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EPALE - Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe

National Support Services - Hungary

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Karvázy Eszter

    Organisation

    The National Office of Vocational Education and Training and Adult Learning is an institution controlled by the Ministry for Innovation and Technology.

    It is responsible for the following duties related to vocational education and training and adult learning on national level:

    • the professional and methodological improvement of vocational education and training and adult learning activities;
    •  the continuous development of the professional structure, planning the National Qualifications Register;
    • improving the content of professional and examination requirements and that of professional graduation exam themes;
    • operating the National Qualifications Committee;
    • creating study aids and textbooks for professional courses, operating the school library and the shop, creating a textbook register, professional rating of textbooks, making preparations for the official textbook-rating practice, post-production and distribution of textbooks in cooperation with the printing company;
    • performing tasks related to the basic fund by the National Development Fund and to other national aids, and managing tenders;
    • managing the scholarship-system of vocational schools;
    • coordinating career guidance activities;
    • providing customer service in vocational training;
    • participation in national development projects;
    • participation in the development projects of the European Union: Europass Certificate Supplement, EQAVET NRP, EPALE, ReferNet, Euroguidance;
    • official recognition of foreign certificates;
    • operating a national examination centre;
    • organising professional exams, performing the supervision of exams;
    • managing exam registrations and applications for the exam chairman position, assignment of chairmen, managing reports;
    • managing the register of national data of professional exams, licenses to organize exams and managing the national vocational training register;
    • development of exam documents, professional graduation course requirements and themes (professional qualifications within and outside the school system);
    • development, analysis and assessment tasks related to creation of themes;
    • carrying out development tasks (concerning the methods and tools of formal, non-formal and informal learning);
    • organising coaching, in-service training for teachers, andragogues, leaders of educational institutes, maintainers, vocational and adult training experts, exam chairmen, members of examining boards, teachers of disadvantaged youth and adults;
    • operating the Expert Committee on Adult Training, coordination tasks;
    • preparing, registering, maintaining and publishing of recommendations on language program-requirements of adult training;
    • tasks related to career guidance and career tracking, tasks concerning a unified national career guidance, career-advisory service and career tracking system, tasks of the National Career Guidance Portal and the tasks of the secretariat of the Committee of Career Guidance of the National Council of Vocational and Adult Education;
    • providing customer service in adult training;
    • summarizing and publishing recommendations concerning schooling related to bottleneck jobs within or outside of the school system;
    • tasks related to the operation of non-state-funded vocational schools;
    • tasks related to institutional management (educational management tasks, data gathering and analysis, keeping records, issuing and approving licences, customer service, professional support, control, coordination tasks related to adult training, development and operation of career-tracking system).

    Aims of the Hungarian National Support Service

    • Supporting national networking in the field of adult learning with the extensive involvement of key players.
    • Helping users to acquire up-to-date knowledge, ideas and competences related to adult learning.
    • Initiating international cooperation at European level involving professional organizations and promoting expert activities in the field of adult learning.
    • Collecting good practices in the field of legislation related to adult training and education.
    • Sharing good adult training practices, educational material and documents within the EPALE community.

    Target audience

    The political decision-makers of relevant fields, the national organizations of adult training and education, training institutes, teachers, practice trainers and individual experts in the field of adult learning.

    Planned objectives

    Within the National Support Services, an expert group consisting of four members has been created, the main aim of which would be to promote the EPALE platform to key players, to share professional information and good practices, and to start discourse at national and international levels.

    To ensure the effective operation of EPALE, we continuously monitor the activity of users and provide assistance to active participation. We use our professional document library to improve and update the contents of the platform. We revise and, if necessary, modify the centrally uploaded contents of the platform considering both linguistic and professional aspects.

    Results

    • Hungarian sub-website,
    • Hungarian pamphlets, electronic user’s guide
    • national promotional events
    • registered users 
    • uploading of professional materials to the platform, translation of newsletters, announcement of events.

    Ms Eszter Karvázy, project coordinator

    Management of the EPALE National Support Service, coordination of professional duties, communication with domestic and international partners.

    Ms Györgyi Bajka, project assistant

    Assistance in the fulfilment of EPALE National Support Service duties, particularly the content development and promotion of the platform and communication with the network of experts.

    Mr Anildo Vedovatti, communication specialist

    Organising and participating events, writing summaries and news. Holding presentations and face-to face meetings with key stakeholders in adult learrning. 

     

    Adult learning in Hungary

    The rate of registered participants of adult education, according to the nature of the training, shows that traditionally and unfailingly, like in most European countries, adult education is directed towards professional training, since 68% of training is of this type.  The direction of training programs shows an unabated dominance of professional training, professional qualification (which is important to maintain competitiveness), followed by National Qualifications Register trainings, then language trainings and general adult trainings – ahead of a few less relevant training types.

    In regards of non-formal education, it is a characteristic of Hungary to have more participants in long-term training courses; long-term courses providing a diploma or certificate are usually more popular in the adult education market. Profitability concerns are the most important background factors of adult training, meaning that education is seen as an investment and is expected to return profit.

    In Hungary the profession, directive and legislative environment of adult learning and education is in accordance with those EU directives and objectives, which were laid down in the Memorandum of Lifelong Learning and the Lisbon Convention.   The goals of adult training and education are deeply connected to employment policy, demonstrated by the fact that since 2004 adult education, and since 2006 vocational training are officially supervised by the ministry responsible for employment policy.

    Adult education and adult training play vital roles in the framework of lifelong learning, even though the two training types are considerably different. Adult education is school-based, most often realized as a state-supported program (the first two professional qualifications are free of charge). In the case of these trainings, the school year starts at a time dictated by law, usually in September or February. Courses can be organized for daytime, evening, correspondence, or specific work schedules. Adult training is professional-, language-, or other (general) training realized outside of a school system. An important feature of the training is that participants have an adult education status within the training institution instead of a student status. Participants must have completed their compulsory education, although a person attending compulsory education can also participate in adult training.

     

    Source:

    The development and status of adult learning and education, National report of Hungary

    The framework strategy of the policy for lifelong learning in the 2014/2020 period

    Róbert Csányi: Adult training, adult education, in: Preparation of vocational training experts, NSZFH 2016, p 26-29

    Address
     
     
     
     
     

    1085 Budapest, Kálvária tér 7.

    Phone
    +36 1 477-5962
    Email
    epale@nive.hu