UVODNIK VLOGA ANDRAGOGA PRI SPODBUJANJU PRILOŽNOSTNEGA UČENJA V SKUPNOSTI Ko govorim o aktivnosti odraslih v skupnosti, imam v mislih radikalno in kritično prakso, ki si prizadeva za večjo socialno pravičnost, vključenost in večjo enakopravnost različnih skupin, z namenom, da vsak prispeva svoj delež na način, ki ga zmore. Gre za reševanje vsakodnevnih neenakosti, nepravičnosti in neupoštevanja potreb prebivalcev skupnosti, skrb za večje spoštovanje izključenih, gibanja za pravice žensk, pravice zapostavljenih in brezpravnih delavcev, pravice migrantov. Pogosto gre za nove oblike skupnostne demo- kracije, ki uvaja javno razpravo o lokalnih problemih in participativno demokracijo kot obliko odločanja o skupnostnih zadevah, lahko pa tudi za upor proti uveljavljeni konser- vativni praksi in stereotipom, ki se širijo z vladajočo politiko. Gre za pritisk prebivalcev v skupnosti glede novih dejavnosti, urejanja okolice, želja po novih možnostih odločanja; gre za delovanje v javnem prostoru, ki postaja hkrati forum za družbene in osebne spre- membe ter »tranzicijski prostor« (Bourgeois, 2002; Wildemersch, 2012), in za sistem odnosov, ki nastaja iz delovanja, govorjenja in učenja. Kot pravi Torres (2013, str. 62), se skozi delovanje v javnem prostoru ljudje borijo za priznavanje, duh solidarnosti ter za načelo državljanskega izobraževanja in učenja namesto načela potrošništva. A razmere za tako delovanje niso ugodne. Živimo v dobi, ko nas družba vodi, usmerja, določa, katero znanje bo pomembno in kako ga bomo pridobili. Naša aktivnost se sicer nagiba bodisi k družbeni regulaciji bodisi k družbenemu osvobajanju, a prva prevladuje nad drugo (Santos, 2014, str. V). Obliki znanja, ki ob tem nastajata, sta »znanje kot osvo- bajanje« in »znanje kot regulacija« (nadzor), pri čemer znanje kot osvobajanje niha med kolonializmom (stanje ignorance) in solidarnostjo (stanje znanja), znanje kot regulacija pa se vzpostavlja med kaosom (stanje ignorance) in redom (stanje znanja). Moč znanja, ki teži k redu, »hrani« moč znanja solidarnosti, in obratno. V zahodni družbi se je prvič zgo- dilo, da je kanibalizacija družbene osvoboditve vodila h krizi emancipacije in regulacije, in sicer tako, da je znanje kot regulacija prevladalo. Obe obliki znanja se sicer dinamič- no uravnavata in skozi čas sta se uravnotežili tako, da je družbeno emancipacijo »utiša- la« družbena regulacija (Santos, 2014, str. V); red je postal hegemonski način znanja in kaos je postal hegemonski način ignorance. Kot ugotavlja Santos, je dosegati znanje, ki osvobaja, danes skoraj nedosegljivo, solidarnost je nekaj, česar si ni mogoče zamisliti, je nepotrebna in nevarna. Santos nas torej spodbuja – ali bomo razmišljali emancipatorno ali pa se bomo pustili »ujeti« v postopke, ki nas bodo sčasoma zasužnjili. Oliviera (2017) Andragoška spoznanja, 2017, 23(3), 3-15 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4312/as.23.3.3-15 Uvodnik AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 3 4.10.2017 15:12:32 4 ANDRAGOŠKA SPOZNANJA 3/2017 dodaja, da čeprav lahko vidimo norme in pravila v vsakem socialnem modelu in za njim, družbene prakse, ki se razvijajo v različnih interaktivnih prostorih, vendarle imajo osvo- boditvene dimenzije, in ravno zato možnosti izbire so! Danes smo priča mnogim razpra- vam o pomenu kritične pedagogike in andragogike, a zdi se, da gre zgolj za teoretično di- skusijo o tem, kako zadeve definirati in se jim navidezno upirati. Že Apple (1986) je pred 30 leti govoril podobno kot Santos danes: da je izobraževanje tehnično naravnano in da je zelo oddaljeno od izobraževanja o svobodi. Izobraževanje je postalo izobraževanje za delo, postalo je tržni prostor, kjer prosperirajo tisti, ki se prilagodijo danim zahtevam. Kar ugotavlja Santos danes, torej drži, a pred nas postavlja nova vprašanja, na katere iščemo odgovore: kaj nam povedo razlike med severom in jugom, med kolonialisti in prvotnim prebivalstvom, med izobraženimi in neizobraženimi, med bogatimi in revnimi, med vse- mi, ki imajo moč, in tistimi, ki moči nimajo? Kako se upreti tem razlikam, temu utišanju pravic? V tem procesu so pomembni vsi, zlasti pa intelektualci, ki s svojim ravnanjem omogočajo suspenz nekaterih temeljnih človekovih pravic (Gregorčič, 2017, str. 24). S teoretiziranjem se krivic ne dotikajo, ne posežejo vanje, temveč jih le od daleč obsodijo in prepustijo uničenju. A ravno posamezniki so danes tisti, ki se jih zlahka regulira in nad- zira (Santos, 2014, str. V); ravno učitelji in drugi ljudje, ki sodelujejo v izobraževalnem procesu, so tisti, ki lahko naredijo največ v smislu uresničevanja omenjenih zadev. To nas navaja k premisleku, da se vse to lahko razrešuje le v skupnosti, zunaj izobraževalnih organizacij, zunaj organiziranega in k ciljem usmerjenega izobraževanja, ki ljudi pogosto naredi majhne in nemočne. Učenje, o katerem govorim, poteka priložnostno, ob reševanju drugih vprašanj, stihijsko in nenačrtovano. Učenje, ki poteka v takem prostoru, je nenamembno, pogosto tudi nezavedno, spodbuja pa razrast tihega znanja. To znanje je zelo pomembno, pravzaprav ključno pri boju za pravice, osebnostno ter skupnostno rast in razvoj. Gre za preseganje politično vsiljenega znanja, za kritičen premislek o neoliberalnih pritiskih in zmotah ter posledicah, ki jih imajo za naše vsakdanje življenje. Priložnostno učenje v skupnosti