Developing Adult Education Strategies: Trends and Priorities in Cyprus and the EU

We are proud to announce the successful completion of the conference ‘Developing Adult Education Strategies: Trends and Priorities in Cyprus and the EU’. The conference was co-organised with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth, and the research centre CARDET, with the support of the Lifelong Learning Foundation (IDEP) and the University of Nicosia. 

The conference facilitated the dialogue between educational organisations, adult educators and national educational institutions on current issues concerning adult education and lifelong learning in Cyprus. At the same time, tools, policies, good practices and other initiatives promoted by the European Union in this field were presented and highlighted. The conference was also an opportunity for representatives of private and public adult education institutions and educators for further discussion and cooperation at national level.

The conference commenced with welcoming remarks by Dr Charalambos Vrasidas, Executive Director at CARDET. Consecutively Dr Elias Margadjis, Director of Secondary Technical and Vocational Education in Cyprus, highlighted the current challenges presented in the field of adult education in Cyprus and the role of the Ministry of Education to meet the requirements and expectations of the trainees and trainers.

This was followed by a presentation of the Erasmus + Project "DIMA 2.0: Developing Strategies for Adult Education Providers and Adult Educators", which was the project that the conference was based on, by Andreas Georgiou, Director at INNOVADE LI. 

The rest of the conference, focused on adult education and training on a local and EU level, with representatives from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth presenting the actions taken, and important programs and initiatives, such as Eurydice, EPALE, and the Renewed European Agenda for Adult Learning (EAAL). In addition, Tina Mavrič, project manager at the European Association of the Education of Adults (ΕΑΕΑ), provided an outlook on the state of adult education and the collaboration of different organisations on an EU level.

The conference concluded with a panel discussion on the future of adult education in Europe. The discussion was attended by Dr Elias Margadjis, Director of Secondary Technical and Vocational Education, Tina Mavrič on behalf of the EAEA, and Andreas Tsolakis from the Directorate of Primary Education of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth. The discussion was moderated by Dr Charalambos Vrasidas. The discussion highlighted the importance of introducing quality standards for the qualifications of adult educators, and the importance of the pedagogical abilities of the trainers. The complexity of the adult education sector in Cyprus and the fact that there is a decentralised system with many programs, which are managed by different government agencies in different ministries without central supervision, were also discussed.

Overall, the conference found that the field of adult education in Europe will undergo several changes and developments in the coming years and that the field of has many prospects for development, while emphasizing the possibilities of its contribution to personal and professional development, participation and the well-being of citizens.