Are Non-formal, Informal Education and Formal Education Approaches Complementary or Fundamentally at Odds? Assignment: Discuss the characteristics of each with reference to supporting literature and your own and others' experience. Draw evidence-based conclusions on how the different approaches might relate more effectively? I am going to look at the different approaches of non-formal, informal and formal education. My aim is to examine each concept and to consider their differences and similarities, as well as their different uses across the globe. There are vast similarities between non-formal and informal education, which will be looked at I detail with discussion on how in certain countries they are considered the same thing as 'these definitions do not imply hard and fast' as 'there may well be some overlap (and confusion) between the informal and the non-formal' (Smith, 1996). Also the different views of formal education will be looked at from the World Banks idea 'that priority should go to formal education. In this way, in a generation or two, illiteracy will be wiped out' (SIL International, 1999) to Paulo Freire's 'banking' concept of education, that is used as an instrument to oppress or domesticate as suggested in his work Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Research will determine whether these concepts can complement each other and work well together or if they are so different that they will forever be at odds. Using my own experiences and a selection of others, with reference, I shall put together evidencebased conclusion on how these different ideas can relate and work together more effectively. That is suggesting that they can work together at all. Non-formal education first became a global issue for debate in the late 1960's and is part of and related to the ideas of lifelong learning. Different sociologists and countries were starting to realise the massive importance of learning that occurred outside of schools, colleges, universities and other educational institutes. During the Williamsburg, USA 1967 international conference it was discussed that 'educational growth and economic growth were not necessarily in step' (Smith, 1996). T The formal education system created segregation government provided for the school system which lead to the exclusion of needs for those who are alienated by a formal system. Non-formal education is a way of 'filling this gap' with people such as youth workers providing activities to help those alienated 'catch-up' learn basic skills such as literacy and maths. It can also include sexual health education, drug awareness, employment information and sports programmes as well as many other opportunities. Illich (1970) declared that 'rather than calling equal schooling temporarily infeasible, we must recognize that it is, economically absurd'. It became obvious that 'school was only one amongst many potential educative elements' (Smith, 1996). Although non-formal education was considered a 'western' concern a number of socialist countries such as Russia,Somalia and Nicaragua had success in the use of what we would now call nonformal education. Non-formal education is extremely similar to informal education so much so that some argue that they are the same thing. They both (generally) take part outside of established formal education centres and both of that are participated in through choice, whether the participant is aware they have chosen to or not. The main difference I can suggest is that non-formal education has a set plan of achievement, whether certificated or not (Duke of Edinburgh award, sexual health education, basic skills) Whereas informal education tends to be more spur of the moment. Some have suggest that informal education is 'the learning that goes on in daily life' (Smith, 1996) others have described it as personal projects or learning that has been achieved through youth or community programmes. The fact is that informal education is so broad a subject and so fluid that it
is all these and more. Teachers, lecturers, driving instructors, etc., they all work with a set goal or objective to reach through a set plan. Youth workers, social workers, counsellors, etc., although they are set goals to reach they can change and more can be created. This is because these 'informal educators' have to 'go with the flow' as 'formal education tends to be unpredictable' (Smith, 1996). Informal education is based around empowerment and choice, so it can take place with any person in any setting. With no lesson plan the informal educator helps people to explore their feelings and experiences and understand their relationships with others. This opposes formal eduction in the way that informal educators build a working relationship so that they may teach, rather than trying to build a working relationship through teaching. Thought engaging in conversation a persons feelings and interests can tell us what they want to and sometimes need to learn about. This could lead on to non-formal education such as the NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) program or young achievers award. Informal education is set up through engaging in communication and active listening, it allows people to explore personal experiences and 'can take place in any setting' (Smith 1996). All forms of education have the same purpose to liberate and develop people to make their own informed choices to work and live in society. Informal education involves trying to signpost people in the direction of liberty and acceptance. It involves challenging attitudes in people such as racism and sexism. While empowering a person an informal educator must keep a conversation where the person chooses to be challenged. Signposting people in the values of equality for all, respect for diversity, democracy, and to take an active part in the community. Colardyn and Bjornavold (2004) state that 'formal education consists of learning that occurs within an organised an structured context (formal education, in-company training), and that is designed as learning. It may lead to formal recognition (diploma, certificate)'. Formal education is the institutionalized class-room based, teacher fed, structure set approach to education that every child in the UK and many other countries in the world legally has to attain between certain ages. Each academic young people have the same teacher/teachers week in, week out. Due to this the teachers activities can last several days as generally they will be using the same room. Each teacher is trained to a certain level in their subject area, teaching strategies, educational philosophy and other needed areas. These 'teachers need to meet educational standards and stick to specified curriculum' (Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 2002). The arguments for and against formal education are numerous. Illich (1970) argues that 'educational disadvantage cannot be cured by relying on education within school'. Due to the fact that 'even if they attend the same schools and begin at the same age poor children lack most of the educational opportunities which are casually available to the middle class'. Though when looking at it on a global scale the International Labour Organisation clams that formal education is in fact vital. 