formal and non-formal educational settings is essential to validate our conclusions.

Gender Diversity in Computing and Immersive Games for Computer Programming Education: A Review

This paper provides a review of the current state of the gender gap in computer science and highlights how immersive games can mitigate this issue. Game-based learning (GBL) applications have been shown to successfully incite motivation in students and increase learning efficiency in both formal and non-formal educational settings. With the rise of GBL, researchers have also used virtual reality to provide pupils with a more immersive learning experience. Both GBL and virtual reality techniques are also used for computer programming education. However, there is a paucity of applications that utilize these techniques to incite interest in computer science from a female perspective. This is a cause for concern as immersive games have been proven to be capable of inciting affective motivation and fostering positive attitudes towards specific subjects. Hence, this review summarises the benefits and limitations of GBL and virtual reality; how males and females respond to certain game elements; and suggestions to aid in the development of immersive games to increase female participation in the field of computer science.