Pages exploring the theory and practice of helping Introducing helping What do we mean by helping – and what is its relationship to informal education, counselling and teaching? Explore helping relationships. The art of helping others The art of helping others: A set of support pages for the book by Heather Smith and Mark K. Smith. …
Category archives: Informal and non-formal education
Kurt Hahn, outdoor learning and adventure education
Kurt Hahn, outdoor learning and adventure education. A key figure in the development of adventure education, Kurt Hahn was the founder of Salem Schools, Gordonstoun public school, Outward Bound, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme and the Atlantic Colleges. Kurt Mathias Robert Martin Hahn (1886 – 1974). German educationalist, born in Berlin, who founded the …
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Happiness and education – theory, practice and possibility
Happiness and education – theory, practice and possibility. What makes us flourish – and what does not? We explore the theory, practice and possibilities of putting happiness at the centre of education and helping. Contents: introduction – why all the interest in happiness? · what is happiness? · what makes us happy and unhappy? · …
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Helping relationships – principles, theory and practice
Helping relationships – principles, theory and practice. In this article we explore the nature of helping relationships – particularly as practised within the social professions and informal education. We also examine some key questions that arise in the process of helping others. In particular, we focus on the person of the helper. Contents: introduction · …
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A brief introduction to holistic education
A brief introduction to holistic education. What is holistic education? What are the primary philosophies that distinguish it from traditional education? Who were the pioneers in holistic education? Ron Miller provides an introduction. Contents: · holistic education · holistic education resources · links to holistic organizations and schools · how to cite this article Holistic …
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John Holt, learning and (un)schooling
John Holt. John Holt’s explorations of the failures of formal teaching and schooling influenced a generation of educators. By looking to the experiences and interests of children, and the sense they made of learning and education, we can find great possibility. John Caldwell Holt (1923-1985) forthcoming Websites The best starting point is holtgws.com. It …
What is hope? How can we offer it to children and young people in schools and local organizations?
Mark K Smith explores how, in the context of the ‘new normal’, educators, pedagogues and practitioners need to offer hope to children and young people. This article is part of a series: dealing with the new normal • offering sanctuary • offering community • offering hope] contents: introduction • what is hope? • being hopeful • building hope …
Hope, utopianism and educational renewal
Hope, utopianism and educational renewal. In this piece David Halpin offers an analysis of the nature of hope and its significance for educational practice. He identifies three ways in which a renewed optimism of the will can be nurtured among educators, despite the current talk of professional decline. These ‘three ways’ involve taking seriously: ‘hopelessness’; …
Thomas Coglan Horsfall and Manchester Art Museum and University Settlement
The first settlement to be established outside London, and an extension of its parent institution at Toynbee Hall in Whitechapel, Manchester University Settlement was nevertheless, explains Stuart Eagles, deeply rooted in the specific political and cultural history of Ancoats. It, and Manchester Art Museum, owed much to the work of Thomas Coglan Horsfall. contents: introduction …
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Informal learning, home education and homeschooling (home schooling)
Informal learning, home education and homeschooling (home schooling). Most families who start out “doing school” at home find that what works in school does not transfer easily to the home. Of necessity, home educators find themselves pioneering new educational approaches, nearly always less formal ones. They provide convincing evidence for the potential of informal learning. …
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Ivan Illich: deschooling, conviviality and lifelong learning
Ivan Illich: deschooling, conviviality and lifelong learning. Known for his critique of modernization and the corrupting impact of institutions, Ivan Illich’s concern with deschooling, learning webs and the disabling effect of professions has struck a chord among many informal educators. We explore key aspects of his theory and his continuing relevance for informal education and …
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informal, non-formal and formal education – a brief overview of some different approaches
Many of the debates around informal and formal education have been muddied by participants having very different understandings of basic notions. Here we explore three different approaches commonly found in the literature. contents: introduction · looking to institutions: informal, non-formal and formal education · turning to process: conversation and setting · a question of style: …
Informal, non-formal and formal education programmes
In this piece Paul Fordham explores the emergence of the influential typology of education programmes as informal, non-formal and formal. The notions are considered in relation to the concern to foster economic development. Particular attention is paid to the characteristics of non-formal education in relation to participation, purposes and methods. Debates around ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ …
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Informal and non-formal education, colonialism and development
Informal and non-formal education, colonialism and development. The place of informal and non-formal education in development – the experience of the south. Contents: introduction · the indebted south · education in the south · the question of colonialism · non-formal and informal programmes · literacy programmes · conclusion: informal and non-formal education and development · …
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Informal and non-formal education
Exploring the experiences, practice and theories of informal education and non-formal education. Introducing informal education and non-formal education What is informal education? So what is informal education? Here Tony Jeffs and Mark K Smith cut a path through some of the confusion around the area. They focus on informal education as a spontaneous process of …
What is informal education?
