International Initiatives for Cooperation
The training was organized by International Initiatives for Cooperation Bulgaria funded by Erasmus + Programme and hosted by SJ Vietnam
22 February – 2 March 2016
Trainers:
Prof. Rumen Valchev (Open Education Centre, University Professor of Sociology, Former Vice-Minister of Education in Bulgaria)
David Raigal (Vice President of International Initiatives for Cooperation Bulgaria)
Krasimira Damyanova (Chairperson of HOPE Association Bulgaria)
Partner Organizations:
International Initiatives for Cooperation (IIC) Bulgaria, Open Education Centre, Bulgaria, Hope Association Bulgaria, IIWC PKBI Jawa Tengah – Indonesia, Vive Mexico, In Movement: Art for Social Change Uganda, Youth for Sustainable Development Assembly (YSDA) Philippines, Solidarités Jeunesses Vietnam, Volunteers Initiative Nepal (VIN) Nepal
STEPs4LIFE is the third project from series of “STEPs” projects that started six years ago. The first STEPs was “STEPs4NGOs” followed later by “STEPs IN”. STEPs4LIFE series of 3 ToT as the first one was held in July 2015 in Mexico, the second in October 2015 in Indonesia. The third training was organised in Vietnam in February 2016 and will be followed by a Summit Meeting in Bulgaria to discuss the programs and the continuity of the project.
The aim of STEPs4LIFE is to enrich the methods of non-formal education with trainers from six partner countries from Asia, Latin America and Africa. Non-formal education is believed to improve the creativity, to stimulate the self-development and to contribute to enhancing the personal and professional performance of young people.
During the trainings the participants can share and learn from each other methods and approaches in field of non-formal education applicable on the three continents. After the trainings, the participants are expected to develop their methods and create a multiplayer effect in their community by offering trainings to local youth groups based on the knowledge and experience that they have gained.
STEPs4LIFE ToT in Ha Long City, Vietnam was held from 22 February to 2 March 2016 and encompassed various activities:
- Five days of training with NFE expert trainers
- Visit Ha Long international kindergarten
- Visit representatives of People’s committee of Ha Long city, including Mr. Vu Hong Son – Vice chairman of People’s committee, Ms. Vi Bich Hanh – Head of Educational and training Department of Ha Long City, Mr. Nguyen Van Hung – Director of Culture and Communication Center of Ha Long City, Mr. Vu Van Hoai – Chief of staff of People’s Committee of Ha Long City, Ms. Hong Thanh – Deputy director of Internal Affair Department of Ha Long City, Ms. Nguyen Thu Ha – Deputy Secretary of Ha Long Youth Union.
- Two days of training of 80 students from the International Ha Long University delivered by the NFE experts from the partner countries as a test phase after the training of the NFE experts\
In the first five days, the participants shared and discussed what formal education is and what makes non-formal education (NFE) different, where the position of NFE in the education is and where it is supposed to be. In these training days, the participants got lots of input from the facilitators as well as from the other participants about the methods that they use. They also shared the challenges and difficulties which they face in organizing and delivering NFE activities in their home country.
Each group did a good job. It was visible from the reaction of the students and their evaluation. Almost all of the students noted that the training met their expectations and they would like to get involved in similar trainings in the near future.
The training was a good success also due to the warm welcoming, reception and logistics of the host partner SJ Vietnam who created an appropriate learning environment and supported the trainers and the participants in all aspects.
