This article explores „biography“ as a separate field of research within adult education. It focuses on analysing the outcome of alphabetization and basic education courses on biographies and coping mechanisms of functional illiterates. At the same time, the importance of biography research for practical work with illiterates is highlighted. The article also discusses a list of requirements that need to be met for an innovative adjustment of such practical work, and thus making better use of it…
South-east European countries are receiving support from “western” institutions in developing their education system structures. One professional involved in development cooperation in the field of adult education is dvv international, the German Adult Education Association’s institute for international cooperation. By evaluating work in Romania, Serbia and Kosovo, this article reflects on strategic decisions resulting from this work. It demonstrates that it is correct to take account of differ…
The report presents first results of a study dealing with the whereabouts of former participants of literacy classes. Assuming courses of adult education have a beginning and an end, the authors pursue the phenomena of participants sojourning permanently at adult education courses. Taken data material into account, the reconstruction of possible reasons for staying in the courses finally leads to the demand for an initial consulting – analogical to the starting and learning consultation in the …
This article describes the “Dorfbildungstage” ("Village Education Days” as a specific instructional format widely used in the valleys of the autonomous Italian province of South Tyrol. The format's regional importance comes from the fact that it integrates an inter-ethnic factor. In these largely rural communities, where differences between ethnic groups are always in the foreground, the village education days form a culture whereby German and Italian ethnic groups shape village learning togeth…
Im Herbst 2009 jährt sich der Mauerfall und damit die Auflösung der Machtblöcke von Ost und West zum zwanzigsten Mal. Die Transformation der postsozialistischen Welt ist seither in vollem Gange und die Weiterbildung unterschiedlich involviert. Im Heft stehen vor allem die Prozesse eines Transfers von Strukturen und Konzepten der Weiterbildung im Fokus. Auf der Einbahnstraße der nachholenden Modernisierung mussten dabei Unfälle passieren (so erging es etwa der ersten Programmgeneration von QUE…
This article sums up development cooperation in adult education, providing information about the fields in which this cooperation takes place, which funds it uses and which professionals are involved. When it comes to the question of how German adult education exports have affected transitional countries, the spotlight is on evaluation. The authors ascertain that evaluation work has reached different stages in different educational fields. In the sector of vocational education cooperation the f…
Weiterbildner stehen vor der Herausforderung, die Kompetenzen ihrer Teilnehmer zu erkennen und zu bewerten. Nehmen sie im Sinne einer „Output“-Orientierung die tatsächlichen Fähigkeiten und den Lernerfolg der Teilnehmenden in den Blick, bietet sich ihnen ein breites Spektrum von Möglichkeiten der Kompetenzerfassung. Dieses Buch erläutert verschiedene Bereiche und Ziele der Kompetenzerfassung, beschreibt Methoden und Instrumente und liefert Tipps für die Praxis. Dabei zeigen die Autorinnen Wege…
Consulting as an empirical deficit? Evaluation of educational institutions’ programs The article discusses the empirical relevance of consulting in adult education institutions. By evaluating the programs of institutions, it will be shown that consulting only selectively is present and thus may help to document the programmatic and theoretical discourse on the matter in a less efficient way. This lack will be interpreted as a deficit in its implementation by the respective institutions and in …