ni formalno niti ne- formalno izobraževanje, lahko poteka tudi v izobraževalnih institucijah, a zunaj uradnega kurikuluma, saj gre večinoma za nasprotovanje vsiljevanju znanja kot regulacije (javno veljavnega znanja). Schugurensky (2000) priložnostno učenje definira kot tisto, ki vodi k razumevanju, znanju in spretnostim, a ker ni namembno in pogosto ni zavedno, ostaja neidentificano. Sicer je priložnostno učenje lahko namembno in zavedno (samostojno učenje), lahko je nenamembno in zavestno (naključno učenje) ali pa nenamembno in ne- zavedno (socializacija) (Mündel in Schugurensky, 2008, str. 50). Čeprav gre večinoma za nevidno učenje s tihim znanjem, gre hkrati za izredno pomembno učenje, ki poteka ob vsakodnevnem delovanju posameznikov, ki želijo vplivati na kakovost svojega življe- nja, na demokratične prakse, na svoje osebno, lahko pa tudi strokovno življenje. Učenje je vedno sestavljeno iz dveh integralnih procesov – interakcije in ponotranjenja; hkrati pa učenje obsega kognitivno, emocionalno ter družbeno oziroma socialno komponento (Illeris, 2002, str. 19). Priložnostno učenje vključuje vse tri komponente in hkrati odpira vrata pravemu, živemu znanju, ki posameznike povezuje z aktualnimi problemi v družbi, z ljudmi, ki jih rešujejo, z voljo in strastjo. Tako učenje večinoma poteka ob delovanju v AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 4 4.10.2017 15:12:32 5Sabina Jelenc Krašovec: Vloga andragoga pri spodbujanju ... prostovoljskih organizacijah, v skupnostnih in političnih organizacijah, medgeneracijskih skupinah v knjižnici in drugih javnih prostorih, pri aktivnostih v javnem prostoru, na cesti; poteka v organiziranih in neorganiziranih dejavnostih, stihijsko in načrtno, z dolo- čenim namenom in brez njega. Da je tako učenje realnost, kaže tudi raziskava o partici- pativni demokraciji v Mariboru (Gregorčič in Jelenc Krašovec, 2017; Jelenc Krašovec in Gregorčič, v tisku). Táko tiho učenje je z vidika izobraževalca odraslih dejavnost, ki jo je treba ozavestiti, o njej razpravljati in jo spodbujati. Kaj bi torej lahko bila vloga andragoga pri spodbujanju učenja v javnem prostoru? Gre za javnega andragoga? Javno delovanje podobnih profilov definirajo nekateri avtorji; Biesta (2012) meni, da javni pedagog niti ne poučuje niti ne spodbuja političnega delovanja, temveč odpira možnosti za sodelovanje, za »ljudsko pripadnost«, skozi katero se pojavi svobodno delovanje (Biesta, 2012). Tako s pomočjo javnega pedagoga prostori postajajo javni, odprti in dostopni; ravno »dejstvo, da vsak vidi in sliši iz druge pozicije, daje pomen temu, da nas vidijo in slišijo drugi, kar daje smisel javnemu skupnemu bivanju« (Arendt, 1996, str. 59). Vprašanje pomena pojavnosti javnega pedagoga sprožata ravno privatizaci- ja in depolitizacija javnih prostorov, hkrati pa tudi potekajoča privatizacija izobraževanja; izobraževanje naj bi vendarle bilo kolektiven in političen »projekt« in ne zasebna korist (Biesta, 2012, str. 684). Po drugi strani Burawoy (2013) vzpostavlja javno sociologijo kot vez med sociologijo in javnostjo, ki skozi javne nastope, angažirano delovanje in sku- pnostne prakse definira svojo pozicijo. Pri tem postavi v ospredje problem, ali ne gre v primeru, ko sociologija postane preveč povezana z življenjem, samo za »zdravo pamet«. Avtor to zanika in trdi, da javna sociologija temelji na raziskavah, je povezana s politično sociologijo in kritično sociologijo, kljub vsemu pa postane sociolog javni sociolog, ko ne piše več za strokovnjake, temveč za javnost, za ljudi, za njihove potrebe. Gre za boj za pravice prvotnega prebivalstva, Romov, za antisemitistični, antirasistični in antiteroristič- ni boj, gre za boj proti kolonializmu in za solidarnost (Burawoy, 2013). Razlika med javno sociologijo in političnim aktivizmom je zelo majhna, kajti javna sociologija deluje na polju sociologije, medtem ko politični aktivizem deluje na polju politike. Burawoy (2013) pravi, da je javna sociologija način »poučevanja«, kjer se zdrava pamet kultivira in kjer postane družba učilnica za razvoj kritičnega družbenega ozaveščanja. Če torej poskušamo definirati vlogo »javnega« andragoga, naj bi bila to oseba, ki govori in posluša, a se hkrati tudi uči in piše o pomenu ohranjanja javnosti ter učenju skozi javno komunikacijo in delovanje. Ohranjal naj bi razdaljo do trga, do države in obdržal kritično stališče do političnih in ekonomskih vplivov, saj je to bistveno za njegovo verodostojnost. Verjetno sta ključni tudi moralna odgovornost in politična predanost ustvarjanju prostora za javno razpravo, kot predlaga Torres (2013, str. 79). Te ideje so blizu teorijam javnega intelektualca pri spodbujanju učenja v družbenih gibanjih, ki zagovarjajo avtonomno uče- nje, samoorganizacijo učenja (od spodaj navzgor) in odprto učenje (Hall, 2012, str. 134). Kot spodbujevalec ali iniciator učenja naj bi se zavedal, da je vzajemno učenje različnih družbenih skupin, medgeneracijsko, medkulturno, medrasno, v nekaterih predelih tudi zagovor prvotnega prebivalstva, nujno potrebno. Poleg organiziranih in strukturiranih AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 5 4.10.2017 15:12:32 6 ANDRAGOŠKA SPOZNANJA 3/2017 izobraževalnih in učnih dejavnosti, ki potekajo v skupnosti, potrebujemo odprto areno za boj za pravičnost v javnem prostoru, za grajenje širokega spektra preteklih izkušenj