'Experience has shown that providing basic literacy and numeric skills through non-formal education does not guarantee that children will be permanently withdrawn from work [child labour]' (International Labour Organisation, 1996). There are many forms of Non-formal education, such examples include the Duke of Edinburgh award.. Duke of Edinburgh is one such project that leads to certification similar to NEET program. I am a Duke of Edinburgh award leader who provides the award in two areas of a city, one area is a well off 'upper middle class' area and the other is a deprived area with high unemployment and low school attendance. The divide in educational advantage is obvious just on a visible scale alone and those who go more often too and receive a better (private) formal education seem to do 'better' at the award. That's the great thing about the award though, no one is 'better' there are just those who 'get on with it' and there are those who need to be informally engaged first. There are four sections to the award, skill, service, physical recreation (sport), and expedition which is the section I personally educate on and specialise in. With the 'well-off' young people most of them had sorted out provisions for the other sections themselves. Whereas with the young people from the deprived area I found I had to engage almost everyone informally, in more depth, grab opportunities, signpost to and set-up provisions for all their other sections. These young people didn't just get on with it,
they asked questions like why did they need to do it? What does it achieve? Arguments for these differences could be that a decent formal education has enabled the 'well-off' young people to think and provide for themselves. Some might use Freire's liberate or domesticate theory, suggesting formal education domesticated the 'well-off' young people to get on with the job and follow someone they don't know blindly, like a boss. Whereas the others asked questions, questioning the task at hand and the person providing it, they wanted to understand and learn about the award and what it would mean to them. Finally we could use Illich's (1970) statement 'poor children lack most of the educational opportunities which are casually available to the middle-class' and this nonformal education is what the 'deprived' young people need to catch up. Whatever argument is chosen the 'well-off' young people shown that improved formal education has helped them to get on with the award more efficiently while the award allows them to pursue areas of interest school has no opportunities for. Other examples of non-formal education include such programmes as anger management as talked about in a case study by Harrison and Wise (2005). A youth work agency puts on a experimental project to try and prevent young people from having confrontations in and out of school. In the project the work with schools, youth justice, and social services. A group of young men in their mid-teens are invited on the course which will take place during certain school hours. All the young men have had issues raised by them and others about their anger and are all in contact with welfare agencies. This project is meant to supplement the agencies individual work by working as a group. The young men are informed on what group work could achieve. Conversations are held with the objectives stated so that they can decide for themselves if they wish to participate. For one of the sessions the young men are split into two groups and with help they create a script for the other group. The script represents a time similar to their experience of being angry and how they reacted. After these scripts are played out a discussion takes places about alternatives methods of dealing with the situation. Even though this is an experimental project it is a great example of non-formal education working with formal education. Non-formal education takes place during formal educations time to help those alienated continue with their formal education. Though formal education doesn't work for everyone and sometimes there are areas of non-formal education to catch these people. Another form of non-formal education is work experience. As stated in the Western Mail 5th November 2009 a 'teenager who struggled at school finds caring role after a taste of different jobs'. A youth training charity called Rathbone Cymru placed the young man on a skill build course where he had work experience in a high street shop before gaining care work experience at a residential home. He won the Rathbone Cymru's Skill Build trophy and is about to undertake an apprenticeship in elderly care. From work experience to voluntary work, different forms of non-formal education are plugging the gaps and offering alternative provisions of formal education. In the Western Mail 20th November 2009 then 1st minister Rhodri Morgan stated that 48% of young people are 'undertaking voluntary activity'. The figure was taken from a Catch22 survey for the Philip Lawrence awards. This shows that a large number of young people in Wales are gaining valuable education through alternative means to formal education. Yet to 'signpost' these young people onto the right non-formal education involves a huge amount of informal education. Informal education is needed for everyone, from the disruptive or upset student in the formal classroom to the young person attending a youth provision. For some young people it may be the only form of education optional. 'More than 10,000 young people may be living rough on UK streets' (Big Issue, November 9-15 2009). A charity called Railway Children estimated this number and stated the young people in the study 'had all experience living on the streets for more than four weeks before the age of sixteen...some using ecstasy, cannabis and cocaine at the age of nine, and heroin from the age of twelve'. Some of the young people has been sexually abused, victims of violence and large proportion had mental health problems. These young people did not want formal education or non-formal education. They wanted people who understood and they could trust. Only through building a working relationship and understanding what is important to these young people can opportunities start to be looked at towards creating a brighter future for these young people. The question might be asked where do these young people fit into formal education?
