Non-formal Education Settings Research Articles

Munir's Socioecoethical Model (MSEEM) of Human Rights Education

MSEEM is an enactment of sense of self, embodiment and commitment of HR Educators towards HR values. According to Munir Moosa Sadruddin (2020), HRE is conscious incessant socio-cognitive learning process that empowers individuals towards the rights of self and others. It is a preparedness toward taking rational decisions, and act through the conscious filter of HR keeping in light the sociocultural context and political will. It develops a sense of openness to embrace multiculturalism, pluralism and diversity (Sadruddin, 2020). Munir’s socioecoethical model of human rights education is an integrative approach to the applicability of HRE for teachers, educators and learners. It applies to formal, informal and non-formal educational settings in developed, developing and third world countries. This model emerged by applying grounded theory from learners and practitioners’ viewpoints, gathered from across 39 countries. It is the result of 10 years of author’s human rights practices, documentation and observation of HR practices across a range of teaching and learning settings particularly in the developing and the third world countries.

An Analysis of the Sustainable Development of Environmental Education Provided by Museums

Under the international initiative of environmental education and ecological conservation, promoting the public’s environmental awareness is the mission and goal of the museum’s environmental education. The main function of the museum is to integrate the values of local, regional, and national culture toward multifaceted management, as the museum is an important cultural carrier and a key force for informal education. Past studies have focused on environmental protection in formal educational settings, while museums in nonformal educational settings have undertaken relatively few missions to the environment, which is the motivation of this study. In the past three hundred years, nine countries, including world powers like Spain, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Japan, have left their footprints in Tamsui, Taiwan, creating an important field for cross-cultural environmental education. Therefore, this study takes environmental education in the protection of Taiwan’s Tamsui cultural assets as its case study, and uses gradual regression analysis as a method to explore the potential factors of audience cognition resulting from the channels of museum environmental education, and to grasp the possibility of implementation. The results show that the reliability coefficient of this study is 0.908, and the internal consistency of the representative scale is high. The overall satisfaction with environmental education of audiences is above 4.24 in the five-level subscale. Further gradual regression analysis shows that positive and negative explanatory power can be used to examine the environmental education programs of museums. Therefore, according to data analysis, the findings can serve as a basis for promoting social environmental education goals, as well as a field for cross-cultural learning, to achieve a people-oriented sustainable development strategy.

Global how? – Linking practice to theory: A competency model for training global learning facilitators

Global learning facilitators from civil society organizations (CSOs) design and enrich educational processes in formal and non-formal educational settings. They need to be empowered through adequate training opportunities in global learning (GL) contexts. The project Facilitating Global Learning – Key Competences from Members of European CSOs (FGL) answered the need for state-of-the-art training about the theory and practice of GL by developing a training curriculum for GL training contexts based on a jointly developed competency model for GL facilitators. This article describes crucial elements of GL facilitator training and the competency model for a training curriculum tested in three European countries (Germany, Portugal and Romania). Coming from, and having been created for, GL practice, the model is reflected on critically in the article, regarding its potential for further development in both academic and practical contexts.

Analogue Three-Dimensional Memory Game for Teaching Reflection, Symmetry, and Chirality to High School Students

This interdisciplinary analogue 3D Memory Game is a version of a card-based memory game, developed to encourage high school students to use deductive reasoning skills and to understand reflection (mirror images), symmetry, and chirality. Instead of cards, three-dimensional pieces are used in order to facilitate the understanding of the spatial arrangement of things, both geometric objects and organic compounds. Correlating geometric objects with the simple molecular model representation of organic compounds, the game promotes knowledge transposition to spatial recognition of chemical structures and chirality in formal education, classrooms, or nonformal educational settings (e.g., a science center or discovery center or university outreach setting). The game was used in 2016 in a classroom with 16 students in a high school in Sao Goncalo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as well as at a science fair in 2015. The game lasts 15–25 min when played by 5 or 3 groups of 2 students, respectively. On the basis of the feed...