in spominov iz različnih življenjskih potekov, tudi za pričakovanja in upe glede prihodnosti, kot predlaga Harvey (2011). V tem smislu moramo ostati odprti za različnost ljudi in idej, ne glede na starost, družbeno vključenost, socialno-ekonomski položaj, izobrazbo, ne gle- de na barvo kože in poreklo. Javni andragog naj bi zagovarjal pomen javnega proti zaseb- nemu, odprtega proti zaprtemu, nestrukturiranega proti strukturiranemu in priložnostnega proti formalnemu. Wilhelmson (2002, str. 192) zagovarja osrednji pomen andragoga v spreminjanju pogledov javnosti, kar spodbuja diskusijo skozi »družbeno udeležbo, kjer člani ustvarjajo novo znanje in presežejo individualno perspektivo«. Iz tega sklepamo, da je javni andragog oseba, ki spodbuja in ozavešča učenje, njegove učinke verbalizira, opozarja nanje in hkrati spodbuja njihovo nastajanje. Kot del mreže znanja ali znanja v omrežju, kot del našega medosebnega omrežja lahko upamo, da nam bo v različnih struk- turnih družbenih prostorih (v skupnosti, na trgu, doma, kot državljani, kot proizvajalci, kot člani sveta) uspelo izkoristiti možnost izbire (Olivera, 2017), in sicer, da izobraževanje in učenje ne bosta potekali le v izobraževalnih institucijah, temveč na vsaki ravni družbe- nega življenja, v vsaki pori našega bivanja, v vsakdanjih dejavnostih, trajno in dinamično. Ravno to je cilj in naša učna naloga. V tej številki se prepletajo pomeni vloge andragoga v skupnosti in v organiziranih obli- kah, kar kaže na raznolikost vlog, pomenov in delovanja andragoga v različnih pojavno- stih. Stuart Moir in Jim Crowther z Univerze v Edinburghu pišeta o radikalizaciji izobra- ževanja za državljanskost in ugotavljata, da tovrstno izobraževanje izginja, vsaj v smeri radikalnega osmišljanja vloge aktivnih državljanov v skupnosti v smislu kolektivnega odločanja. Ugotavljata, da je izobraževanje v celoti podrejeno trgu, da se zlasti ravna po minimalistični paradigmi državljanskosti in zlasti poudarja individualno odgovornost po- sameznika. Mladi ljudje so razumljeni kot homo apoliticus, homo sociologicus v smislu nerazmišljajočih in neodločajočih se oseb. Kje je torej prostor za politično pismenost, kritično avtonomijo, aktivno vključevanje? Marta Gregorčič v prispevku z naslovom Participacija starejših odraslih v praksah sku- pnosti in v skupnosti prakse predstavlja analizo stanja v občini Ajdovščina glede položaja in možnosti učenja starejših moških. Prikazuje analizo dela fokusne skupine s predstavni- ki občine in nevladnih organizacij, v kateri raziskuje, kakšna je vloga starejših (moških) v skupnosti, kje se srečujejo, v katere aktivnosti so vključeni. Ugotavlja, da se povezanost med člani skupnosti izboljšuje, a da so ljudje potrebovali čas, da so se postavili na svoje noge in začeli iskati možnosti za soočenje s težavami. Skupnost je sicer povezana, a med aktivnimi večinoma ni starejših moških, ki se samomarginalizirajo. Avtorica ponuja nekaj idej za rešitev te situacije. Naslednji prispevek z naslovom Initiatives of community members in public open spaces: Two case studies from Slovenia, ki govori o aktivnosti in učenju odraslih v odprtem jav- nem prostoru, je nastal kot učni proces v povezavi univerze in skupnosti, kjer so študentke (Željka Bosanac, Sara Dalila Hočevar, Neža Vrhovec, Nuša Zankolič) pod mentorstvom AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 6 4.10.2017 15:12:32 7Sabina Jelenc Krašovec: Vloga andragoga pri spodbujanju ... dveh profesoric (Sabine Jelenc Krašovec in Sonje Kump) proučevale javni prostor in njegovo oblikovanje s strani državljanov in skupnostnih organizacij. Ugotovile so, da se razlika pojavi glede na to, od kod pride ideja za dejavnost in kakšno vlogo imajo pri tem odrasli člani skupnosti. Prepletata se namreč pristop »od zgoraj navzdol« in pristop »od spodaj navzgor«, ki uporabljata različne formule in imata temu primerne različne učinke. Martin Hugo in Joel Hedegaard sta v prispevku Education as habilitation: Empirical examples from adjusted education in Sweden for students associated with high-functio- ning autism pisala o pomenu nekoliko drugačnega izobraževanja za osebe z avtizmom, natančneje za osebe z Aspergerjevim sindromom na Švedskem. Ugotovila sta, da je ključ- na ravno vloga andragoga, ki mora biti bistveno drugačna od klasične vloge učitelja od- raslih v skupini, zlasti pa bistveno bolj prožna, odprta in gibljiva. Učitelj mora biti ravno prav umaknjen, a hkrati angažiran, da spodbudi aktivnost odraslih oseb z avtizmom in jih hkrati motivira za lastno aktivnost. Tudi sodelujoči v raziskavi so poudarili, da bi marsikdo v izobraževanju odraslih potreboval drugačen pristop in bi potemtakem tudi izobraževanje ne bilo tako neuspešno. Joanna Malinowska v prispevku Change of Students’ Activities in the Process of Beco- ming a Teacher predstavlja del raziskave o izobraževanju učiteljev na Poljskem. Gre za proučevanje epistemološke ovire pri ustvarjanju sodelovanja, ki je pomembno za uspešno izobraževanje učiteljev. S kritično analizo diskurza je proučevala vlogo institucije, kjer poteka to izobraževanje, in skozi diskusijo, ki je potekala med študentkami in študenti po opravljeni nalogi, poskušala pripraviti priporočila za uspešno delo in izobraževanje bodočih učiteljev. Zanimivo je, da se tudi skozi ta prispevek kaže prenašanje nadzorne funkcije izobraževalne institucije