Non-formal Learning: A Definition

Examples of non-formal education for children include learn-to-swim programs for toddlers, community-based sports programs, and programs developed by organisations such as the Boy Scouts or Girl Guides Girl Guides. Examples of non-formal education for adults include community or non-credit adult education courses, sports or fitness programs, professional conferences and continuing professional development. [1] The learners objectives may be to increase skills and knowledge, as well as to experience the emotional rewards associated with increased love for a subject or increased passion for learning.[2]
Nonformal Education (NFE) is any organized, systematic educational activity carried outside the framework of the formal system to provide selected types of learning to a segment of the population

Non-formal Education is one of the means to spread literacy and employable skills to the people and it covers a much larger audience than the formal system. The NFE in Philippines is designed to assist the out-of-school youth and adults who have been deprived of formal education. There may be varying reasons for this.It may include the economic, social and geographical limitations which have hindered the path of literacy and employable skills. The mission of the NFE program in Philippines is to empower the people with "desirable knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values that will enable him/her to think critically and creatively, act innovatively and humanely in improving the quality of his/her life and that of his/her family, community and country." The main objective of NFE in Philippines is to reduce the number of illiterates in the country and provide them with need-based literacy programmes and also develop basic employable skills.Activities like vocational training, adult reading classes, family planning sessions as well as leadership workshops for community leaders. This branch of education is looked after by the Bureau of Non-Formal Education which has its history dating back to 1829 when civic educational lectures were introduced in the country.Nonformal education was formally started in 1973 and is now an integral part of the developmental activities.There is a 3-pronged approach in this method which focuses on literacy, continuing education and staff development. The main thrust of NFE is on the acquisition of skills needed for earning livelihood and to survive the competitiveness in the labor market.The horizons of non-formal education are far wider as compared to the formal system. NFE reaches out to a greater audience irrespective of demographic characteristics, socioeconomic conditions and varied general interests. In a few words, this system reaches out to all those people who might otherwise never get a chance to have any sort of education.

The Non-formal Education Program of Philippines lays thrust on the following aspects: Literacy Programs for numeracy and functional literacy of each individual Development of Livelihood Skills Expansion of Certification and Equivalency Programmes One of the main aims of NFE is to bring about a decrease in the poverty levels among the communities.To attain this goal, the bureau provides leadership and technical assistance in the implementation of literacy programmes, projects, trainings, workshops etc.This process includes the following features: Female Functional Literacy & Parent Education: This program majorly involves the mother and provides them with essential skills and competencies to perform better in the fields related to child survival, protection and development. Literacy Project for Cultural Communities: The target group for this program is that section of the society which is unable to attend the formal education system.This may include the cultural communities in general and also the hill tribes in particular. Development of Literacy Measures: The Bureau of Non-formal Education in Philippines has developed some literacy parameters through a series of seminars and workshops.At the moment there are seven literacy measures which decide the functional literacy of the target group.This is also accompanied by a Manual of Instructions for using the Measures and its scoring. Development of Resource Material: It also focuses on the development of the curricula for various levels of literacy and also the resource material needed for the same.This includes booklets, posters and the facilitator's guide. Actual Implementation on the Field: This is the most important component of the whole project.Efforts are made to implement the literacy and livelihood development programmes in the actual field with the target group in order to eradicate illiteracy and thereby alleviating poverty. Thus, the Bureau of Non-formal Education in Philippines works on four major action points family life skills which also includes health, nutrition, childcare, household management, family planning; vocational skills, functional skills and enhancing livelihood skills.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/4760423

Philippines - Nonformal Education

The mission of Nonformal Education (NFE) in the Philippines is to empower the Filipino with "desirable knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values that will enable him/her to think critically and creatively, act innovatively and humanely in improving the quality of his/her life and that of his/her family, community and country." NFE aims to reduce the number of illiterate out-ofschool youth and adults with need-based literacy programs, plus continue education through basic development projects. Activities that fall under this system of education range from vocational training to adult reading classes, from family planning sessions to cultural and leadership workshops for community leaders. This branch of education is governed by the DECS Bureau of Nonformal Education(BNFE) and its history can be traced as far back as 1908 when ACT No. 1829 was created to provide for the delivery of civicoeducational lectures in towns and barrios. Six years later the act was amended to assign teachers in public schools to give the lectures. The New Commonwealth government passed Act No. 80 in 1936 to create the Office of Adult Education as part of the then Department of Instruction. A decade later, this branch was transformed into the Adult and Community Education Division of the Bureau of Public Schools. After the declaration of Martial Law, the Marcos government's Philippine Constitution of 1973 created the position of the Undersecretary of Nonformal Education. The Education Act of 1982 created the Bureau of Continuing Education from the Office of Nonformal Education. The Aquino government after the People Power Revolution, enacted Executive Order No. 117 in 1987 to create the Bureau of Nonformal Education. Article 14, section 2(4) of the 1987 Philippine Constitution stated: "The state shall encourage nonformal, formal, indigenous learning systems, as well as self-learning, independent and out-of-school study programs, particularly those that respond to community needs; and provide adult citizens, the disabled and out-of school youth training in civics, vocational efficiency and other skills." Nonformal education, in this sense, is designed to extend, complement, and provide an alternative to the existing educational system. Human development thus becomes an important factor in alleviating poverty. The National Statistics Office of the Philippines reported that in 1989, there were 3,000,000 school youths between the ages of 7 to 24. This increased to 3,800,000 by 1994. The highest percentage of these youths was from the Western Mindanao region. Out-of-school women outnumbered the men by 6.7 percent. On October 16, 1990, Proclamation No. 480 declared the period from 1990 to 1999 as the Decade of Education for All, with the goal of meeting the educational needs of the poor and under educated. BNFE is divided into three divisions: the Literacy Division (LD), the Continuing Education Division (CED), and the Staff Development Division (SDD). The bureau outlines its functions as: serving the needs of those unable to avail of formal education; expanding access to educational opportunities; and providing opportunities for the acquisition of skills to ensure employability, efficiency, productivity, and competitiveness in the labor market. BNFE funds come from three main sources which are: the General Appropriations Act, loans from the Asian

Development Bank, and funds from other international agencies such as UNESCO, UNICEF, ACCU, and elsewhere. In 1995, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) was established to help regulate non-degree technical-vocational programs. TESDA was also in charge of skill orientation, training, and development of out-of-school youth and unemployed community adults.