FOREIGN ACCENT SYNDROME

People keep waking up from head injuries speaking a different language? (...) The syndrome is caused by damage to the part of the brain that controls the muscles used to produce speech.
"Speaking requires very precise control of the muscles of lips, tongue, and jaw (the speech articulators) and the larynx (voicebox)," wrote Lyndsey Nickels from Macquarie University for the Conversation back in 2013.

What is foreign accent syndrome?
This phenomenon is known as foreign accent syndrome, a rare disorder that usually arises after brain damage as a result of, for example, stroke or head injury.
(...) What causes foreign accent syndrome?

Foreign accent syndrome is caused by brain damage which impairs the control of the muscles used to produce speech.

Speaking requires very precise control of the muscles of lips, tongue and jaw (the speech articulators) and the larynx (voicebox). If the placement of the articulators, speed or coordination of movements are slightly out of sync, then speech sounds will be altered. For example, when people are drunk the effects of alcohol on muscle control and coordination causes distortion of the speech sounds and leads to the perception of slurring.

Vowels are particularly susceptible: which vowel you say depends on where your tongue is in your mouth. Slight differences in where your tongue is – how far forward or back, how high or low in your mouth – changes the vowel you produce. Different languages have different vowels and within a language one of the main differences between accents is in the vowels. Aussies accuse Kiwis of saying “fush and chups” and Kiwis of Aussies “feesh and cheeps”!

Research has shown people with foreign accent syndrome nearly always have trouble producing vowels. Brain damage affects their ability to control their tongue movements. There may be too much or too little muscle tension and therefore they may “undershoot” or “overshoot” their target. This leads to the vowels sounding different, and sometimes they may sound like a different accent.

Another commonly reported feature of foreign accent syndrome is a problem with the stress pattern of words and rhythm and intonation of sentences (prosody). People with foreign accent syndrome may speak slowly, separate out syllables and say each one with equal stress – for example, “banana” as “bar-nar-nar” rather than “buhNARnuh”.

So, the problems with muscle movement and coordination cause in changes to the way the speech sounds. When the new speech sounds are similar to those of an existing accent, the speaker can be perceived to be speaking with a foreign accent. People with foreign accent syndrome don’t speak with all the features of a foreign accent, but there are enough things about the way they speak to make it seem as though  they have a different accent. 

UNIVERSIDADES

2016/10/23 Las universidades desaparecerán según David Roberts experto en innovación y miembro de Singularity University, la universidad de Silicon Valley, cree que la certificación ya no es útil.
 Roberts considera que el negocio de las universidades tiene los días contados y que solo sobrevivirán aquellas que tengan una gran marca detrás. Singularity University ha roto con el modelo de certificación; no expide títulos ni existen los créditos. Quieren usar la tecnología para esto y todo en menos de 20 años.
Recursos necesitados: 
1. alimentar a toda la población, 
2. garantizar el acceso al agua potable, 
3. la educación para todos, 
4. la energía sostenible o 
5. cuidar el Medio Ambiente,
6. shelter: Secure, safe, and sustainable shelter for residence, recreation, and industry for all people at all times. 
7. espacio: Safe and equitable use, and stewardship of, space resources and technologies for the benefit of humanity and our future as a multi-planetary species.
Social necesidades: 
8. Disaster Resilience Effective and efficient disaster risk reduction, emergency response, and rehabilitation that saves lives and livelihoods, minimizes economic loss, and builds resilience both globally and locally.
9.  Governance. Equitable participation of all people in formal and societal governance in accordance with principles of justice and individual rights; free from discrimination and identity-based prejudices; and able to meet the needs of an exponentially changing world.
10. Health. Optimal physical and mental health, including access to cost effective prevention, early diagnosis, and personalized therapy for individuals and communities.
11. Learning. Access to information and experiences that build knowledge and skills for all people at all stages of their lives for personal fulfillment and benefit to society.
12. Prosperity. Equitable access to economic and other opportunities for self-fulfillment where all people are free from poverty.
13. Security. Safety of all people from physical and psychological harm, including in virtual worlds; and protection of physical, financial, digital systems.

SCHOOLS IN EEUU

Cada estudiante triunfa. La ley, 2015

The Every Student Succeeds Act: The Implications for Education Companies

The Every Student Succeeds Act, approved by Congress and signed into law by President Obama late last year, marks an historic shift in federal education policy—one that will shape the work of states, districts, and individual educators for years to come. But what does it mean for companies operating in the K-12 market? In this webinar, two guests with deep experience consulting K-12 providers on federal policy break down the implications of ESSA for education technology, district budgets, professional development, assessment, school interventions, and other areas. Our guests also explain how the statute is likely to be implemented, based on regulations issued by the Obama administration and the interpretations of state and local education officials.

ADULT EDUCATION BY ROGERS
In the United States you can teach adult education classes without a teaching certificate, if the place is not an accredited school. For example, I taught adult ESL classes for years in a community center run by a non-profit organization. However, more and more a certificate is needed, even for those types of jobs.

In my case, I returned to school and received my Masters in English and ESL. So I am now certified to teach those two subjects in the grades 6 - 12.  Also I can teach in what are known as community colleges (these colleges offer 2 year degrees.)

Usually adult educators have a certificate in secondary education, grades 6-12.

Some universities and colleges are beginning to offer teacher training Masters programs for adult education, but they are not yet wide spread.