na tiste, ki se učijo, kar se izraža v uporu študentk in študentov takim ukrepom. Leonida Brezovec v svojem prispevku z naslovom Mladi v ujetništvu vseživljenjskega učenja – predstavitev izsledkov raziskave o doživljanju zahtev po vseživljenjskem učenju med mladimi odraslimi analizira vlogo neoliberalne politike in njen vpliv na potrebo po stalnem učenju mladih, ki so že zaposleni, ali tistih, ki zaposlitev še iščejo. Gre za analizo stanja, ki ga ponujajo naš trg delovne sile in delodajalci, ki stalno pritiskajo na mlade z različnimi zahtevami. Avtorica s kvalitativno raziskavo prouči mnenja mladih ljudi in ugotovi, da so zahteve po fleksibilnosti, prilagodljivosti in stalnem učenju, ki jih posta- vljajo delodajalci, v skladu z neoliberalno politiko. Mladi to občutijo kot stalen pritisk, kot težnjo po stalnem učenju in prilagajanju. Vesna Gorenc v svojem članku Jezikovna izobraževanja za odrasle priseljence na primeru francoskega nevladnega sektorja opisuje projekt za izobraževanje priseljencev, imenovan »jezikovno izobraževanje za odrasle migrante«. Gre za raznoliko skupino migrantov, ki prihajajo v državo z različnimi nameni in cilji, z različnim predznanjem in z različno uporabo jezika. Prikaže metodo sociolingvističnih delavnic za učenje jezika, ki poskušajo odraslim jezik predstaviti čim bolj aktivno in povezano z vsakdanjim življenjem. Pri tem odpira mnoge dileme, zlasti pa poudarja pomen ustrezne usposobljenosti osebe, ki dela AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 7 4.10.2017 15:12:32 8 ANDRAGOŠKA SPOZNANJA 3/2017 z migranti, saj je za uspeh programa – poleg drugih dejavnikov – zelo pomemben pravi pristop. Številka prinaša tudi intervju s prof. dr. Barryjem Goldingom o vlogi delavnic za moške (Men’s Sheds) v skupnosti, ki prikaže pomen te alternativne oblike in gibanja za združe- vanje in delovanje moških v Avstraliji. Sabina Jelenc Krašovec LITERATURA Apple, M. (1986). Teachers and texts. Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Arendt, H. (1996). Vita Activa. Ljubljana: Krtina. Biesta, G. (2012). 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Hall, B. L. (2012). ’A Giant Human Hashtag’: Learning and the #Occupy Movement. V B. Hall, D. E. Clover, J. Crowter in E. Scandrett (ur.), Learning and Education for a Better World: The Role of Social Movements (str. 127–139). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. Harvey, D. (2011). Kozmopolitstvo in geografije svobode. Ljubljana: Sofia. Illeris, K. (2002; 2004). The Three Dimensions of Learning. Frederiksberg: Roskilde University Press. Jelenc Krašovec, S. in Gregorčič, M. (2017). Intergenerational exchange of knowledge, skills, values and practices between self-organized active citizens in Maribor, Slovenia. Australian Journal of Adult Learning, nov. 2017, v tisku. Mündel, K. in Schugurensky, D. (2008). ‘Community Based Learning and Civic Engagement: Informal Learning among Adult Volunteers in Community Organizations’. New directions for adult and con- tinuing education, 118, Summer, 49–60. Oliveira, I. B. De (2017). Boaventura and education. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. Santos, B. De Sousa (2014). Epistemologies of the South. Justice against epitemicides. London in New York: Routledge. Schugurensky, D. (2000). The forms of informal leaning: Towards a conceptualization of the field. WALL working paper no. 19. Toronto: Centre for the Study of Education and Work. Torres, C. A. (2013). Political Sociology of Adult Education. Rotterdam/Boston/Taipei: Sense Publishers. Wildemeersch, D. (2012) Imagining pedagogy in public space: visions of cultural policies and practices in a city in transformation. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 31(1), 77–95. Wilhelmson, L. (2002). On the Theory of Transformative Learning. V A. Bron, M. Schemmann (ur.), Social Science Theories in Adult Education Research (str. 180–210). Münster: LIT Verlag. AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 8 4.10.2017 15:12:32 EDITORIAL THE ROLE OF ADULT EDUCATORS IN FOSTERING INFORMAL LEARNING IN THE COMMUNITY To me, activity of adults in the community means a radical and critical practice striving for greater social justice, inclusion and greater equality for different groups, with a view to everyone contributing their share in the way they can. This is about solving everyday inequities, injustices and the lack of accounting for the needs of community residents, showing concern for those who are excluded, fostering women’s rights movements, the rights of disadvantaged and disenfranchised workers, the rights of migrants. Often it is about new forms of community democracy introducing public discussion about local problems and participatory democracy as a form of deciding community matters, but it can also include resistance against established conservative practices and stereotypes spread by the powers that be. It is about the pressure of community residents regarding new activities, spatial planning, the desire for new decision-making options; it is about acting in the public space, which at the same time becomes a forum for social and person- al change and a ‘transitional space’ (Bourgeois, 2002; Wildemersch, 2012), and about a system of relations built on acting, speaking and learning. As Torres (2013, p. 62) states, people act in the public