FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

Baltic Summer School 2012

Nelijärve, Estonia

NON-FORMAL ADULT EDUCATION IN FINLAND

FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

Finland (Suomi)

• 5,2 million inhabitants• 50% of adults participates in Adult Education• 2 official languages: Finnish and Swedish• 60 000 lakes •Member of the European Union since 1995

FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

800 institutions offer adult education

Formal education for adults (-> qualifications)• Upper secondary schools •Vocational institutions and adult education centres• Universities• Universities of applied science

Non-formal (Liberal) Adult Education institutions -> self-development, not aimed at qualifications

Most popular subjects of study:

•arts and crafts•languages•music•ITC•physical education•open university subjects

Activities based on the Nordic tradition of self-motivated adult learning

Nonformal Adult Education Institutions in Finland 82 folk high schools

199 adult education centers

11 cultural/political organisations and their study centers

14 physical education centers

20 summer universities

FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

Non-formal Adult Education in Finland

• The aims, methods and content of non-formal adult education are decided by the schools, owners and participants themselves. The Ministry of Culture and Education provides general guidelines and defines special target groups, for which there might be extra funding available.

• Non-formal Adult Education is governed by the Act on Liberal Adult Education (2009)

• In the state budget non-formal adult education receives about 160 million € this year – a cut of more than 10 % compared with the last year.

• The state support for a non-formal adult education institute is approximately 50% of the cost of courses. The rest is covered by private or municipal support and participation fees.

FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

Non-formal Adult Education in Finland

Answering to the current needs of the society

• offering education for special target groups, cutting the costs by distributing study vouchers

• integration education of immigrants• quarantee of employment, internship or

education for the young adults under 25 and for unemployed young adults with a BA or MA-degree up to 35 years of age

Other ongoing processes• renewing the concessions of the institutes• structural development of the network and

institutions

FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

FAEA

• Founded 1969

• NGO, a professional network of nonformal adult education associations in Finland

• 8 members: national coordinating and/or umbrella organisations in nonformal adult education

• Staff of 4

• Funded by the Ministry of Culture and Education

FINNISH ADULT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

Contact information

Finnish Adult Education AssociationVapaan sivistystyön yhteisjärjestö Annankatu 12 A 1500120 HelsinkiFinland

Tel +358 9 612 0370toimisto@vsy.fi

www.vsy.fi