Educational opportunities for adults usually fall in the following categories:
-Community colleges 2 year programs for an associates degree
-University or college 4 year bachelor degree programs.
-Masters programs 2 to 6 years to complete
-Doctoral programs (Phd.) not sure how long to complete this :)
-Adult education classes offered at the local public schools in the evening.
These are schools that kids go to during the day.
-Adults also go to non-profit organizations and receive training or classes such as ESL.
-Online schools, there are degree programs for adults completely online.
-One to one tutoring, adults hire tutors to teach them English or help them to prepare for exams such as the TOEFL or IELTS.  There are also businesses that have programs for what is known as "test prep" (test preparation.)

Computers yes or not

FOCO DE ATENCIÓN CORTO EN CONTRA DE LA NECESIDAD DE UNO SOSTENIDO
(...) El investigador en neurociencia Francisco Mora asegura que el elemento esencial en el proceso de aprendizaje es la emoción porque sólo se puede aprender aquello que se ama, aquello que le dice algo nuevo a la persona, que significa algo, que sobresale del entorno en Neuroeducación, el libro que acaba de publicar en Alianza Editorial.
Ciencia. Francisco Mora dice: Internet (...) Lo cierto es que navegar en internet requiere de un foco de atención muy corto y siempre cambiante. Esto puede ir en detrimento de una atención sostenida, ejecutiva, que es la que se requiere para el estudio. Es verdad, como usted señala, que se ha comenzado a hablar de una nueva forma de atención producida por internet pero aún se desconocen los circuitos por los que se desarrolla.

2015/12/21  MULTITASKING 

¿Cómo afectan las nuevas tecnologías a nuestro cerebro?  

(...) El cerebro es, como cualquier sistema de procesamiento de información, un dispositivo con capacidades limitadas, sobre todo en la de procesar una cantidad de información por unidad de tiempo en el presente. Así, nuestro cerebro tiene dos cuellos de botella: uno es la atención (cuando tenemos dos fuentes de información suficientemente complejas, la eficiencia de una decae como consecuencia de la otra); y la otra, la llamada “memoria de trabajo” (el espacio mental en que retenemos la información hasta hacer algo con ella). Esta memoria tiene una capacidad finita en los seres humanos y es extremadamente susceptible a las interferencias. Cuando se intenta llevar a cabo dos tareas demandantes al mismo tiempo, la información se cruza y se producen muchos errores.

2017/08/30 No usar el ordenador para tomar apuntes

Van der Meer explica que relegar a un segundo plano la fase de escritura en la enseñanza puede influir negativamente en el desarrollo de las personas. “No creemos que haya que volver al boli y al papel, porque un ordenador tiene muchas ventajas”, sentencia. “Pero no podemos olvidar el bolígrafo digital para potenciar esta parte del conocimiento”.

La psicóloga educativa y escritora Silvia Álava discrepa sobre este punto. Opina que la tableta gráfica no puede sustituir al papel y el lápiz en las primeras etapas del aprendizaje, ya que el procesamiento de la información es más profundo cuando ves un papel que cuando ves una pantalla. “El proceso de atención sostenida, lo que podríamos llamar capacidad de concentración, es una habilidad que los niños tienen que desarrollar por sí mismos”, expone. “Las pantallas están asociadas a estímulos que cambian muy rápido, por lo que, al usarlas, es más fácil mantener la atención. Los niños que se acostumbran y no entrenan su capacidad de concentración son más propensos a distraerse con facilidad ante nuevos estímulos”.

“La escritura es un proceso en el que se manejan la psicomotricidad fina —la habilidad de hacer agujeros con un punzón o recortar una hoja de papel frente a saltar o andar a la pata coja— y la coordinación visomotriz, que es la que se da entre el ojo y la mano”, explica Antonio Labanda, coordinador de la sección educativa del Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos. “Se desarrollan a edades tempranas. Esto hace que un elemento digital difícilmente pueda sustituir a la escritura manual”.

(...) en las preguntas conceptuales, que buscaban averiguar si habían asimilado realmente el contenido, los que usaban ordenador ofrecieron respuestas considerablemente peores.

LIBRARY 2016

Centro de Neurociencia para la Educación de la Universidad de Cambridge o la International Mind-Brain and Education Society a través de su revista Mind, Brain and Education Onlinelibrary. Wiley. Journal
MIND BRAIN AND EDUCATION

El diario de la educacion.com El Diario de la Educación nace con el compromiso de aportar un periodismo libre e independiente al servicio de la educación y de quienes están en primera línea en la defensa del derecho universal al saber y de la igualdad de oportunidades de todas las personas a lo largo de sus vidas. La educación nos compromete a todas y todos, porque se produce en cualquier momento y lugar, y está en el origen de todo: de los valores éticos; de los fundamentos de la democracia; de las aspiraciones de una vida plena; de la convivencia; de las bases del desarrollo humano, científico y tecnológico. Del progreso individual y colectivo.
(...) El investigador en neurociencia Francisco Mora asegura que el elemento esencial en el proceso de aprendizaje es la emoción porque sólo se puede aprender aquello que se ama, aquello que le dice algo nuevo a la persona, que significa algo, que sobresale del entorno en Neuroeducación, el libro que acaba de publicar en Alianza Editorial.
Ciencia. Francisco Mora dice: Internet (...) Lo cierto es que navegar en internet requiere de un foco de atención muy corto y siempre cambiante. Esto puede ir en detrimento de una atención sostenida, ejecutiva, que es la que se requiere para el estudio. Es verdad, como usted señala, que se ha comenzado a hablar de una nueva forma de atención producida por internet pero aún se desconocen los circuitos por los que se desarrolla.


