Speakers at the International Andragogical Symposium
prof. Milan Matijević, Ph.D.
Prof Milan Matijević, Ph.D., works at The Faculty of Teacher Education of the University of Zagreb. He studied philosophy and sociology at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Zagreb. He carried out his first working duties in Youth correctional facility in Glina, as a pedagogue and teacher for underage delinquents. He also lectured there penological andragogy to prison guards. After few years he served in the army in the same base in Macedonia with a juvenile inmate he released from the correctional facility, with the other inmate he had worked in the same company in Zagreb for two years, with the third former inmate and a successful businessman he drank coffee in Petrinjska street in Zagreb, with the fourth inmate, whom he had to send to Goli otok correctional facility because of additional rehabilitation, he drank later coffee in Heinzelova street in Zagreb…
He dedicated his whole life to adult education, especially to adult literacy, acquisition of andragogical competences and distance education for adults. He was responsible for management of courses from the field of andragogy at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Zagreb and at the University in Zadar, and for several years he has been responsible for management of the course Lifelong education at the Faculty of Teacher Education in Zagreb. He wrote a dissertation and received his Ph.D. from this field at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Zagreb. At various study visits he has studied education of adults and the youth in Germany, Great Britain, Poland, Austria, India, USA. He led number of joint science projects dealing with the adult education and lifelong learning. He wrote number of books and science and professional articles that are listed at the Croatian scientific bibliography. |
Alexandra HaasAlexandra Haas is head of department at the Volkshochschule Rhein-Sieg, an adult education centre covering a large rural area between the German cities of Cologne and Bonn. She studied German, English and Science of Education at Bonn University, Germany and Stirling University, Scotland. After graduating, she taught at Bonn and Remagen Universities, before starting to work in the field of adult education in 2001.
Alexandra Haas’ main areas of work are the teaching and testing of language competences and the training of adult educators. She has developed and taught several teacher training courses and examiner trainings for German as well as international groups, both in face-to-face trainings and in blended learning or online-courses. |
Filip Dedeurwaerder-HaasFilip Dedeurwaerder-Haas is Landesreferent (Regional Head of Division) for languages and teacher training at “Landesverband der Volkshochschulen von NRW” (the Regional Association of communal adult education centres of North Rhine - Westphalia, Germany). He studied German, English and Linguistics as well as Business Communication at the University of Leuven, Belgium.
After graduating, he managed European co-operation projects in the fields of vocational training, consultancy and adult education and was Director of the VHS der Ostkantone, Belgium, before moving to Germany and becoming Regional Head of Division at the Landesverband. In this function, he supports the language departments of the Volkshochschulen with conferences and trainings, by facilitating and organizing language tests (e.g. telc, Cambridge English, Goethe Institut) and by developing and implementing teacher qualifications. He is author of a course book for learners of Dutch and has extensive experience as a teacher of English and Dutch and as a trainer of adult educators. |
prof. Katarina Popović, Ph.D.
Katarina Popović is vice-president of European Association for the Education of Adults and coordinator of dvv-international for regional projects in southeast Europe. She has studied adult education at the University of Belgrade, with BA degree in adult education; she made her doctorate study at the University of Aachen in the same area, obtaining PhD degree. She is Professor at the Department for Adult Education, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade since 1989 and on and conduct researches in the area of adult education and lifelong learning in the last 15 years. She is also visiting professor for adult education on several European universities – in Austria, Germany, Denmark and UK - and editor of the magazine “Andragogical studies”.
Dr Popovic is also President of the Adult Education Society since 2000, which is national nongovernmental organization where the most important experts, young researchers and adult education students work on projects in adult education, offer the trainings, develop strategic papers. Special importance is given to the regional and international cooperation - Adult Education Society is very active in it - with its member, but also with numerous partners from various areas of learning, education, employment. European integration processes in adult education and via adult education are of special importance, so Adult Education Society and Dr Katarina Popovic work intensively to support these processes. They conducted projects with various international donors and partners: dvv international, KulturKontakt, Roma Education Fund, CIDA and with the variety of national and regional partner. |
Branko Dijanošić
He received his master's degree after researching the topic „Functional literacy of elementary adult education learners“ – first pilot research of functional literacy carried out in accordance with UNESCO standards. He has been a participant of number adult education workshops in country and abroad, as well as number of international conferences dealing with this issue. At the moment he work as a director of Public open university in Ludbreg, at times he works for the Agency for vocational education and training and adult education as trainer of teachers working with adult learners (andragogical training). He was a key expert in implementation of the project „Second chance – functional elementary adult education in Serbia“responsible for design of curriculum and implementation of training of trainers and teachers who are now working with adult learners. He worked on training of trainers within the project „Support to adult education“carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
During his career he has published professional articles in domestic and international publications. A scientific article he wrote has been published, dealing with functional literacy of elementary adult education learners. |
Siniša Kušić, Ph.D.