So what is informal education? Here Tony Jeffs and Mark K Smith cut a path through some of the confusion around the area. They focus on informal education as a spontaneous process of helping people to learn. Informal education they suggest, works through conversation, and the exploration and enlargement of experience. It’s purpose is to …
Informal education in schools and colleges
In recent years there has been a significant growth in the numbers of informal educators working in formal educational settings like schools and colleges. We explore the phenomenon – and some of the possibilities and problems involved. contents: introduction · recent developments in school and college policy and practice · the decline in classroom teachers’ …
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A brief history of informal education
A brief history of thinking about informal education. So where did informal education come from? Who are the key thinkers? How does it relate to other ways of describing education? contents: education from daily life · informal educators in ancient greece · developments in britain and ireland · informal education and philanthropy · developments in …
The philosophy of informal Jewish education
Barry Chazan explores the meaning of informal Jewish education and examines its significance for contemporary Jewish life. He argues that informal Jewish education is not confined to a place or a methodology but rather is a well-defined philosophy of how people should be educated, what the goals of Jewish education are, and what its contents …
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A response to Barry Chazan: the philosophy of informal Jewish education
Joseph Reimer raises some important questions about Barry Chazan’s important exploration of informal Jewish education. contents: introduction · back to dewey: experience and education · conclusion · how to cite this article Barry Chazan has taken the lead over the past decade in articulating a coherent definition of the domain of informal Jewish education. For …
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The Passover seder service as a paradigm for informal Jewish education
In this article Daniel Rose presents the Passover Seder service, commemorating the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, celebrated by Jews all around the world every year on the first night of the Passover festival, as a paradigm for experiential Jewish education, specifically found in informal Jewish education settings. contents: introduction – jewish experiential education …
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Informal learning: theory, practice and experience
Informal learning: theory, practice and experience. In recent years a number of researchers and policy pundits have rediscovered ‘informal learning’. But is there really such a thing? We explore the theory and practice of ‘informal learning’ contents: introduction · informal learning · non-formal learning · tacit knowledge · situated and distributed learning · informal education …
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Pearl Jephcott, youth and the lives of ordinary people
Pearl Jephcott produced a series of influential studies of the lives of young people and was an important figure in the development of thinking about youth club work. She also undertook a number of community studies that added significantly to our appreciation of working-class life. contents: introduction · life · Pearl Jephcott, youth work and …
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Malcolm Knowles, informal adult education, self-direction and andragogy
Malcolm Knowles, informal adult education, self-direction and andragogy. A champion of andragogy, self-direction in learning and informal adult education, Malcolm S. Knowles was a very influential figure in the adult education field. Here we review his life and achievements, and assess his contribution. contents: introduction · malcolm knowles – life · adult informal education · …
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Aristotle on knowledge
Aristotle on knowledge. Aristotle’s very influential three-fold classification of disciplines as theoretical, productive or practical remains an excellent starting point for exploring different forms of knowledge. Contents: introduction · the theoretical · the productive · the practical · further reading and references · links · how to cite this piece Aristotle, along with many other …
David A. Kolb on experiential learning.
David A. Kolb on experiential learning. David A. Kolb’s model of experiential learning can be found in many discussions of the theory and practice of adult education, informal education and lifelong learning. We set out the model, and examine its possibilities and problems. Contents: introduction · david a. kolb · david kolb on experiential learning …
Homer Lane: An account of the Little Commonwealth at Evershot, Dorset
An extract from a lecture given by Home Lane in 1918. Reprinted from Homer Lane (1928) Talks to Parents and Teachers, London: George Allen and Unwin, pages 188-193 Homer Lane (1875-1925) was Superintendent of the Little Commonwealth, a co-educational community in Dorset run for children and young people ranging from a few months to 19 …
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Learning in places – introduction
We reprint here, as a taster, Zvi Bekerman, Nicholas C. Burbules and Diana Silberman Keller’s introduction to Learning in Places – The informal education reader. Any new book on a widely published topic, especially a rather large book, must explain and justify itself as yet another addition to the literature: Why another book on informal …
Learning in the community and community learning
Learning in the community and community learning. The idea of learning in the community has been around for some time. But what is it, what does it involve, and how does it relate to the notion of community learning – popularized in Scotland? Contents: introduction · learning in everyday life and formal instructional settings · …
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Learning through outdoor experience. A guide for schools and youth groups
a5 version [free] · a4 version [free] · Kindle version from Amazon Experiencing the outdoors can be a powerful stimulus for learning. Being deep in a forest, feeling alone on a hillside or just sharing a cup of tea around a fire can set us on a path that changes the way we think about …
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The learning organization: principles, theory and practice
The learning organization. Just what constitutes a ‘learning organization is a matter of some debate. We explore some of the themes that have emerged in the literature and the contributions of key thinkers like Donald Schon and Peter Senge. Is it anything more than rhetoric? Can it be realized? contents: introduction · the learning society …
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The theory and rhetoric of the learning society
The theory and rhetoric of the learning society. The idea of the learning society has featured strongly in recent pronouncements around adult and lifelong learning. But what actually is the learning society? How have notions of the learning society developed. We the theory and rhetoric of the learning society and provide an introductory guide and …
