Lifelong Learning for Academics and Professionals

Criteria for the Development of Competencies in Lifelong Learning

How Can Educational Institutions Support the Development of Competencies for Lifelong Learning? 3

Examples from the practical experience of the meNet partners. 5

Basic Considerations

The following points are orientated to the basic papers of the European Commission on Lifelong Learning. They mark specific areas where strategies can be meaningfully applied, focus on attitudes and approaches significant for lifelong learning and provide institutions with a diversity of opportunities for action.

The meNet group, „Lifelong Learning“, undertook the task of testing the current concept of Lifelong Learning in the education of music teachers and determining Good Practice in Lifelong Learning competencies. The „Lifelong Learning“ meNet group placed a special focus on informal learning in mentoring groups set up specifically at points of connection between universities and schools. (link: Good Practice – Informal Learning – Survey)

Through a process of discussion, three criteria were selected from the following aspects as points of special emphasis for the work of the meNet group. This subsequently led to an internal survey among the meNet members, resulting in an idea pool for approaches to the development of competencies for Lifelong Learning, as well as to a survey of three selected groups of teachers:

· Examples of Good Practice "accompagnato"

· Professional development in teacher groups.

Ten Requirements

1. Reaction to change: investigate the effects of school development processes on the teaching of music and devise appropriate measures;

2. Acceptance of personal responsibility and self-monitoring: change the focus to pupils’, teachers’ and students’ personal responsibility for their occupational activities and allow room for self-regulated learning;

3. Focus on the learner: respond to the paradigm shift from „knower“ to “learner” with innovative forms of teaching/learning and symmetrical working methods;

4. Mentoring: develop and provide counselling services particularly for initial and transitional phases and as an essential support instrument for individual development;

5. Amplification of traditional forms of cooperation: establish novel means of cooperation between schools and universities and with institutions in other countries working on similar schemes; encourage social and diversity learning, e.g., networks such as the meNet project.

6. Expansion from a national to an international context: create structures for institutional cooperation and for collaboration between universities, transcending regional and national boundaries;

7. Theory/Practice-Transfer: stimulate and implement initiatives that produce a simultaneous impact in university studies and in practice in schools; create structures that provide for better interrelation between university studies and school teaching.

8. Steering groups for informal learning: survey steering groups integrated in schools and universities with a view to informal learning and derive appropriate measures;

9. Feedback between learning organisation and steering group: apply inferences from the steering groups to the curriculum and to continuing education opportunities;

10. Gender and diversity: the integration of cultural diversity and special provisions for minorities as a continuous concern in social groups and in the learning process; systematic inclusion of pertinent course programmes in the curriculum and in continuing education.

How Can Educational Institutions Support the Development of Competencies for Lifelong Learning?

The call for teaching and learning in a community of learners requires learning schemes in which all those involved in the learning process emphasise “learning” rather than “training”. Educational institutions are obliged to make available specially developed programmes for this consciousness. A broader view of professional and personal development that encompasses different phases and varying rates of progress should lead to the establishment of an understanding of learning in which personal and professional development are closely intertwined. This gives rise to three recommendations.

Three Recommendations for the Development of Lifelong Competencies

· The educational institution develops and formulates an overall concept whereby all participants in the learning process consider themselves to be learners or continuing learners.

· The institution commits itself to providing learner-oriented consulting services, which actively support individuals and enable them to confidently shape their professional development, set points of special focus, identify and pursue their individual profile.

· The educational institution develops courses of studies and programmes of in-service education from an approach to learning that ingeniously links personality development with the development of professional competences. Personality development means facilitating individuals’ ability for self-regulation, respecting differences, and giving room to diversity.

Comments

These recommendations are based on principles that appear to us central to a development of Lifelong Learning competencies, and correspond with the guidelines set out in Learning Outcomes.

Strategy Development

The following short texts mark focal points for a strategic implementation. They emerged in connection with a small survey of the meNet partners. The responses showed both far-ranging as well as very isolated exposure to Lifelong Learning on the part of the respective institutions. A number of possibilities, as detailed below, became apparent. First, however, the initial questions to the meNet partners:

The Questions and their Intention

1. Are students and teachers in continued education supported in their professional and personal development by the educational institution through specific programmes?

2. Are guidance and counselling services provided for students and teachers in the initial and transitional phases from university to practice in schools?

Comments

Question 1 focuses on the learners and their development. Lifelong Learning involves individuals and their professional and personal development. How are learners led to reflect on their capabilities, how are they brought to recognise their progress, and how can they shape their individual progress?

Question 2 inquires about methods of guidance counselling. The term mentoring encompasses a variety of practices. For a better understanding of the use of the term, see Peter Renshaw: Mentoring.

Where strategy development for competencies in Lifelong Learning is concerned, it seems to us important that equal attention be given to different characteristic aspects of learning. While the above involved the framework to be made available by the institutions, the following three points describe the inner processes of learning and point to qualities that support Lifelong Learning.