Los retos de la educación en la modernidad líquida.pdf pro Zygmunt Bauman
Hay pocos textos que sinteticen con mayor lucidez la condición del individuo en la sociedad de consumo del siglo XXI que estas páginas escritas por Zygmunt Bauman. En ellas se delimitan con precisión los contornos de un estado de cosas en el que los individuos, convertidos en consumidores, han perdido contacto con todas las referencias ideológicas, sociales y de comportamiento que habían determinado su actuación en siglos anteriores. En este orden nuevo la vida «se acelera» por la necesidad, casi obligación, de aprovechar tantas oportunidades de felicidad como sea posible, cosa que nos permite ser «alguien nuevo» a cada momento. La identidad se construye por medio de accesorios comprados, que aparecen en el mercado en número que se multiplica hasta hacerse incontrolable, al igual que la oferta de información con que nuestro criterio es bombardeado desde todas partes. Ello tiene influencia sobre nuestra manera de relacionarnos con el saber, el trabajo y la vida en general: la educación, en la época de la modernidad líquida, ha abandonado la noción de conocimiento de la verdad útil para toda la vida y la ha sustituido por la del conocimiento «de usar y tirar», válido mientras no se diga lo contrario y de utilidad pasajera. Sin embargo, para Bauman, la formación continuada no debería dedicarse exclusivamente al fomento de las habilidades técnicas y a la educación centrada en el trabajo, sino, sobre todo, a formar ciudadanos que recuperen el espacio público de diálogo y sus derechos democráticos, pues un ciudadano ignorante de las circunstancias políticas y sociales en las que vive será totalmente incapaz de controlar el futuro de éstas y el suyo propio.
Estudios.pdf El día de hoy se debe proponer una “educación permanente”, que avive la necesidad de actualizarse en lo referente a las “novedades últimas” no sólo de la actividad profesional, sino especialmente de aquellas hondonadas de la propia personalidad que distinguen de los demás y permitan acceder a objetivos que no se habían lograda con anterioridad. La educación en la modernidad líquida avanza en el mundo al que se refiere la información, pues ésta, la misma información, ha venido a ser el principal sitio de “lo desconocido”. En el caso de la información objetivamente disponible, todo está ahí, accesible ahora y al alcance de la mano, pero a la vez, insolente y enloquecedoramente distante, obstinadamente ajeno, más allá de toda esperanza de ser comprendido cabalmente alguna vez”.

Unesco.org. Articles lifelong learning available free download

Library. Canada.

AE IN SPAIN

SPANISH / ESPAÑA
2016/01/29 El País. Queremos que la educación cambie

Historia de la educacion durante el franquismo 2016/ 02/ 01. Nueva Tribuna.

Organigrama del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte , 2015

Secretaría de Estado de Educación, Formación Profesional y Universidades con  la Dirección General de Formación Profesional que comprende:

1. Subdirección General de Orientación y Formación Profesional

2.  Subdirección de Aprendizaje a lo largo de la Vida 

3. Instituto Nacional de las Cualificaciones (INCUAL) 

Project reports. Adult learning

Implementation of the European Agenda for Adult Learning 2012-2014 by

 Jesús Valdecanto Campos The Directorate is preparing a base for the new curriculum fro Adult Learning according to the new Education Act and the current adults needs. More here. Compendium, 2014

In Spain, it is a public school (Education Ministry), managed for a principal (political staff more tan pedagogical) and school board, staffed by civil servants or public employees, and operating inside a public-sector bureaucracy and its results and free until now. There are not independent public schools in Adult Education whish is called "CENTROS PERMANENTES DE EDUCACION DE ADULTOS". The rules are from governments.  The General Sub Directorate for Lifelong Learning regulates and organizes general and common structures for Adult Learning for the whole national territory in Spain. Autonomous Communities adapt this framework to their context.
 The philosophy is a democratic state and it is based on the Spanish Constitution (1978), the main law.  These schools must be rooted in community they operate under autonomy and they are accountable by the principal of the school but in the practice it is no real, each teacher do want to do and they must be accountable by students who don´t know anything about the laws or pedagogical ways or ... . Only in the 80s it was some interesting projects.  When the academical course starts every group of teachers write a project and in the end of the course it is evaluated and sent to the regional government.  This is the theory.

Adult teachers are from general studies but there are a few of them who are graduated from university or postgraduates studies (you have to pay it from you pocket and take time from you free time) in Adult Education but it is no worth for anything only for a personal way.

The status of teachers are becoming worst because in a Autonomous Community, Asturies, the local government started a new way for teachers: they have to sign an individual agreement to teach and they earn a salary according to that. Everything is changing to a private way here. The pedagogical, philosophical, etc. models don´t exist in the race only a political neoliberal.  

Unesco. Basque country. Carlos Vargas Tamez: Democratising education policy making or legitimising discourse? An analysis of the new Lifelong Learning Law in the Basque Country. In: encyclopaideia XVIII (40), 87-103. 

Neo-liberalism has become the backdrop to the changes in world-wide educational policy, which are no longer limited to cut-backs in resources or privatization but which actually affect the very core of educational theory and pedagogical politics on a fundamental level. The schools are empty of pedagogical and philosophical content. According to this "philosophy", investment in education and the curriculum should be tailored to meet the needs of the market, and seen as a preparation for the labour market. The social role of education, as a training ground for democracy and citizenship, is now seen as a waste of public funds, and has been replaced by the view private companies have of the function of education: as a training ground for meeting the needs of business. A “flexible” and “multi-purpose” employee thus constitutes the new ideal reference point for this "pedagogy". 

