Assessment of non-formal and informal learning within VET teacher education

Vykstant nuolatiniams pokyčiams, profesijos mokytojų rengimas ir nuolatinis kvalifikacijos tobulinimas reikalauja lankstesnių, atviresnių mokymosi formų, kurių pagalba per trumpesnį laiką ir su mažesnėmis sąnaudomis jie perimtų reikalingą, jų mokymosi poreikiams pritaikytą mokymosi turinį. Straipsnyje analizuojamas poreikis profesijos mokytojų rengimo sistemoje įdiegti neformaliojo ir savaiminio mokymosi pasiekimų vertinimo galimybę, siekiant formalųjį profesijos mokytojų rengimą priartinti prie individualių mokymosi poreikių. Atsižvelgiant į profesijos mokytojų kvalifikacijos ir jos įgijimo specifiką, straipsnyje pateikiamos neformaliojo ir savaiminio mokymosi pasiekimų vertinimo gairės.As the sequence of educational reforms and developing knowledge society, there are more opportunities and initiatives to learn in various contexts, participating in processes of change. The importance of assessing and recognizing the achievements of non-formal and informal learning has increased in this context. Education policy makers emphasize the necessity to raise the quality and prestige of vocational education and training (VET), which is highly dependent on the qualification and competence of vocational teachers. The run of development processes in VET has caused changing roles of vocational teachers, making their pedagogical activity more complex and requiring to make self-sufficient decisions; therefore teachers are being encouraged to continuously develop their competencies. It is important to stress, that knowledge, skills and abilities are not gained for life - they have to be permanently renewed during the whole career of a teacher. Though the concept of lifelong learning involves formal, non-formal and informal learning, however, as it is stated in the situation analysis (Teacher education conception in Lithuania, 2004), the formal teacher education system is not prepared to meet the needs of lifelong learning, since the opportunity to choose the part of study programme, according to the personal learning needs, is not foreseen. Assessment and recognition of vocational teachers didactic achievements, acquired during non-formal and informal learning does not have deep roots in teacher education traditions neither in Lithuania, nor in other EU countries. Caused by ongoing changes, vocational (VET) teacher education and qualification upgrading requires more open and flexible forms of learning, enabling to acquire necessary knowledge and skills in a more effective way. Currently vocational teachers do not have opportunities to choose the part of study programmes according to their learning needs, since there is no system for recognizing their achievements of non-formal and informal learning. Article analyzes the need to implement the assessment and recognition of non-formal and informal learning into traditional system for VET teacher education, aiming to anticipate it to the individual learning needs of teachers. Considering the specificity of VET teacher qualification, the article proposes guidelines for assessment of VET teachers' non-formal and informal learning