MODERN EVENING SCHOOL AS AN INNOVATIVE INFORMAL EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENT

The author analyses the features of the popular forms of education for adults. He reveals the role of information and communication technologies in non-formal educational settings and also the role of teachers of evening schools. He focuses on information and communication competencies associated with effective implementation of innovative technologies in educational process.

Game-based learning for maritime education and training: the case of Trader of the World

For educational and/or training purposes, games are often described as multimodal texts, where signs, gestures, images, habits, behaviors, sounds, etc. have different meanings according to the way and the context they are represented. During their execution, a large variety of strategies can be employed; images, words, sounds, music, movement, and even bodily sensations can provide the necessary factors. More importantly, when games are integrated in an educational (or training) activity, it is essential to record solid evidence that the targeted learning outcome is achieved. Game-based learning (GBL) for seafarers is a multifactor domain combining educational psychology, learning theories, instructional design, computer game technology, and last but not least, research in the maritime field. In order to create the appropriate framework, there is a need to combine three different scientific areas (education design, computer science, and maritime education and training (MET)) towards the proper game design. In these types of games, the design process includes an extremely important task: embedding suitable educational approaches and instructional techniques for specific learning outcomes and student profiles into the scenario, so that the game will be played without losing the fun and attractive part of it. In the current analysis, a framework for GBL that is applicable for 200 maritime professionals is presented; the specific application is related to navigational safety training, and the respective framework is a 3D real-time strategy game called “Trader of the World” (TotW-alpha version). The game is designed for already competent adult seafarers as well as undergraduate students of maritime academies/institutions and it is applied in nonformal educational settings. A demonstration of this game has already taken place at the undergraduate level; results, evaluations, and opinions provided by the participants were used as the basis for discussion.

Improving the Professional Ethics of Facilitators through Andragogical Methodologies for Non-Formal Education Delivery in Nigeria

There are professional ethics that guide people in any profession. Hence, people are expected to perform credibly well in their different professions. Therefore, this paper examines some ways of improving the professional ethics of facilitators through andragogical methodologies for non-formal education delivery in Nigeria. The paper also discusses some of the andragogical methods that facilitators can use in teaching and learning situation which can improve the professionalization of facilitators. The paper concludes with an urgent call for the need to improve the professional ethics of facilitators in all non-formal education settings and service delivery. Based on the background of the study, some recommendations are made that facilitators teaching in non-formal education should be trained, certified and grounded in adult education methodologies before they are allowed to teach adult learners by the Agency for Adult and Non-formal Education. The facilitators teaching in non-formal education should be full-time facilitators and not part-time facilitators. Seminars, workshops and conferences should be organized from time to time by the agency for adult and non-formal education for facilitators in order to share experiences and ideas for the improvement of adult education.

Youth-Adult Partnership: A New Way Forward for Greater Muslim Youth Participation in Schools and Communities

Young people in Muslim majority countries are a valuable asset and investing in them can bring tremendous social and economic benefits. They also face many challenges that undermine their ability to develop and contribute to society. To make the most of the opportunity, these countries must find ways to increase the human and social capital of their respective youth populations. Youth participation in formal and non-formal educational settings such as schools and community programs has been identified as an effective approach to enhancing young people’s experiences. Building on initial findings from Malaysia, the current paper puts forth the concept of youth-adult partnership (Y-AP) as a strategy for schools. Y-AP has been shown to enhance personal agency, empowerment and connection to community, three attributes that are critical for Muslim youth to play more substantive roles in national development. The paper further attempts to frame Y-AP within an Islamic socio-historical lens, drawing on examples from the Prophet Muhammad SAW and the early Muslim community to show how developmental relationships were central to the social and educational culture within the Prophet’s community. Permalink/DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15408/sd.v2i2.2810

Contribution of environmental education centres to fieldtrips in primary schools (Original title in Catalan: Contribució dels equipaments d’educació ambiental a les sortides escolars de l’educació primària)

Environmental education centres (EECs) offer a wide range of environment-related educational activities, typically in non-formal education settings. A review of the literature shows how provision o...

