Creating rural Centers for Adult Education in Glodeni district

Education plays an essential role in combating poverty and ensuring sustainable economic growth. In order to capitalize on this opportunity, it is necessary to ensure both equal access to educational services and their adequate quality. But because of low financial possibilities, especially in rural area, people from disadvantaged categories have little or no access at all to education programs.

In this context, a potential solution to the situation is the creation and organization of adult learning activities by initiating Centers for Adult Education in rural areas. "Adult education would allow individuals to cope with constant changes that affect the everyday social environment, making them active individuals and not passive victims" (G. Bogard, 1988). Adult education programs will create competitive workforce and will increase civic activism.

The NGO Mostenitorii with the support of DVV International Moldova initiated a project aiming at developing educational services for social insertion of adults from vulnerable groups by creating and consolidating five local Centers for Adult Education (CEA) in Glodeni district.

In Glodeni district, as well as in other regions of the country, the following issues are present with reference to adult education:

-          insufficiency or lack of education programs in rural area;

-          poor awareness on the importance of adult education in society: in the development of welfare at district, community and personal levels;

-          limited access of population to education programs and activities;

-          lack of an AE development strategy at all levels.

Following the example of the Riscani district, where Centers for Adult Education have been developed on the basis of public libraries, a potential agent of change in education in Glodeni district would also be local public libraries. The aim of this project is to create multi-functional Centers for Adult Education which would allow the diversification of library activities, the development of new skills and creation of new library services.

From the experience accumulated so far, as motivational factors for adults to participate in learning activities there can be mentioned:

-          reasons for professional development and growth – 55%;

-          cognitive interest – 25%;

-          adaptation to current changes – 11%;

-     other reasons (socialization. communication) - 9%.