There have been starting as a movement which is called "Charter Schools" in England which are independently operated initiatives to traditional public schools.  It really started with the AGCS o GATS (Accord General sur le Commerce des Services and General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in a worldwide level, in Europe started after and was signed in the Treaty of European Constitution in 2004 and in Spain in 2005.

You think that public school is Spain is for the poorest people and immigrants (ethnic minorities) because parents (before Adult Education) with high economic and social status send your children to private schools or to schools which are granted by governments. They are usually religious or business school.   
As a professional and lover in this kind of programs I think we have to defined the framework such as philosophical and pedagogical level.

Adult Education in Spain today there are three main points: in education, in employment and in social matters but they are not coordinated but individual people try it.

There are a lot of activities BUT Legal basis is quite varied, due to the fact that legislative and executive competence is transferred from different autonomous communities. There are 19. But, general speaking:

1. Private and granted sector like foundations, GNOs, business companies, FEUP or POPULAR UNIVERSITIES, etc.

2. Public Institution from Ministry of Education.
There is also an emphasis on the classroom mentor in non-regulated education. This is an open system of learning provided by the ministry of education, which is implemented into lifelong learning. It is teached for a civil servant.

3. Universities.
     3.a.There are Third Age Universities for adult and elderly people where there are adapted subject of the different universities.
     3.b. Popular Universities within formal and not formal education.
4. Other experiences: within the scope of non-regulated education, there is a very complex network. This includes a multitude of associated companies with different geographical areas and backgrounds (mature adults, immigrants, drug addicts, ethnic minorities, etc.), which have to co-exist. The logical action would be for these sector organisations (of specific groups) to convert themselves into providers of education that request public funding, either on a permanent basis, or through other projects which generally focus on specific help and support.

Non-formal learning is often firstly prioritised for learning Spanish as a foreign language, mainly due to the large majority of immigrants and Roma communities.

"Spanish for immigrants" are free Spanish courses carried out in the Training Centres for Adult People, in order to support the integration of immigrants living in Spain. These courses are provided by specialised teachers using specific material desinged and published by the Ministry of Education. Basque, Catalan and Galician courses are also offered in the Autonomous Communities in which

there is a co-official language.

Furthermore, there are many other courses, mostly oriented to the field of personal development and social participation, carried out in several educational institutions such as Popular Universities (Universidades Populares), associations, and centres for social initiative. Some of them are focused on groups of disadvantaged people, such as the elderly, women, immigrants, or disabled people.

(...) Spanish civil society is also characterised by a wide range of NGOs and associations whose aim is the promotion of adult education. Resources in Europe. Spain country report on adult education in Spain. P. 6, Helsinky, 2011

2009 . CONFITEA VI  Informe de España de Nov. 2011

Religion. Spain – strong integration role for adult education by Rosa Maria Falgas, Catalan Association for Education, Training and Research.  Membership of AEA. Ordinay member.
Secular values dominate.

No visible links exists between modern Spanish adult education and the church. Historically, the church has had a role in for example the education of the noble classes, and in past centuries, of the uneducated masses.

In today’s Spain adult education operates on a secular value basis emphasizing work skills, democratic citizenship, equality and social inclusion. It must be remembered that adult education policies are independently managed by each autonomous community of the country. Elm magazine. Religion and adult education in four corners of Europe

In my opinion, it is seen better in a whole framework like http://www.wingia.com/en/news/losing_our_religion_two_thirds_of_people_still_claim_to_be_religious/290/
Traditionally speaking there was "catholic" inspirational experiences in Spain even during the political Transition (secular movement). Ultimately, and perhaps most significantly, the recent Metroscopia survey shows that Spaniards almost unanimously (86 percent) feel the education system will only improve when parties come together to produce a long-lasting pact, rather than make partisan reforms each time one of them reaches power, as has been the case so far.
On the other hand, in  my opinion this issue is related to a more general word as a spirituality no only religion.  This is a good book you can read about
http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-6091-768-4_16

ADULT EDUCATION LIKE A PUBLIC INSTITUTION commonly known as CEPA, Centro de Educación Permanente de Adultos. It means in English “Educational Centre for Adult”. This belong to the Ministry of Education. This has  plaform for adult students that you can  see here (There is a video in English and another in Spanish). There is also Plan para aprender a lo largo de la vida.

    

It is a public institution that provides free courses for adults (over 18).
There are public centers of this kind all over Spain, though with some differences in the different regions with a different law because Spain has Comunidades  Autonómas.
There are Institutions are set in the town and in a building especially aimed for the High School (students from 12 to 18). Teenagers study in the building from 8:00 to 14:30 and our adult students have their lessons here from 16:00 to 21:30.
There are also institutions which has its own building.

TYPE OF LEARNERS:
The type of learners in those Institutions are really varied, from immigrants, drop-outs, unemployed and people from vulnerable social groups to educated  people (teachers and different kind of professionals) who are interested in learning languages or ITC  contents and retired people who want to learn and be active.
There are illiterate student too.  According to Education Ministery there were  840.000 students in 2011.

THE COMMUNITIES:
There are centres  includes an area that covers and it is about some km from the cities.
Most people come from a rural background.
Economically, people  are from a middle, low-middle class, specialized workers and
technicians from different professions.

COURSES:
The courses are usually divided in two main groups:  formal and non formal education.
Formal education: courses that help adults to get a formal certificate, mainly concerning Basic and Secondary Education, courses that help adults to have access to Vocational Training or to University.
There are courses which you can make a free examination and they are called “Pruebas de acceso”. I think it is “Entrance tests”  in English. Two main entrance tests:

• 1. The university entrance tests for students over 25 years old.
• 2. Entrance tests to the formative cycles of Vocational training.