Adolescents at risk and their willingness to seek help from youth care workers

Youth care workers (YCWs) are educational-therapeutic workers in nonformal community educational settings for adolescents at risk. This study examines the way adolescents at risk perceive YCWs, and their willingness to seek help (WISH) from them as compared to parents, friends, and teachers, and the variables that explain their willingness. The participants (N=211, age 14–18), in youth care units, answered self-report questionnaires about their personal characteristics and their WISH from each of the four sources. Findings showed that YCW was ranked lower than friends – and similar to parents – and well above teachers. The factors that explain why participants turn to YCW are similar to those explaining turning to the other three sources examined, with source identity and its nonformal attributes (e.g., proximity, reliability, and willingness to help) being most influential. Additionally, the higher one's willingness for self-exposure, the higher is their willingness to turn to the sources examined.

Connecting Diverse Communities Through Citizen Science Data Infrastructure

The BioCubes project is a citizen science biodiversity observation and reporting protocol designed for group participation in classroom and non-formal education settings. A two-year study will develop a proof-of-concept information technology infrastructure to support distribution and use of data from BioCubes across the US. The goal of this work is promoting novel STEM learning opportunities for diverse student populations while demonstrating the feasibility of exchanging and integrating citizen science data with ongoing biodiversity research, a key step in advancing citizen science. In this abstract, we briefly introduce key features of our project and identify several considerations for the design of the sociotechnical systems to support both data contributors and data users.

Storytelling aplicado à formação

O Storytelling é um método educativo inovador que consegue atrair a atenção dos alunos/formandos e melhorar a sua aprendizagem ao longo do percurso educativo. Através da criação de um ambiente de aprendizagem favorável à comunicação, reflexão, construção e colaboração, este método aumenta a motivação dos alunos/formandos. E quando combinado com ferramentas multimédia, o Storytelling pode ser aplicado a todos os níveis de educação (formal, não formal e informal) e em contexto de trabalho (como em medicina – Heiney, 1995; Chelf et al., 2000; na gestão de recursos humanos e de conhecimento – Swap, 2001; Sole, 2002). O Storytelling Digital consiste na combinação de narrativa com conteúdo digital, criando uma história digital através de vídeos interativos, com efeitos de áudio e visuais, ou apresentações de diapositivos com narrativa e som. Alguns educadores acreditam que esta técnica educativa pode ser efetivamente aplicada a qualquer tema. A construção de uma narrativa e a sua comunicação requer que seja considerado não só o tópico como a perspetiva da audiência. O crescer com acesso ilimitado a tecnologia modificou a forma como os jovens, “nativos digitais”, comunicam, interagem, processam a informação e aprendem (Oblinger & Oblinger, 2005). Embora os professores/formadores possam ser capazes e acreditem nas potencialidades da tecnologia, isso não é suficiente para habilitá-los a aplicá-la eficazmente em contexto de ensino. De acordo com a Fundação Europeia de Internet, a chave para preparar os alunos/formandos para um mundo digital consiste em “redesenhar a educação em torno da participação e colaboração digital dentro e para além da instituição de ensino”; a fundação também prevê que em 2025 este será o paradigma de educação mundial dominante. A aprendizagem personalizada, em colaboração e informal estará no centro do ensino no futuro (Relatório da União Europeia, 2011: “The future of Learning: Preparing for Change”). O ritmo crescente de mudança fará emergir novas competências e habilidades, nomeadamente competências genéricas, transversais e específicas. Por outro lado, as instituições europeias de educação e formação – escolas, universidades, centros de formação profissional – terão de se reposicionar no novo contexto de aprendizagem, devendo experienciar novos formatos e estratégias de ensino e aprendizagem de forma a oferecerem no futuro conteúdos relevantes, eficazes e de elevada qualidade (Redecker, C. et al., 2011). Com a evolução das TIC, o ensino personalizado e o acompanhamento individual será uma realidade, havendo a necessidade de formar os educadores para que explorem os recursos e ferramentas disponíveis e criem experiências e percursos à medida, motivantes e atrativos, mas também eficientes, relevantes e desafiantes. O projeto T-STORY pretende promover um maior uso do Storytelling e do Storytelling Digital na educação e na formação a todos os níveis (formal, não formal e informal) e em toda a Europa, através do desenvolvimento de um curso digital para educadores, professores e formadores. Este projeto irá contribuir para o conhecimento e desenvolvimento de competências de professores/educadores/formadores através da técnica de storytelling digital –aprender storytelling através do storytelling. Os grupos-alvo terão a oportunidade de aprender e treinar como implementar a técnica e como envolver os seus alunos/formandos, valorizando o potencial digital.

