CEDEFOP. AGORA V: Identification, evaluation and recognition of non-formal learning
Salónica CEDEFOP, 1999. 214 p.

Foreword

Agora V will deal with the issue identification, assessment and recognition of non-formal learning. This topic has been widely discussed among politicians and elaborated by researchers during the last decade. Only a few countries, however, have attempted to introduce actual systems, but a growing number is considering doing so. We can also observe a certain activity on a European level, aiming at the introduction of supranational initiatives in this area. It is fair to suggest that systems focusing on identification, assessment and recognition of non-formal learning will become integrated parts of the national (and perhaps the European?) systems of education and learning during the coming decade. CEDEFOP has addressed this issue during several years (1) in order to compare different national approaches as well as support initiatives on a European level. The present Agora is an effort to make a stage point to CEDEFOP investigation work, and to confront our outcomes to the judgement of social partners and policy makers, in order to carry on with our investigations on renewed bases. It will be an occasion, as well, gathering the different actors intervening in this field, policy makers, social partners, searchers, teachers and trainers, workers, trainees, …, to try to transcend our differences, to make a common review of the situation, and to draw as consensual conclusions as possible regarding the measures to implement in the future.

The starting point of the Agora will be the discussion paper worked out by Jens Bjørnåvold in 1997, the three already published reports, and the number 12,1997/III, of the Vocational Training, European Journal.
The experts participating to the Agora will the be invited to write on their own appreciation of the issue, in reaction to the previous documents. Those original productions, as well as the syntheses of the debates will be published before the end of the year 1999.

In continuation on this theme, Agora VI, 24-25 June, will treat of "Reporting on human capital resources in enterprises".

The reflection leaded along the last years allows us to notice the existence of a consensus, in our societies, on the utility of procedures of assessment and recognition of non-formal learning and on the necessity to bring them into play. On the other hand it leads to raise at least three main questions.

A consensus

Even the less qualified worker uses, in the course of the productive process, more know-how, intelligence and initiative than the word "unqualified" would let us believe. On the job, at work, but home too, in the family life and the leisure time people acquire and develop relevant economic and social competencies. This permanent improvement of competencies and knowledge makes people more productive and contributes to the development of their learning ability and of their transversal or generic competencies and knowledge.

A system which acknowledges the real competencies of the individual, and not only the formal ones, is very likely to motivate this individual to go on developing his competencies. For the enterprise that means lower training costs and time saving, which on its turn has good chances to re-enforce the employer's motivation to accept and to contribute towards competencies development.

To assess, to validate and to accredit non-formal learning is then of a huge social importance. The validation and accreditation of non-formal experiences based learning has indeed several advantages both for the individual and for the community:

(a) it permits to identify hidden and/or sleeping competencies that could be put at work in the interest of the enterprise and of the society in general;
(b) it might increase the self esteem of the workers, and give them an incentive to put in motion more of their intelligence, ingenuity and industry, in their own interest, but at the same time in the interest of the enterprise and of the society as a whole ;
(c) it allows to save time in further education and training curricula by giving credit for the already
mastered competencies and by permitting to spend more time learning the topics where inadequacies have to be made up;
(d) it eventually gives the opportunity of a second-chance education for people who missed their first one in the formal education and training system;
(e) …

Three basic questions

(a) A question of methodologies: Is it possible to identify and “measure “ non-formal learning in a proper way; do we run the risk of overlooking important aspects of the learning in question, - partly because this is a form of learning that is contextually bound and very heterogeneous, not easily delimited or standardised?
(b) A question of standards: When we assess and recognise non-formal learning, according to which standards? How are we going to decide what is good and bad learning, relevant and non relevant learning? Can we foresee different standards, -for example on different levels (European, national and sectorial); are existing national qualification standards appropriate in this setting or will the fact that they (mostly) have been developed in relation to the formal educational system, make assessment and recognition of non-formal learning more difficult?
(c) A question of values and legitimacy: If we have identified, assessed and recognised non-formal learning originating from work-places or leisure time activities, how will these competencies be treated by the labour market, the educational system and society in general? What’s the relative value of learning taking place in a non-formal setting versus the learning taking place in a formal setting? Will non-formal learning give the same rewards in terms of wages, promotion and access to education/training as learning within the formal systems?

Basically, the question of assessment and recognition of non-formal learning is a question of the interlink between various forms of learning and various contexts of learning. Can we improve the link between learning taking place in work and leisure time and learning taking place in schools? How can we create a more flexible system supporting learning throughout life that makes it possible to make use of existing experience and knowledge in a better way than what’s the case today? And if we create such a system, what effect will this have on social reward mechanisms, wages, promotions, access to education/training and professional borderlines (in view of the fact that many professions are based on a strict definition of the competencies needed in order to be accepted; very often demanding a certain, predefined learning path….)?

 

Complete document in pdf format: http://www2.trainingvillage.gr/etv/publication/download/panorama/5132_EN.pdf

 

 

The Inter-American Centre for Knowledge Development in Vocational Training (ILO/Cinterfor)
Avda. Uruguay 1238 - Montevideo - Uruguay - Tel: (5982) 908 6023 - 902 0557 - 908 0545 - Fax: (5982) 902 1305
webmaster@cinterfor.org.uy

Copyright © 1996-2008 International Labour Organisation (ILO) - Disclaimer