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What is learning? A definition and discussion
What is learning? A definition and discussion. Is learning a change in behaviour or understanding? Is it a process? Mark K Smith surveys some key dimensions and ideas. A definition for starters: Learning is a process that is often not under our control and is wrapped up with the environments we inhabit and the …
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The behaviourist orientation to learning
The behaviourist orientation to learning. The behaviourist movement in psychology has looked to the use of experimental procedures to study behaviour in relation to the environment. John B. Watson, who is generally credited as the first behaviourist, argued that the inner experiences that were the focus of psychology could not be properly studied as they …
The cognitive orientation to learning
The cognitive orientation to learning. Where behaviourists looked to the environment, those drawing on Gestalt turned to the individual’s mental processes. In other words, they were concerned with cognition – the act or process of knowing. Many psychologists were not happy with behaviourism. There was a belief among some that there was too much of …
Humanistic orientations to learning
Humanistic orientations to learning. In this framework the basic concern is for human growth. We look to the work of Maslow and Rogers as expressions of this approach. A great deal of the theoretical writing about adult education in the 1970s and 1980s drew on humanistic psychology. In this orientation the basic concern is for …
The social/situational orientation to learning
The social/situational orientation to learning. It is not so much that learners acquire structures or models to understand the world, but they participate in frameworks that that have structure. Learning involves participation in a community of practice. Social learning theory ‘posits that people learn from observing other people. By definition, such observations take place in …
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Learning mentors and informal education
Learning mentors became part of the life of many schools in England. What were, and are, they doing? What issues face them? As part of the Excellence in Cities (EiC) Initiative, the Department for Education and Employment in England, initiated what it described as an action plan to ‘raise standards, tackle failure and create a …
Classical models of managerial leadership: trait, behavioural, contingency and transformational theory
What is leadership? Here Michele Erina Doyle and Mark K. Smith explore some of the classical models of leadership. In particular they look at earlier approaches to studying the area via the notions of traits and behaviours, and to what has become known as contingency theory. From there they turn to more recent, ‘transformational’ theories …
Shared leadership
Shared leadership. Leadership can be explored as a social process – something that happens between people. It is not so much what leaders do, as something that arises out of social relationships. As such it does not depend on one person, but on how people act together to make sense of the situations that face …
Kurt Lewin: groups, experiential learning and action research
Kurt Lewin: groups, experiential learning and action research. Kurt Lewin was a seminal theorist who deepened our understanding of groups, experiential learning, and action research. What did he actually add to the theory and practice of pedagogy and informal education? contents: introduction · life · field theory · group dynamics · democracy and groups · …
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John Scott Lidgett and Bermondsey Settlement
Bermondsey Settlement – Southwark Local History Library and Archive Rev. John Scott Lidgett (1854-1953) established Bermondsey Settlement in 1891. It was to be the only Methodist settlement and provided an opportunity for better-off Methodists to live in a deprived area and to share the lives of people there. John Scott Lidgett had a vision of …
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Eduard C. Lindeman and the meaning of adult education
Perhaps best known today for his work in adult education, Eduard C. Lindeman (1885 – 1953) also wrote one of the first books on community development, was an early explorer of groupwork and worked to extend popular education. In this piece, we explore his life and classic work The Meaning of Adult Education. contents: introduction …
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William Lovett and education
William Lovett and education. Sharing something of a similar political tradition to Robert Owen – but coming a different social position – William Lovett – has a significant place in the development of ideas around schooling and lifelong learning. ontents: introduction · education and politics · schools for the people · further reading and references …
William Lovett on education: Extracts from Chartism – a new organization of the people
Sharing something of a similar political tradition to Robert Owen – but coming a different social position – William Lovett – has a significant place in the development of ideas around schooling and lifelong learning. Here we reproduce extracts from Chartism – A New Organization of the People (1840) – written with John Collins ____________ William …
Malcolm X on education
Malcolm X on education. Malcolm X is a fascinating person to approach as an educational thinker – not because he was an academic or had any scholastic achievements but as an example of what can be achieved by someone engages in ‘homemade’ or self-education. contents: introduction · homemade education · conclusion · bibliography · how …
Karl Marx and education
Karl Marx and education. What significance does Marx have for educators and animateurs today? An introduction and assessment by Barry Burke. contents: introduction · life · Karl Marx as a thinker · Karl Marx and the class struggle · the communist manifesto · Karl Marx’s relevance to knowledge and education · further reading · links …
Mehrgenerationenhäuser – multi-generational meeting houses – animation, care and pedagogy
Mehrgenerationenhäuser – multi-generational meeting houses – are attracting growing interest outside their home in Germany. In this piece we examine what they are, how they function, and their relevance to some key issues faced by local communities – in particular around ageing. We will also look at the role of social pedagogues within them and …
Mentoring and young people
Blackpool – Like Ellis Craven on Unsplash There was been a mushrooming of youth mentoring projects across the UK. Yet relatively little was known in the UK about the background to the idea and the principles underlying mentoring initiatives. Kate Philip investigates. contents: introduction ·the context ·the background · what is mentoring? · conclusions · …
Methodism and youth work
In this feature we explore the outstanding contribution of Methodist workers to the development of youth work contents: introduction · early efforts · the club · social groupwork · the challenge today · how to cite this article In Britain youth work emerged largely out of the activities of evangelical Christians during the first half …