Education Against Social Exclusion
The third ALW in Lithuania took place on October 14 - 20 with an emphasis on social exclusion, which is considered as a problematic area in Lithuanian adult education. According to statistics, every fifth young person has not acquired basic education since the beginning of the economic transition at the turn of the 1990’s. The majority of them come from families with low income, from national minority groups or other marginalized population groups.
The organiser of the event, the Lithuanian Association of Adult Education (LAAE), called for public discussion on the problem and urged for joint action by the state and the society. The LAAE is emphasising the importance of basic and secondary education, as well as education for parents. For this purpose the Adult Learners Week brought together all partners in AE - institutions, communities and the media - to discuss and find solutions to the current situation. The Week culminated in a video conference, transmitted from Kaunas Regional Distance Education Centre to six remote classes around the country.
120 institutions organised the overall of 150 events all over the country including seminars, local events and open doors, where both the specialists and the learners could get information and share information and good practices in AE. Several events were targeted especially for the disabled, unemployed, and young adults who have dropped out of learning processes - the very target groups of the Lithuanian ALW 2002.
The most important material was published in the special conference publication with reports, research outcomes and good practices. Also a video was published on the ALW activities across the country.
Background...
Inspired and supported by
the Nordic Network of Adult Education NGOs, and with aid from the IIZ/DVV
(Institute for International Cooperation of the German Adult Education
Association), the first Adult Learners Week took place in Lithuania in
2000. More than 130 events were organized by local adult education centers,
while en expert meeting with colleagues from other European countries at
the Technical University in Vilnius was delivered though video conferencing
to regional distance learning centers.
The aim of the week was to sensitize the general public and potential learners, but also decision makers and funders, towards the importance of lifelong learning for individual benefits but also in the building of democratic societies. A meeting was organized at the Ministry of Education, and the President of the country forwarded a greeting message.
In May 2001, the second Lithuanian Adult Learners Week was associated with the European Year of Languages set up by jointly the European Union and the Council of Europe.
Contact:
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Roma Juozaitiene / Vilija Lukosuniene
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