The stark reality of the ‘White Saviour’ complex and the need for critical consciousness: a document analysis of the early journals of a Freirean educator

While the anglophone academic literature has long engaged in analysis of the role of privilege in the work of educators in the Global North, this article represents an initial foray into such analysis in non-formal educational settings in the Global South. Through a cultural-textual document analysis of 12 months of personal journal entries written by the author while working as a Freirean adult educator in Mozambique, this article documents a lack of recognition of social privilege exhibited by the author in these entries, which is here referred to as the ‘White Saviour’ complex. This article also documents how the pursuit of what Freire calls ‘critical consciousness’ can effectively problematise this privileged mindset.

Volunteer Work, Informal Learning and Social Action

Volunteer Work, Informal Learning and Social Action. Edited by F. Duguid, K. Mundel, and D. Schugurensky. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers, 2013. 258 pp. ISBN: 9789462092310.A great deal of scholarship exists on the connection between work and learning; however, much of this scholarship takes formal education and paid employment as the primary area of analysis. Literature on learning is overly saturated with the study of formal education, that is, institutions ranging from elementary schools to universities. One presupposition is that learning happens primarily in schools. Another is that it is easier to research learning in formal institutions than in the elusive dynamics of everyday life. Perhaps the presupposition is that learning happens primarily in schools. Or perhaps it is easier to research learning in formal institutions than in the elusive dynamics of everyday life. While some degree of attention has been paid to learning in non-formal educational settings, including adult education programs, workshops, and the like, very little research has been done-comparatively speaking-on informal learning. Similarly, academic literature on work tends to focus on paid employment. Although people devote great amounts of time and energy to household work and volunteer work, these areas have not attracted much research interest-again, comparatively speaking. If these two bodies of literature (informal learning on the one hand and volunteer work on the other) are marginal in the literature on education and work, it is not surprising that very little has been written on the connections between informal learning and volunteer work.The book Volunteer Work, Informal Learning and Social Action, edited by Fiona Duguid, Karsten Mundel, and Daniel Schugurensky, constitutes an interesting attempt to address this deficit. The book takes a close look at a cross section of volunteer work, and the depth of informal learning that it yields. The volume is well organized and flows well, encompassing eleven chapters that move the reader through theoretical analysis, empirical research, and practical recommendations.Schugurensky's introduction to the book provides a brief history of volunteerism and discusses current dynamics of volunteer work and learning in the context of the "knowledge economy." Particular attention is paid to tacit learning (learning that occurs unconsciously and unintentionally), raising provocative epistemological questions and outlining some of the challenges faced by researchers. The first chapter, co-written by the three editors, goes deeper into the themes discussed in the introduction and presents a solid conceptual analysis that sets up the overall framework to better contextualize the realities examined in the case studies. The second chapter, by Susan Stowe, analyzes data on volunteer work and informal learning in Canada and in other countries, and helps us to interpret that information in the context of contemporary economic and social policies.The subsequent chapters focus on case studies, which are organized in three areas of volunteer work: community service, community representation, and community development. Service (Chapters three, four, and five) includes activities like delivering meals to seniors, coaching sports teams, driving children to music camps, helping in a food bank, teaching local language and culture to new immigrants or to migrant workers, coordinating a toy drive, or organizing a festival. …

Current Practices for Training Staff to Accommodate Youth with Special Health Care Needs in the 4-H Camp Setting

The theory of inclusion is the foundation for the study reported here; inclusion is a focus not only of formal education, but also of nonformal educational settings such as 4-H. Ideally, 4-H camps are designed to serve youth of all backgrounds and abilities. By accommodating youth with special health care needs, 4-H camps are effectively meeting the standards of the IDEA Act and the theory of inclusion. Results include current practices, strengths, weaknesses, and the comparison of such practices at 4-H and ACA camps. Camps are encouraged to use the conclusions from the study in planning and improvement efforts.