There are some adult school which preparer this kind of students but with a free examination.
Non formal education, which includes language courses: English, French and Spanish (for non Spanish people), also ITC courses, nursing and different types of open courses.
Let ́s take a look at the courses a bit more closely.

• courses aimed at reaching a formal certificate in order to get a Certificate of Secondary

Education.
• Courses that help adults to have access to Vocational Training or to University.
• “That ́s English” Programme in a Basic level 1 and Basic level 2.
CERTIFICATE OF SECONDARY EDUCATION:
• Basic education (a kind of Primary Education)
• Courses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Secondary Education.
CHARACTERISTICS (1)
• Each of these courses last 4 months (from end September to end January and from mid
February to mid June) so students that have to study Secondary Education from the 1^st
course can get their certificate in two years.
Students in these courses study 3 main areas:

• 1. Sciences
• 2. History and Geography
• 3. Spanish and English

The exams are taken in the institution and evaluated by teachers of the school.

CHARACTERISTICS (2)
• Most students who study Secondary Education in this kind of the Centres start from the 3rd course.
•The ages vary:

• 20 to 30 years old (students from the present Educational System who dropped out before getting their certificate).
• 40 to 50 years old (people from previous educational system who have their basic certification at the time but need to have it validated.

MAIN PROBLEMS (1)
•The contents are really wide and have to be adapted to 4 months.
•20% students enroll in September or January, start the lessons but then give up (on the other hand, people that keep coming are usually successful and get their certificate).
•Students need to have good materials in order to be motivated.
MAIN PROBLEMS (2)
• There are different levels mixed up in the same class: we need extra materials and resources to deal with this variety of levels in the same class and to do the most of each student.
• The type of students enrolling in these courses are generally people from vulnerable social
groups who haven ́t had good experiences concerning learning. We need to have good professionals and resources to motivate them so that they won ́t only get their certificate but they ́ll also become self-confident and continue learning.

COURSES THAT HELP ADULTS TO HAVE ACCESS TO VOCATIONAL TRAINING AND TO UNIVERSITY:
•These courses consist of training students so that they can pass the test that will allow them to get access to Vocational Training Courses or to the University.
• It is aimed at people over 19 (in the case of Vocational Training Courses) and over 25 (for University access) who haven`t got the required qualifications to register directly.
•The tests for Vocational training or for University are different.
•They are taken outside this kind of Institutions and they aren’t ́ evaluated by teachers of those institutions. We just train them to pass the tests.
• More and more people are interested in passing these tests to study Vocational Training. The interest is not so obvious for university.
PROBLEMS:
• In general speaking, people enrolled in these courses are more motivated that people from the previous group but there are still some problems:
ü  The variety of levels mixed up in the same class
ü  The high number of contents to be prepared from October to May.
“That ´s English” Programme: Basic level 1 and Basic level 2
•They are usually English Courses, distant English courses with an hour class a week.
•When students pass the basic level 2 they get a formal certificate in English that is in  accordance with level A2 of the Common European Framework of Languages.
• It is aimed at students who want to learn English and need a formal certificate.
Language courses: English, French and Spanish (as a foreign language), ITC courses, and fro example, nursing and different types of distant courses.
TYPE OF LEARNERS:
People that need to learn but they don ́t need or don´t want a formal certificate about their learning periods. It is enough for them to have a non formal diploma of the institution. More and more people register in this type of courses.
English courses:
• Levels 1, 2 and 3 (Levels 1 and 2 are basic levels, level 3 is an intermediate level)
• English for Tourism, that involves a level 2.
French courses :
• Levels 1 and 2
Spanish courses (specially for immigrants):
• Levels 1 and 2
ITC:
• Beginners
As an example. Nursing courses: 4 courses:
• First aid.
• Psychological support to dependent people.
• Home support to dependent people.
• Communication techniques with dependent people.
Etc.
On-line courses:
• Designed by the Ministry of Education
• They include a great variety of fields.
• People do the registration and the final tests. Then,
• People who are already familiar with on-line courses usually do the course at home.
•People who are not confident with this kind of courses can come to school  and do the course here. In this way, we will help them when they have a problem.
• It is only at some particular times that they can come and have assistance.
POSITIVE ASPECTS OF NON FORMAL COURSES:
•Very good to motivate people to become involved in Long Life Learning .
•Reasons:
People just do them because they want to learn, not because they need a formal certificate.
In most cases, they haven ́t got the pressure of the exams, so they can enjoy the fact of learning by itself.
PROBLEMS:
•They are often undervalued by different sectors such as the Educational Administration itself, as there are not exams and formal qualifications.
•However, they play a very important role as they are a starting point for many people to get involved and motivated in long life learning process.
• To help adults to get formal certificates
• To motivate them to get involved in long life learning
Finances 
Regulated education is financed through the normal budget, derived from the different autonomous governments.
In the same way, the state government and the autonomous governments subsidise local councils to enable them to launch and maintain institutes for adult education (permanent classrooms and training programmes and civil servants).
Specific private non-profit organisations are also subsidised.
We cooperate in European Programmes too.

Latest developments / main problems in the discussion

1. Is TIC an opportunity (to have a wider scope and to reach more people), or is it a threat (as a barrier at the point of entry)?

2. Is it necessary to change the way of confronting traditional illiteracy (methodology, material, teachers, etc.)?

3. Is it necessary to give better and faster answers to immigrant illiteracy?
4. Is it necessary to give a specific answer to computer illiteracy (to create a specific type like the one that already exists for languages)?