Informal education is hard to measure and especially hard to master, it sometimes can massively challenge your values and beliefs. In one of the youth centres where I work there is a mid-teens afro-Caribbean young man. When he leaves school he wishes to join the army because he 'hates terrorists' and in his opinion was that certain countries should just be 'blown up' completely. Naturally I challenged this view and engaged in conversation about his reasoning for this I discovered it wasn't general hate, but he just wanted to make the world a safer place. After chatting informally for a while about his interests in the army and how he hated school I discovered the only subjects he enjoyed were P.E and biology. After a few weeks of debate he changed his mind on his future, he still wants to join the army, but after he has done A-levels in P.E, Biology and psychology at college and would like to become and army medic or nurse. Harder still are challenging values an beliefs that have been engrained on the young person by their family. As stated earlier I work in a youth centre in a 'well-off' area, one young male expresses very right wing conservative values even defending certain political parties such as the BNP. He has regularly made statements like the poor are poor by their own fault and that free national health care shouldn't exist. The are all opinions that I am personally extremely against so to deal with this I had to reflect on each session he was involved in so I could become more self-aware and understand my reactions. 'Self-awareness can be seen to have a major part in developing people skills' (Thompson 3:1996). After understanding my own reactions I could stop them from becoming a barrier and actively listen to his concerns. Now I could establish his attitudes were developed from family, media, and the private catholic school that he attended. Over time I have shown him newspaper articles, books, and suggested films as well as challenging his views and slowly he seems to be starting to develop his own ideas and beliefs, something some might suggest that formal education should have taught him. I have never worked as a formal educator but it has only been four – five years since I left school so I can give some accounts of my feelings as a young person in the formal education system. Memory's of primary school are relatively happy with a general interest in everything and both primary schools I attended adopted a work through play technique I would suggest it was a good education where I learnt a lot. As I progressed through comprehensive school I felt trapped, controlled and wasn't interested. It didn't help in year 8 where I first felt real segregation in lowest set French class, all boys, all from the local counsel estates. Throughout the rest of comprehensive I felt looked down on and worthless, but a lot of people do suite formal education. I saw a lot of my friends enjoy subjects, do well and go on to graduate from universities like Oxford. On a global scale a lot of the worlds population are desperate for formal education. In 2005 the Tanzanian government abolished school fees and school attendance rose dramatically. It is still hard for girls to attend school and if you can't afford to pay for books, uniforms or exam fees the young person is sent home. It takes Baby an eleven year old Tanzanian girl who doesn't own a pair of shoes an hour to walk to school. 'Baby lives with her aunt, Flora, who is passionate about education. “Everyone should learn to read and write … go on to higher education and learn a lot about the world. It is wrong for girls no to go to school”' (Action Aid, Autumn 2009). The question is if people around the would are literally desperate to go to school, why are there arguments against formal education in the UK? So non-formal and informal education are empowering methods of education that is short, specific, random, practical and governed by the participants in a democratic process. Formal education is an institutionalised legal system by which young people are taught a number a basic subjects until a certain age whether they choose those subjects or not, although there is some choice as age increases. It is long, standardized, academic and has a hierarchical system which is externally controlled. I have stated systems where they work together such as the anger management programme and the Duke of Edinburgh award. Also I have shown where formal education has neglected and alienated some as well as the fact that informal education is unavoidably everywhere and the trick is how to use the opportunities it creates. In today's modern society certain aspects of formal education are needed, we all need to be literate,
have basic maths skills and have a some degree of scientific knowledge. Due to the evolution of a consumer society, these are now very much needed basic skills. Jeffs and Smith (1996) state that 'education is concerned with all aspects of thinking' (p17). So why does comprehensive school seem to be processing domesticated 'drones' that seemed to be 'programmed' for jobs that power climate change and global recession. Surely through choice, we will think more and real action can happen? 'In the banking concept of education, knowledge is a gift bestowed by those who consider themselves knowledgeable upon those they consider to know nothing. Projecting an absolute ignorance onto others, a characteristic of the ideology of oppression' (Freire, 53:1970). Infant to junior schools in Wales have a learn through play ethic teaching children to think and explore. Why, when they reach comprehensive level do we try to take that away? As I can it now formal education does not work with non-formal education and non-formal education tries to clean up the mistakes of formal education. To have both of them complementing each other formal education has to be downsized on a large scale and replaced with practical, empowering and chosen non-formal education. Give people the chance to pursue their interests, let them think and explore, only then will they achieve their full potential and a difference in the world will be made. Until that day though we shall continue to grow up to enter our offices, banks and shopping isles. Maybe Illich (1970) was right when he said 'not only education but social reality itself has become schooled'. Dan Carter ST09003304
Biblography •
Jeffs, T. and Smith, M. (1996) Informal Education: Conversation, Democracy and Learning. Nottingham: Educational Heretics Press.
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Harrison, R. and Wise, C. (2005) Working with Young People. London: Sage. Freire, P. (1970) Pedagogy of the Oppressed. London: Penguin Books. Thompson, N. (1996) People Skills, Third Edition. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
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Colardyn, D. and Bjornavold, J. (2004) Validation of Formal, Non-formal and Informal Learning: policy and practices in EU Member States. European Journal of Education, Vol.39, No.1.
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Anon (2009) Teenager who struggled at school finds caring role after taste of different jobs. Western Mail, Thursday November 5 2009, p37.
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