Training in basic Internet skills for special target groups in non-formal educational settings - conclusions from three pilot projects

With the progress of Digital Inclusion, it becomes important to address marginalised groups that face specific barriers in being part of the information society. From 2009 to 2011 within the framework of the nation-wide Initiative Internet erfahren, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics, Stiftung Digitale Chancen has accompanied three pilot projects and researched the hindrances and motivations of specific target groups including young migrants from Russia, women in the low-wage sector and disabled elderly people, regarding their use of information and communication technology and related skills. This article describes the teaching methodologies in the training provided in nonformal education settings, exposes the different evaluation methods and sums up the results. A special focus in the discussion is given to the role of the teacher and the relationship between teacher and students as there turned out to be similarities in all three target groups. Understanding the balance between the training and abilities and preferences of the learners will facilitate the further development of training appropriate to those who are still digitally excluded.Keywords: specific target groups in Digital Inclusion; migrants; disabled persons; low-wage sector; barriers towards formal education and technology; student motivation; trainer student relationship(Published: 19 December 2012)Citation: Research in Learning Technology 2012, 20: 18700 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/rlt.v20i0.18700

Collaborative Online Learning in Non-Formal Education Settings in the Developing World

In the present knowledge economy, individuals, particularly working adults, need to continuously acquire purposeful knowledge and skills so they can better contribute towards addressing society’s ever-changing developmental challenges. In the developing world however, few opportunities exist for working adults to acquire such new learning experiences through the formal education sector, and this makes it imperative for organizations to develop non-formal education and training programs to help address this need. With the proliferation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) worldwide, this article recommends the adoption of Collaborative Online Learning (COL) by non-formal learning organizations as a means of helping address the education and training needs of working adults. The article thus provides an overview of COL, and then draws on the research literature on relevant theories to recommend best-practice strategies for designing and delivering effective and workable COL initiatives within non-formal education settings, particularly in the developing world.

Environmental Socialization Incidents with Implications for the Expanded Role of Interpretive Naturalists in Providing Natural History Experiences

Natural history has all but disappeared from formal education in the United States. This places the responsibility of introducing people to natural history within nonformal educational settings, with interpretive naturalists taking a leading role. This qualitative study of the life histories of 51 natural history-oriented professionals establishes additional roles for interpretive naturalists interacting with and programming for people with an emerging interest in natural history. Young adults with a strong interest in competency in natural history topics were characterized by having access to a variety of natural environments, social support, opportunities to develop environmental competencies, and accumulation of many and varied environmental experiences that resulted in creation of robust personal and social identities around natural history. Findings suggest that the work of interpretive naturalists is part of an amorphous web of people, places, institutions, and personal experiences that foster an interest in natural history. Of particular importance for interpreters is planning and presenting program-to–program transitions (PTPT) for visitors.

Interview with Tony Bates on the Aspects and Prospects of Online Learning

Tony Bates is a world-known expert on distance education. He has published extensively on both traditional and contemporary distance learning practices. Besides teaching courses and delivering seminars in the area of distance education, he has also provided consultancy with a number of institutions around the world. These include both formal and non-formal education settings such as governments, universities, corporations, and projects. Professor Bates has recently been working in the field of online learning. He has published several milestone articles in this area. His articles shed light on important issues of online learning. He is one of the living legends who have witnessed how distance education has evolved into online learning over the year so that we decided to interview him on this topic. Because he was in Canada and I was in Turkey, we conducted the interview in several rounds of e-mail exchanges but it worked very well.

Influences on the Use of the Fishing: Get in the Habitat! MinnAqua Leader's Guide and Implications for Curriculum Dissemination

The Fishing: Get in the Habitat! MinnAqua Leader's Guide is a curriculum created by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for educators working primarily with children in grades three through five in formal and nonformal education settings. Like many agency-developed supplemental educational resources, the Leader's Guide is available through workshops and by mail. An evaluation was conducted on influences on curriculum use to inform future dissemination efforts, with the goal of maximizing use. Recommendations for MinnAqua and implications for environmental education are discussed.