5. Does regulated education (obtaining a qualification) make sense, whereas non-regulated education does not? Does it make sense to integrate non-formal subjects into regulated education?

6. Does learning material for adults really exist, or have they simply been adapted from children's learning material (same applies to methodology and teacher training)?

7. Is it necessary to have a stricter statistical control over non-regulated education, taught by private non-profit organisations (mainly social agents)?

8. Is it necessary for those who work outside the regulated educational system (public administration) to have professional acknowledgement / qualifications / certificates?

9. Is it necessary to further underline the non-instrumental route (obtaining certificates and skills for work) in adult education?

2014. Ministerio de Educación.  El aprendizaje permanente en Espana. (...)
España se ha situado en niveles ligeramente superiores a la media europea en participación de personas adultas en educación y formación. Así, en 2010, el 10,8% de la ciudadanía española entre 25 y 64 años participaba en educación formal o no formal en las 4 semanas anteriores a la encuesta, mientras que la cifra correspondiente para la Unión Europea 27 era del 9,1%. No obstante, parece claro que el punto de referencia para España deben ser los países más avanzados, que superan el 25% (Suecia y Dinamarca).

El indicador europeo ELLI (European Lifelong Learning Index) expresa el estado de situación 

 del aprendizaje permanente en Europa, considerando una amplia gama de actividades en distintos ámbitos, como el educativo, comunitario, laboral y del hogar, y en distintas ópticas, como la educación formal, el aprendizaje profesional, el desarrollo personal y el de la cohesion social. En este índice de valoración global encontramos una situación similar de España (46) en relación con la media europea (45) y con los países más avanzados del entorno comunitario (Dinamarca 76; Suecia 71; Holanda 66; Finlandia 65). 

(...) En el ámbito del aprendizaje permanente existen muchos ejemplos de buenas iniciativas llevadas a cabo por las Administraciones y por entidades de la sociedad civil, en general sin ánimo de lucro, pero adolecen de una notable dispersión y falta de sinergia entre ellas.

En España hemos de hacer un esfuerzo para mejorar la participación, la calidad, la financiación y el desarrollo del sector. Pág.12 del informe.

sector.  
More things:
2011. Retos y oportunidades para el aprendizaje permanente en España. Ministerio de Educación. Subdirección General del Aprendizaje a lo largo de la vida.

Aaea.org. Resources in Europe. Spain country report on adult education in Spain. Helsinky, 2011
2012, UNESCO. National Progress Reports for GRALE 2012 COUNTRIES AND SPAIN
Mecd. Informes del sistema educativo.

Plan Estrategico de ALV. ET 2020.pdf Plan Estratégico de Aprendizaje a lo largo de la Vida.
Informe Eurydice.pdf

Employment field. Ministry of Employment.

In Spain, the Ministry of Employment offers varied resources for unemployment protection, promotion of employment, occupational training, the social economy and promotion of self-employment. http://www.empleo.gob.es/index.htm
The Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal- SEPE (Public Service of Employment) helps and advices people taking into account their employment status.http://www.sepe.es/ 
- There is a section for economic benefits: http://www.sepe.es/contenidos/personas/prestaciones/distributiva_prestaciones.html
- Another section to help people to find a job: http://www.sepe.es/contenidos/personas/encontrar_empleo/ofertas_empleo.HTML
  Here we find the an Employment Meeting Point between citizens and companies, from which you can make a direct, free, simple, and free interaction between vendors (companies) and jobseekers (citizenship). https://www.empleate.gob.es/empleo/#/
- And a section for Formation with a wide catalogue of courses.  http://www.sepe.es/contenidos/personas/formacion/cursos/buscador_cursos.html
Apart from all these tools, there is a specific program "Activation Program for Employment". It's aimed at long-term unemployed which comprises active employment policies and employment agency run by the public employment services in order to increase the chances of returning to the labor market and offers an economic aid managed by the Public Employment Service state, linked to the participation in these policies for employment activation. http://www.sepe.es/contenidos/personas/prestaciones/he_dejado_cobrar_paro/program_activacion_empleo.html

 test career test.net
midlife career  http://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1066&context=thesesdissertations

Locate a resource in your language or for your country that could help older people re-evaluate their career.  It could be a website, a scan from a guide or something you have produced yourself.  Upload it / a link to it and reflect on it's effectiveness and whether there is an issue with the older workforce in your country.
If you cannot find or develop a resource, instead reflect on why there is no resource you can easily find or make - and what could be done.

General speaking, midlife is a construct that in recent years has been defined in a variety of ways but here I refers in a general age and it can be described as the chronological age of a person who
usually falls somewhere between the ages of 35-60 years old.
According Collins Dictionary self-assessment is the process of an evaluation of one's own abilities and failings   and if you want to see deeper you have to look for in the development Psychology  + Pedagogy according the age. Those are an "emerging themes" for men and women and why make midlife career changes and the implications for their future.
I put here a link for this field of the topic that in my humble opinion is very interesting for self-assesment  http://www.groper.com.au/career-test
It is the first steep for a long for looking for development in this modern society and with a new sense of self.

This resurgence can be attributed to the increase of life expectancy rates, which has resulted in adults prolonging their work lives and/or making career changes. However, these impending career changes and transitions for adults are often met with a host of psychological, emotional, cultural, and physical changes that can occur during this process.