Impacts on those Involved in the Learning Process

· The inclusion of experiential and contextual learning in all courses. Participants reflect on their own experiences so as to be able to use these as resources. The participants gain a deeper understanding of the context in which their learning takes place. Instructors are capable of creating a culture of discussion with feedback and evaluation as central elements, thereby supporting learning potential and a symmetrical relationship between teachers and learners. The participants perceive that they are valued as equals by the instructors and that everyone is responsible for his/her own learning effort.

· Critical reflection on the meaningfulness of what has been learned encourages learners to examine and further develop the value of their activities. Deriving meaning from the learning experience is an integral part of the learning process and it necessitates inquiring debate and discussion. The careful selection and application of suitable forms of feedback and exchange are significant factors for the development of self-confidence and trust in one’s own learning. An atmosphere of trust and a dialogue form of discussion are essential for the success of this type of learning.

· The participants receive support in becoming aware of the history and the circumstances of their learning, of the impediments as well as the incentives. It is only on this foundation that a sustainable and continual readiness to learn can be built.

Examples from the practical experience of the meNet partners

Competence for Reflection and Development

Music teachers must continuously work on their personal and professional development. Responsible teachers

· know what is important in their professional practice and what the underlying standards, values and educational concepts are,

· have a fairly good idea of their own competences, strengths and weaknesses,

· work on their professional development in a systematic way,

· gear their personal development to school policy and make use of the opportunities the offered by the school for their personal development, and

· analyze and develop their own understanding of their profession and their competence as a teacher.

Portfolio Work as an Instrument of Development

The portfolio functions as an instrument of direction and elucidation and yields results with regard to personal achievement. It is therefore especially well adapted for supporting students’ developmental work as well as for providing insight into their self-organisation and their confrontation with their professional future. Such work with portfolios is often quite ambitious. The following gives insight into the work with students in The Hague:

Twice a year the portfolio is discussed by the individual student, the coordinator and the education teacher. It consists of two parts:

· Study progress: here the students describe their progress with respect to motivation, organisation, independence, coping, focus, emotional and physical condition, and analyse their strengths and weaknesses.

A specific part concerns reflection on the main musical instrument. Twice a year the students discuss their progress with the instrument teacher. This reflection in the portfolio discloses focal points and results with respect to learning experiences, technique, interpretation and performance, as well as regulative skills.

· Reflection on study and profession: this part consists of several documents, including an evaluation of orientation activities held to familiarise with the teaching profession in music, reports of teaching activities, personal viewpoints on music education. (During their courses of studies students are regularly urged to work on clearly formulating their personal thoughts, ideas and opinions).

Orientation on Competencies in Teacher Education

Sometimes study guidelines for certification as a teacher are based on competencies, as is the case at the Cologne University of Music. In contrast to an orientation on input, the focus on competencies supports the interconnection between personal, specialised, and professional abilities, as well as the idea of allowing the overlapping of subjects within the study guidelines. Integrated project examinations enable students to demonstrate complex abilities within a professionally relevant context.

Formal Forms of Guidance

Elements of Counselling in Academic Studies

Counselling as offered by the various institutions plays a more or less intensive role in students’ development. Here are some examples:

· Counselling interviews figure prominently in programme evaluation. The programme is regularly discussed with the students with regard to content, organisation, assessment criteria and study load.

· Students have regular meetings with a coordinator, once a week if possible. The content of these meetings consists of information, project evaluation, ascertaining study results and portfolio analysis.

· For beginning students in the programme for certification as a teacher, institutions often provide special orientation (lasting from two days to an entire semester). Offered are a combination of content introduction and guidance specifically for the initial phase of studies.

· The course “accompagnato”, for example, specifically supports the initial phase of teaching, as is described in detail in the best practice example (link: best practice).

The development of personal and professional competencies is covered in the study programmes by different forms of instruction and learning, such as lectures, seminar, workshops, student teaching, projects, papers and research.

Mentoring Programmes

The implementation of counselling is meaningful within the framework of student teaching in schools as well. Mentors are specially trained to serve as links between professional practice and the university.

The progress of university work as well as the development toward the teaching career is supported by a number of different counselling sessions (with both individuals and groups). Examples:

· Some universities provide for special training of mentors. The programme of courses for future classroom teachers at the University of Ljubljana’s Department of Education includes mentoring programmes mainly within student teaching in schools. Through guided reflection, theoretical knowledge gained in studies is linked to practical field experience.

· A definite and systematic focus is placed on students’ experiences in practice teaching by means of a seminar held in conjunction with practice teaching and by individual mentoring provided midway through the course of studies, in order to clarify career opportunities and career understanding on the basis of experiences made so far.

Further Information

Learning Outcomes

Example of Practice (accompagnato)

Example of Practice professional learning teachers groups

Renshaw Mentoring Definition