space as they struggle for recognition, the spirit of solidarity, and the principle of citizen education and learning instead of the principle of consumerism. But the current conditions are not favourable to acting in this vein. We live in an era when we are led and directed by the society which determines which knowledge is important and how we should acquire it. Our activity might lean either towards social regulation or towards social emancipation, but the former dominates over the latter (Santos, 2014, p. V). The two forms of knowledge being produced are ‘knowledge as emancipation’ and ‘knowledge as regulation’ (control), where knowledge as emancipation vacillates between colonialism (state of ignorance) and solidarity (state of knowledge), while knowledge as regulation is constituted between chaos (state of ignorance) and order (state of knowledge). The power of order-oriented knowledge ‘feeds’ the power of solidarity knowledge, and vice versa. In the Western civilization we saw for the first time the canni- balization of social liberation leading to a crisis of emancipation and regulation with the result that knowledge as regulation has prevailed. The two forms of knowledge strive to- wards dynamic equilibrium, however, and in time they have reached an equilibrium where Editorial AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 9 4.10.2017 15:12:32 10 ANDRAGOŠKA SPOZNANJA 3/2017 social emancipation has been ‘silenced’ by social regulation (Santos, 2014, p. V); order has become the hegemonic manner of knowledge, and chaos has become the hegemonic manner of ignorance. According to Santos, obtaining liberating knowledge is almost im- possible today, and solidarity is something that cannot even be imagined, it is unnecessary and dangerous. Santos therefore encourages us – will we think in an emancipatory way or will we let ourselves be ‘caught up’ in procedures that will act to enslave us in time? Oliviera (2017) adds that although we can see norms and rules in every social model and underlying it, the social practices that develop in various interactive spaces nevertheless have liberating dimensions; and that is precisely why there are possibilities of choice! Today we can witness many discussions on the significance of critical pedagogy and an- dragogy, yet it seems this is only a theoretical debate on how to define things and present an appearance of resistance. Already thirty years ago, Apple (1986) talked about similar issues as Santos today: that education was technically oriented and very remote from edu- cation about freedom. Education has become education for work, a marketplace for those who adjust to the given requirements to prosper. What Santos says today, is therefore true, but it puts forth new questions in need of answers: what can we infer from the North- South divide, the differences between colonialists and native populations, between the educated and the uneducated, between the rich and the poor, those with power and those without it? How do we stand up to these differences, this silencing of rights? Everybody plays an important role in this process, and even more so intellectuals, whose behaviour enables some basic human rights to be suspended (Gregorčič, 2017, p. 24). By theorizing they do not touch the injustices, do not interfere, but instead only judge from a distance and let destruction take its course. Yet it is individuals today who are easily regulated and controlled (Santos, 2014, p. V); it is teachers and others involved in the process of education who can do the most in terms of realizing these issues. This leads us to think that all of this can only be resolved in the community, outside of educational institutions, outside of organized and goal-oriented education, which often renders people small and powerless. The kind of learning meant here takes place informally while other issues are being solved, in an unplanned and uncontrolled manner. Learning taking place in such a space is unintentional and often unconscious, encourag- ing the growth of tacit knowledge. This knowledge is very important, even crucial, in the struggle for rights, personal and community growth and development. What is at stake is surmounting politically imposed knowledge to rethink critically the neoliberal pres- sures and errors as well as the consequences they have for our everyday lives. Informal learning in the community is neither formal nor informal education, it can also take place in educational institutions but then outside of the official curriculum as this is mostly about resisting the imposition of knowledge as regulation (publicly certified knowledge). Schugurensky (2000) defines informal learning as learning that leads to understanding, knowledge and skills, but since it is not intentional and is often not conscious, it remains unidentified. Nonetheless informal learning can be intentional and conscious (self-direc- ted learning); it can be unintentional and conscious (incidental learning); or unintentional and unconscious (socialization) (Mündel & Schugurensky, 2008, p. 50). Despite the fact AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 10 4.10.2017 15:12:33 11Sabina Jelenc Krašovec: The role of adult educators ... that this is mostly invisible learning involving tacit knowledge, this learning is at the same time very important