OTHER ORGANIZATIONS
Ategal. Asociación Gallega de Educación Permanente de Adultos.
Movimiento por la Paz
Cruz Roja.
                                                                          

                                 
AUTONOMUS COMUNITIES
PAÍS VASCO eldiariodelaeducacion 2016/09/23 La Finlandia del sur. Claves del sistema educativo Euskadi PARA PRIMARIA Y SECUNDARIA
En la última evaluación de PISA, la correspondiente a 2012, el País Vasco obtuvo resultados bastante buenos, por encima de la mayor parte de las comunidades autónomas. En Matemáticas obtuvo 505 puntos (España: 484/ UE: 489/ OCDE: 494), en Lectura 498 (España: 488/ UE: 489/ OCED496) y en Ciencias: 506 (España: 496/ UE: 497/ OCDE: 501).

EUROPE FOR CITIZENS

eccas draft-position-on-the-europe-for-citizens-programme/
Programmes. Europe for citizens AND projects.
 Ecas.org 2016/10 Europe for Citizens summary of responses survey_updated_61-responses.pdf

Plataformas

http://www.plataformatercersector.es/es/quienes-somos

Filosofos de ahora

Charles Taylor cultura.elpais.2016/10/05

El moldeo de interculturaridad en el Informe Bouchar-Taylor , 2010 revistas.ucm.es

Estados de bienestar

Para interpretar datos es importante tener en cuenta los cinco Estados de bienestar que se dan en Europa: el nóridoc, el liberal anglosajón, el continental europeo, el latino mediterráneo (donde está España), y el del Europa del Este. Cada uno apuesta por cosas diferentes.  desarrollo juvenil

ADULT EDUCATION IN EEUU

SILLICON VALLEY. ADULT EDUCATION. CALIFORNIA.
Silicon Valley Adult Education (SVAE) has career technical education classes specifically designed for adults. Courses are provided to assist adults in developing new skills or updating their current skills for entry or re-entry into the workforce.

PERSONALIZED LEARNING

2016/10/19 Students pinpoint their academic needs in Georgia.

On Mondays at Luella Middle School, the big, broad goal of "personalized learning" gets distilled down to a simple concept: Students who need extra help get it.

All students at the school in the Henry County system in Georgia spend an entire day once a week with access to additional academic support. The decisions about which subjects they will spend the most time with—math, language arts, social studies, or another—are left largely to them.

Those sessions, known as What I Need, or WIN, periods, are designed to give students choice and responsibility over their learning.

(...) Today, that revised model for personalized learning rests on five pillars. There's a focus on nurturing competency-based education, with flexible pacing for students; promoting readiness for college and careers; boosting learning through technology; supporting project-based learning; and establishing learner profiles, or personalized-learning plans for students.

CHALLENGING THE 21ST CENTURY. Why? Because such a challenge to put together a scaled system that provides personalized learning in our education system that has its historic roots in homogenization. Kudos to Henry County for committing to doing better. It is also impressive to see districts willing to give teachers some of this same voice and choice in how to meet the challenges of personalized learning. The one-size-fits-all methodology of 20th century, factory schools served a purpose once upon a time, but we now live in a less certain world where pace of change makes it almost impossible to predict the skills and knowledge students entering kindergarten today will need 13 years from now. This sort of move to meeting individual student needs and providing opportunities for students to move at their own pace or pursue learning through a variety of styles is critical to meeting the challenges of the 21st century.

ENGLISH IN SPAIN

En respuesta a tu solicitud de información te comento que el nivel de inglés necesario para participar es de un intermedio bajo (B1) o de un intermedio (B2). Es un curso en el que los participantes son los estudiantes con los que profesores de inglés en formación hacen sus prácticas, y suele resultar muy ameno. 

El curso tiene lugar de lunes a viernes, de 4 a 6, del 7 de noviembre al 2 de diciembre incluidos. La asistencia es obligatoria. Puedes rellenar tus datos en el siguiente enlace: 

https://goo.gl/forms/gEseYuaMOa2ayZiv2

Para cualquier duda, puedes ponerte en contacto con nosotros. 

Un cordial saludo, 

Mª Pilar Díez  Directora / Zuzendaria Centro de Idiomas / Hizkuntza Zentroa Universidad de Deusto / Deustuko Unibertsitatea

Avda. Universidades 24. 48007 Bilbao Tel. 94 413 91 03 Ext. 2303 pilar.diez.martinez@deusto.es www.idiomas.deusto.es

POPULAR EDUCATION AND PHILOSOPHY:

