Designing, monitoring and evaluating adult learning classes – Supporting quality in adult learning Erasmus Project

Project Title

Designing, monitoring and evaluating adult learning classes – Supporting quality in adult learning

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2016

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Recognition, transparency, certification; Pedagogy and didactics; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

The professional development of staff in the adult education sector is one the key pillars of the ET 2020 strategy for the improvement of quality and efficiency of adult learning. In the adult learning sector, a high number of professionals, including teachers and trainers, come from other sectors and while they maybe experienced in their field of work, they often lack competences in adult learning. Addressing the issue of professional development of adult education staff, the development of a European Key Competence Framework for Adult Learning professionals was commissioned by the European Commission and developed by Research voor Beleid in 2010. The project DEMAL set out to further develop this framework with regard to two specific key competences: Design of adult learning activities, and Monitoring and Evaluation of adult learning activities. –
Both Designing and Evaluation represent important tasks in the process of preparing and delivering high quality training for adults. However, existing in-service trainings in Europe have less focused the related competences, giving more attention to teaching skills in a narrower sense such as instruction or facilitation skills. This is why DEMAL has set out to address this gap. –
The products which DEMAL has developed in two years include: –
• detailed European reference competence profiles for the two selected key competences-
• a blended in-service training course complete with learning resources for each competence; each course comprising an eLearning part over 8 weeks and a 1-week face-to-face workshops-
• a validation framework to support the recognition of informally acquired skills and competences with regard to the professional tasks of designing and evaluating adult learning-
• a web-based course-planning app to support both novice and experienced teachers of adults during the planning process and to enhance the quality of their course planning –
The development of the competence profiles was based on an extensive desk research and literature review as well as on expert interviews in all partner countries. Besides a general definition of each key competence, the profiles included a detailed description of the steps and tasks linked to the activities of Design and Evaluation, as well as the skills knowledge and competences needed to perform these tasks.
The training courses were developed on the basis of these profiles by transforming the profiles into units of learning outcomes. The eLearning serves to give a theoretical introduction to the topic. The workshops focus on putting theory into practice through role plays, case studies and various exercises. Both courses were piloted once during the lifetime of the project and the feedback was used to revise and finalise the curricula and learning resources in the last months of the project.-
The validation framework is also based on the competence profiles. It provides templates and guidance for validating informally acquired relevant competences through three approaches: portfolio assessment, reflective self-assessment, and competence-based interviews.-
The planning app includes a pool of method descriptions which can be selected purposefully by setting filters and defining criteria. The app also allows to build a full course time table with annotations. The app was tested and subsequently revised in various stages during the project, including an online-survey of test users and testing during the pilot courses. –
The project activities and outputs were disseminated widely during the project. Potential beneficiaries were involved as test users and experts in the development of the products and their feedback was used to improve the products. To promote the project products, each partner organised, towards the end of the project, a multiplier event in their county with a European conference being organised in Germany.
The project consortium included 6 partners from Germany, Greece, Hungary, Romania and Spain with an associated partner from Switzerland. Research institutes (DE, RO) worked together with training and consultancy providers (HU; GR; ES), each partner bringing specific expertise and resources to the project and benefitting in turn from the other partners’ contributions. –
The feedback received by external stakeholders and users was very positive. The profiles as a theoretical input were seen as inspiring by experts concerned with curriculum development. The training courses and the app as practical resources met with high interest. The training providers in the partner consortium will continue to offer the courses and resources to their respective target groups. The Greek version of the eLearning course “Evaluation” was already opened during the project time and attracted more than 200 participants within one week. –
All DEMAL products are available in all partner languages as well as in English and can be downloaded or accessed from the DEMAL homepage which will continue to operate.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 234662,43 Eur

Project Coordinator

Deutsches Institut fuer Erwachsenenbildung eV Leibniz-Zentrum für Lebenslanges Lernen & Country: DE

Project Partners

• AINTEK SYMVOULOI EPICHEIRISEON EFARMOGES YPSILIS TECHNOLOGIAS EKPAIDEFSI ANONYMI ETAIREIA
• FONDO FORMACION EUSKADI SLL
• INSTITUTUL DE STIINTE ALE EDUCATIEI
• Progress Consult Dán-Magyar Fejlesztési Tanácsadó Kft.