and takes place during everyday actions of individuals who want to influence the quality of their lives, democratic practices, their own personal and possibly also professional lives. Learning is always composed of two integral processes – interac- tion and internalization; at the same time, learning comprises cognitive, emotional and social components (Illeris, 2002, p. 19). Informal learning includes all three components and simultaneously opens the door to real, active knowledge that connects individuals to the topical problems in the society, the people solving them, to willpower and passion. Such learning mostly happens while participating in volunteer organizations, community and political organizations, intergenerational groups in libraries and other public spaces, in activities taking place in the public space, in the street; it happens in organized and unorganized activities, in a planned or uncontrolled manner, with a purpose or without it. That such learning really does happen is shown also by the study of participatory de- mocracy in Maribor (Gregorčič & Jelenc Krašovec, 2017; Jelenc Krašovec & Gregorčič, in press). From the point of view of adult educators, this kind of tacit knowledge is an activity that needs to be brought to awareness, discussed and encouraged. What could therefore be the role of adult educators in fostering learning in the public space? Are we talking about the public andragogue? Some authors define the public ac- tivity of similar profiles; Biesta (2012) believes that the public pedagogue neither teaches nor encourages political activism but instead opens up the possibility for cooperation, for ‘human togetherness’ which makes it possible for freedom of action to appear (Biesta, 2012). In this way, the public pedagogue helps make spaces public, open and accessible; it is precisely that “[b]eing seen and being heard by others derive their significance from the fact that everybody sees and hears from a different position. This is the meaning of public life” (Arendt, 1996, p. 59). The importance of the appearance of the public peda- gogue is instigated precisely by the privatization and depoliticization of public spaces as well as the concurrent lasting privatization of education; after all, education is supposed to be a collective and political ‘project’ and not a matter of private gain (Biesta, 2012, p. 684). On the other hand, Burawoy (2013) establishes the field of public sociology as a link between sociology and the public that defines its position through public performances, engaged actions and community practices. In doing so, he points out a problem – when sociology becomes too closely connected to life, is this not simply a case of ‘common sense’? The author rejects this and claims that public sociology is research-based, linked to policy sociology and critical sociology, but nevertheless a sociologist becomes a pub- lic sociologist by switching from writing for experts to writing for the public, the people and their needs. It is about fighting for the rights of native populations, the Roma, about fighting against semitism, racism and terrorism, about fighting against colonialism and for solidarity (Burawoy, 2013). There is only a minor difference between public sociology and political activism, since public sociology operates in the sphere of sociology while political activism operates in the sphere of politics. Burawoy (2013, p. 297) says that “public sociology is a form of ‘teaching’ in which common sense is cultivated and society itself becomes a classroom, a classroom for developing a critical social consciousness.” AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 11 4.10.2017 15:12:33 12 ANDRAGOŠKA SPOZNANJA 3/2017 If we now try to define the role of the ‘public andragogue’, this is to be a person who speaks and listens but at the same time also learns and writes about the importance of keeping the public and learning through public communication and acting. They are to keep their distance to the market and the state, and ought to maintain a critical stance in relation to political and economic influences as that lies at the core of their integrity. As suggested by Torres (2013, p. 79), moral responsibility and political dedication to creat- ing space for public discussion is also crucial. These ideas come close to theories of the public intellectual in terms of fostering learning in public movements which advocate autonomous learning, self-organisation of learning (bottom-up) and open learning (Hall, 2012, p. 134). As somebody who encourages or initiates learning, they should be aware that mutual learning among different social groups – intergenerational, intercultural, in- terracial, in some parts also a defence of native populations – is of absolute necessity. Besides organized and structured educational and learning activities taking place in the community, we also need an open arena to fight for justice in the public space, to build a broad spectrum of experience and memories from various biographies, as well as for hopes and expectations for the future, as suggested by Harvey (2011). This requires us to remain open to the diversity of people and ideas, regardless of age, social inclusion, socioeconomic status, education, regardless of skin colour, ethnicity and origin. The pub- lic andragogue should