Back in April 2023, a capacity building needs assessment of the managerial staff of 12 Institutions of Adult Learning and Education (IALE) was conducted within the frame of the Continental Exchange project in four countries. In consultations with Regional and Country offices in Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine it was decided to adapt selected topics of the Module 2 on Needs assessment and strategic planning and Module 3 on Internal Management and Leadership Skills and Competencies of the Curriculum managerALE for the implementation of a capacity building training on a regional level.
The regional capacity training based on Curriculum managerALE held during 16 - 21 October, in Ureki, Georgia, was co-organised by the Regional office of DVV International for Caucasus and South-East Europe (Tbilisi, Georgia) and the Continental Exchange project “Eastern Neighbours” (currently based in Chisinau, Moldova) and hosted 26 participants from Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
Institutions of Adult Learning and Education in the four countries are represented by various organisation forms: municipal centres, non-governmental organisations, communal centres or as a department of universities. Thus, the training was designed as a learning and sharing experience exercise for participants with the aim to equip managers with knowledge, skills, and agile strategies related to strategic planning, leadership and management, which are necessary to adapt to and thrive in an ever-changing educational landscape especially considering the ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine and the refugee crisis in Armenia caused by the armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. For this reason, managers for four ALE-Institutions from Armenia, unfortunately, couldn’t join the training.
Selected topics of the training included amongst others the following:
- VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous)
- Agile feasibility analysis
- Agile management and its tools
- Monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) in strategic planning
- Management as a holistic process
- Empowering leadership strategies for IALEs
As the topics covered in the training encompassed both theoretical and practical aspects and cannot be fully comprehended with a single tool, the trainer employed interactive methods to foster learning through study and self-reflection. Non-formal techniques such as sharing experiences in group work and discussions were used and participants were given the chance to collaborate in mixed groups, which facilitated a productive exchange of best practices and experiences.
To offer further assistance to participants in updating their strategic plans, participants can arrange consultations with the trainer as part of the follow-up support of the learning event. Handouts with training materials, presentations and templates were shared with all the participants as well.
During the final evaluation, participants noted that the chosen topics were of a great relevance and applicability, equipping them with sufficient knowledge to progress in enhancing IALE centres and their managers to respond effectively to existing and emerging social needs of their communities.
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