Critiquing Hegemony of Capitalism. A Call for Popular Education.pdf

Filosofía

Dany-Robert Dufour

   LA ESCUELA ENSEÑA LA IGNORANCIA La escuela está gravemente amenazada por la extensión del liberalismo. Los primeros que se dieron cuenta de esto fueron, por supuesto, personas que vivían en Estados Unidos en los años sesenta; pienso sobre todo en Hannah Arendt, quien hablaba de la destrucción de la escuela. ¿Y por qué habría una destrucción? Pues bien, porque aquellos que se presentan en la escuela son jóvenes o adolescentes que están en posición de esperar de la generación anterior la transmisión de lo que la humanidad haya acumulado, ideas, pensamientos, valores, etcétera. Están esperando la transmisión de un patrimonio cultural. Esto no quiere decir para nada que los jóvenes tienen que aceptar este patrimonio; al contrario, justamente porque les es transmitido lo pueden criticar; es necesario que critiquen lo que la generación anterior les dio para reinventar el mundo. Ahora bien, todas las renovaciones pedagógicas desde hace más o menos cincuenta años han tendido a arruinar esta transmisión. ¿Por qué? Pues porque no hay que oprimir a estas “pobrecitas cabezas rubias” –como se dice en francés–, a estos niñitos, y hay que dejar que se desarrollen libremente; o sea que, de hecho, ya no se les transmite nada, y cuando no se les transmite nada les retiran toda capacidad crítica. Y entonces llegamos a un fenómeno extraño que es que la escuela de alguna manera enseña la ignorancia. Vean nada más el camino que se recorrió desde cuando la escuela era un lugar de transmisión.  El Semanal, 2009
LAS PULSIONES El liberalismo es en primer lugar una propuesta acerca del tratamiento de la pulsión. El inventor del liberalismo, Bernard de Mandeville, era en primer lugar un médico, un médico del alma, y se dio cuenta de que cuando las pulsiones-pasiones eran reprimidas el papel del médico era quitar las represiones y hacer hablar al paciente, justamente para liberar las pulsiones. Este es la primera etapa de la elaboración de Bernard de Mandeville como médico; la segunda es cuando se vuelve el inventor del pensamiento económico liberal. Él continúa el trabajo que había hecho como médico, pues se da cuenta de que liberando las pulsiones-pasiones, los pacientes que anteriormente sufrían se sienten mejor y producen riqueza. Así que el liberalismo es la liberación de las pulsiones-pasiones. La tesis que defiendo es que si el capitalismo fue inventado en Occidente –aun cuando el mercado ha existido en todos los países desde siempre–, es porque el liberalismo procedió a la liberación de las pulsiones-pasiones. Éstas están desreguladas; una vez más estamos ante el “dejar hacer” de las pulsiones-pasiones y esto origina sociedades donde cada quien defiende a muerte sus intereses privados y la noción misma de interés público o colectivo desaparece, y los espacios se transforman en espacios de guerra, lo que Hobbes llamaba la “guerra de todos contra todos”.

FUTURO. (...) Lo que quiere el neoliberalismo –destaca– es un sujeto desimbolizado, sin sujeción a la culpa e incapaz de apelar al libre arbitrio crítico, privado de la facultad de juzgar e inducido a gozar sin desear, “mundializado” en la órbita de la mercancía.
Dufour se interroga acerca de las futuras generaciones: si la fórmula sujeto se ha quebrado, ya nada podrá ponerle límite al capitalismo total. No sólo nuestro “haber” cultural está en peligro, sino el mismo “ser propio”, cuya pérdida puede resultar irremediable. insumisos.

VIOLENCIA HOY  Biblioteca digital. Articulos  (...) Trataré de proporcionar esta explicación global limitando o identificando lo que la cultura contemporánea globalizada, esta cultura internacional, esta cultura mundial, pide ahora a cada uno de los individuos: la cultura internacional exige a cada uno de nosotros que vayamos hasta el final de la defensa de nuestros intereses privados, se trata de la antropología liberal que privilegia la idea de la defensa a ultranza de los intereses privados, la idea de la defensa cueste lo que cueste de los vicios privados, la idea de la defensa cueste lo que cueste del self love, tal como se le llamó en el siglo XVIII cuando esta antropología comenzó.
(...) Es evidente que esto es bueno para el mercado puesto que desarrolla considerablemente los productos mercantiles que son propuestos ahora en el mundo entero gracias a la globalización, pero también resulta claro que produce ciertos desbordamientos a nivel social. ¿Qué pasa con estos desbordamientos a nivel social? Producen evidentemente efectos de violencia, efectos de devastación del vínculo social, porque cuando realizo o satisfago mis apetencias personales sólo pienso en mí, estoy en un estado mental egoísta que me permite instrumentar al otro en mi beneficio, es decir, usarlo como cosa. Y esto puede regresarse en mi contra porque los otros también me pueden volver una cosa.
2017/02/03 Ciencia. El País.  

SKILLS FOR 21ST CENTURY IN EUROPE.

Cedefop.europa. European quality framework for apprenticeships

Europa. Skills Development and Employability in Europe: The New Skills Agenda Brussels, 8 September 2016

Key points from discussion:

Performance of education system: Why do so many people lack basic skills despite ten years of compulsory schooling? The OECD survey for adults aged 25 and older reflects the performance of education systems in the past. While some countries indeed showed challenges in their education systems, this might have changed. Therefore, it is key to carefully identify existing problems in each country.

Low-skilled: How does the OECD define low-skilled? OECD has developed a definition and methodology which is published online. This includes testing, for example, by having people read pill labels and find key information.

Non-formal and informal learning: How can skills be made better visible? It is important to strengthen systems for validation of skills acquired through non-formal and informal learning including volunteering and learning at the workplace. This would be very relevant for low-skilled (in terms of basic skills) who may have acquired considerable skills on the job.
All European tools needed for quality skills validation are available at the Cedefop web- portal. So, it is about implementing the related Council Recommendation of 2013 in the Member States.

Healthcarestudies. BSc Veterinary Medicine: MALTA

EUROPASS

The Europass tool is currently mainly used by young people with high levels of education, the “low-hanging fruit”. However, more disadvantaged groups with lower levels of educational attainment, older people, those long-term unemployed and recently arrived migrants often do not know the Europass and consequently cannot benefit from the tool to record their skills. In order to improve this situation, Europass should be promoted at national and local level through public employment services, career guidance centres and similar structures. There is a need to convince those actors to use Europass. At European level, a one-stop-shop that integrates a wider set of European tools and services in the area of skills and qualifications (e.g. a tool for self-assessment of entrepreneurship) may also help to further promote and facilitate the use of Europass, similarly to an increased collaboration between the different contact points for those initiatives at national level.