stand up for the importance of public versus private, open versus closed, unstructured versus structured, and informal versus formal. Wilhelmson (2002, p. 192) advocates the central role adult educators have in changing public views, fostering discussion through “social interaction where participants create new knowledge going beyond the individual perspective of each person.” This leads to the conclusion that the public andragogue is somebody who fosters learning and brings it to awareness, verba- lizes its effects, points them out and at the same time encourages their development. As a part of a knowledge network or knowledge embedded in a network, as part of our own interpersonal network, we can hope to succeed in exploiting the possibility of choice (Oli- vera, 2017) in different structural social spaces (in the community, on the market, at home, as citizens, as producers, as members of the world), and learning do not only take place in educational institutions but on every level of social life, in every fibre of our existence, in our everyday activities, permanently and dynamically. This is our goal and our task. In this issue, the relevance of adult educators in the community intertwines with their significance in organized forms of education, which brings to light the diversity of roles, meanings and modes of acting of adult educators in their various guises. Stuart Moir and Jim Crowther from the University of Edinburgh write about the radicalization of citizen- ship education and find that such education is disappearing, at least in the sense of ascrib- ing radical meaning to the role of active citizens in the community in terms of collective decision-making. They find that education has been fully subjugated by the market, align- ing itself in particular with the minimalist paradigm of citizenship and putting particu- lar emphasis on individual responsibility. Young people are understood as homo apoliti- cus, homo sociologicus in the sense of people marked by non-thinking and non-decision. Where can then space be found for political literacy, critical autonomy, active inclusion? AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 12 4.10.2017 15:12:33 13Sabina Jelenc Krašovec: The role of adult educators ... In her paper entitled ‘Participation of older adults in communities of practice and practices of community’, Marta Gregorčič provides an analysis of the current state of the situation and learning possibilities of older men in the municipality of Ajdovščina. She presents her analysis of a focus group with representatives of the municipality and non-govern- mental organizations, where she shows the role of the elderly (men) in the community, where they meet, which activities they participate in, etc. She finds cohesion among the community members is improving but it took people some time to stand on their own feet and start looking for options to face their issues. The community is close-knit but there are almost no active older men as they are caught up in self-marginalization. The author offers some ideas on how to resolve this situation. The following paper entitled ‘Initiatives of community members in public open spaces: Two case studies from Slovenia’, which talks about the activity and learning of adults in open public space, is the result of a learning process linking the university and the community. Students Željka Bosanac, Sara Dalila Hočevar, Neža Vrhovec, and Nuša Zankolič, advised by two university teachers, Sabina Jelenc Krašovec and Sonja Kump, analysed public space and its creation by citizens and community organizations. They found that there is a difference depending on who the idea for an activity comes from and what role adult community members play in it. This is namely a combination of two approaches, ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’, which use different formulae and consequently produce different effects. In their paper ‘Education as habilitation: Empirical examples from adjusted education in Sweden for students associated with high-functioning autism’, Martin Hugo and Joel He- degaard write about the importance of a somewhat different kind of education for people with autism, specifically people with Asperger syndrome in Sweden. They find that it is precisely the role of the adult educator that is crucial to the programme, as it needs to be essentially different from the classic role of a teacher of adult groups and at the same time significantly more flexible, open and malleable. The adult educator must strike a happy medium between distance and engagement to foster activity in adults with autism and at the same time to motivate them for self-initiated activity. The research participants also stressed the need of many in adult education for a different approach that would mean less educational failure. Joanna Malinowska presents a part of her research on teacher education in Poland in her paper ‘Change of Students’ Activities in the Process of Becoming a Teacher’. Her focus is on the analysis of an epistemological barrier impeding cooperation creation important to the success of teacher education. Using critical discourse analysis, she examines the role of the institution where teacher education takes place; she uses a post-task student discussion to provide tentative recommendations for future teachers’ successful work and education. Interestingly, this contribution also shows the transfer of the control function from the educational institution to those learning, which is reflected in the students’ re- sistance against such measures. AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 13 4.10.2017 15:12:33 14 ANDRAGOŠKA SPOZNANJA 3/2017 Leonida Brezovec’s paper ‘Young people in the prison of lifelong learning. Presentation of results on how young adults experience requirements of lifelong learning’ analyses the role of neoliberal policy and its effect on the need for constant learning in young people who are already in employment or still looking for it. She offers an analysis of the current state of the Slovenian labour market and employers who keep pressuring young people with their various demands. The author’s qualitative research investigates the opinions of young people and finds that the employers’ requirements fit the neoliberal policy of flex- ibility, adaptability, and permanent learning. Young people feel this as constant pressure, a tendency to keep learning and adapting. ‘Language courses for adult immigrants: The example of the French non-governmental sector’ by Vesna Gorenc discusses the significance of a project for the education of im- migrants called ‘language education for adult immigrants’. It addresses a diverse group of migrants entering the country with different goals and intentions, different levels of previous knowledge, and different language uses. The author presents the method of so- ciolinguistic workshops dedicated to adult language acquisition which strive to present language as actively as possible in relation to everyday life. There are many dilemmas present, most importantly the question of adequately qualified staff working with mi- grants as – aside from other factors – the right approach is crucial for success. The present issue also includes an interview with Prof. Barry Golding on the role of workshops for men (Men’s Sheds) in the community, showing how important this alter- native form and movement is for bringing together and promoting activity among men in Australia. Sabina Jelenc Krašovec REFERENCES Apple, M. (1986). Teachers and texts. Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Arendt, H. (1996). Vita Activa. Ljubljana: Krtina. Biesta, G. (2012). Becoming public: public pedagogy, citizenship and the public sphere. Social & Cul- tural Geography, 13(7), 683–697. Bourgeois, E. (2002). A Constructivist Approach to Adult Learning. In A. Bron and M. Schemmann (Ed.), Social Science Theories in Adult Education Research (pp. 130–152). Münster: LIT Verlag. Burawoy, M. (2013). Public sociology: The task and the promise. In K. Gould, T. Lewis (Ed.), Ten Les- sons in Introductory Sociology (pp. 279–299). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Gregorčič, M. and Jelenc Krašovec, S. (2017). Pedagogical Dimensions of Participatory Democracy: Learning through Self-Organized Communities and Participatory Budgeting in Maribor. In G. A. Koulaouzides and K. Popovič (Ed.), Adult Education and Lifelong Learning in Southeastern Eu- rope. A Critical View of Policy and Practice (pp. 27–40). Amsterdam: Sense Publishers. Gregorčič, M. (2017). Antirasistično opismenjevanje: Epistemologija juga in protihegemonska postajan- ja. Andragoška spoznanja, 23(2), 21–37. AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 14 4.10.2017 15:12:33 15Sabina Jelenc Krašovec: The role of adult educators ... Hall, B. L. (2012). ’A Giant Human Hashtag’: Learning and the #Occupy Movement. In B. Hall, D. E. Clover, J. Crowter in E. Scandrett (Ed.), Learning and Education for a Better World: The Role of Social Movements (pp. 127–139). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. Harvey, D. (2011). Kozmopolitstvo in geografije svobode. Ljubljana: Sofia. Illeris, K. (2002; 2004). The Three Dimensions of Learning. Frederiksberg: Roskilde University Press. Jelenc Krašovec, S. and Gregorčič, M. (2017). Intergenerational exchange of knowledge, skills, values and practices between self-organized active citizens in Maribor, Slovenia. Australian Journal of Adult Learning, Nov. 2017, in press. Mündel, K. and Schugurensky, D. (2008). ‘Community Based Learning and Civic Engagement: Infor- mal Learning among Adult Volunteers in Community Organizations’. New directions for adult and continuing education, 118, Summer, 49–60. Oliveira, I. B. De (2017). Boaventura and education. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. Santos, B. De Sousa (2014). Epistemologies of the South. Justice against epitemicides. London in New York: Routledge. Schugurensky, D. (2000). The forms of informal leaning: Towards a conceptualization of the field. WALL working paper no. 19. Toronto: Centre for the Study of Education and Work. Torres, C. A. (2013). Political Sociology of Adult Education. Rotterdam/Boston/Taipei: Sense Publishers. Wildemeersch, D. (2012) Imagining pedagogy in public space: visions of cultural policies and practices in a city in transformation. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 31(1), 77–95. Wilhelmson, L. (2002). On the Theory on Transformative Learning. In A. Bron, M. Schemmann (Ed.), Social Science Theories in Adult Education Research (pp. 180–210). Münster: LIT Verlag. AS_2017_3_FINAL.indd 15 4.10.2017 15:12:33