Siniša Kušić, Ph.D., works in the Department for pedagogy at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University in Rijeka, as a junior researcher on a position of senior research assistant. He graduated in pedagogy and computer science at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University in Rijeka, where he enrolled the postgraduate master’s university study in pedagogy. In 2012, after completing his Ph.D. thesis on the topic „Comparative research of andragogues’ education curriculum in Europe“ he received his Ph.D. degree in field of humanities, sub-field pedagogy, branch andragogy, from Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University in Zagreb.
He takes part in lectures of all study programmes of the Department for pedagogy at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University in Rijeka, within courses Andragogy, Adult education and local development, Adult education within the lifelong learning concept, Didactics, Systems and models of teaching and learning, Didactical docimology and Comparative pedagogy. Within his science and research work Siniša Kušić, Ph.D. takes part in science projects from the field of andragogy, he is a member of several scientific and professional associations and committees, he has been taking part in international and domestic scientific and professional conferences and has been publishing articles in domestic and foreign publications. As an authors and co-author he has published 19 scientific and professional articles in domestic and foreign publications. He has continuously participated in various forms of professional further training in country and abroad. The primary areas of his scientific interest are: adult education, andragogical didactics, e-learning, education and andragogues' competences. |
Marija Pavkov, Ph.D.
She received her Ph.D. degree from the field of chemistry in 2002 at the Karl-Franzens University in Graz where she carried out science and research activities, and worked as university assistant. The same year she has finished education for licenced trainer at the Buzan centre in England, specialized for learning methods (Mind mapping), speed reading and memory techniques, and has started to organize and implement education programmes for all ages, with special focus on education of teachers and internal education in companies. After receiving her Ph.D. from the field of education, with specialization in adult education, in 2006 (Karl-Franzens University in Graz) she has published a book „Adult Education in Croatia – Globalisation, Europeanisation, Modernisation“, and in 2008 a book „Practice your mind's strength“. Since 2007 she has translated a dozen of books from the field of education, work with gifted children, young and adults, and work with children with learning difficulties. Since 2008, as an expert from field of education and adult education, she has worked with European commission's executive agencies (EACEA –The Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency; EACI – Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation) and ETF (European Training Foundation).
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Petra SteinerPetra Steiner has been working in Weiterbildungsakademie Österreich (Austrian academy for further education), Austrian organization for recognition and certification of competences of teachers in adult education, where since 2009 she has been working on activities related to portfolio evaluation, learners counselling, as well as PR activities. She studied pedagogy, philosophy, psychology and Germanistics. Her working experience within the adult education includes fields of teaching and training, as well as educational management. At the moment she has been working on her Ph.D. thesis at the University in Klagenfurt on the topic „Professional cultures in adult education“.
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Andrej Sotošek, M.Sc.Andrej Sotošek is director of Slovenian Institute for Adult Education, and has been head of this institute since 2008. He graduated at the Faculty of arts in Ljubljana in 1983, in history and sociology, and in 2000 he received a master of science degree at the Faculty of social sciences in Ljubljana. He worked as a teacher in Catering and Tourism Secondary School Celje and in Historical archive in Celje. From 1985 to 2001 he was working in Žalec Adult Education Centre, for first four years as a member of the professional staff, and then 12 years as a director. He also worked in the Regional Development Agency in Celje, where he was programme manager for human resources development, and from 2001 to 2008 he was secretary-general of the Association of Adult Education Centres of Slovenia. He is a member of number of professional associations and bodies, among others a member of a National commission for Lifelong learning programme (Grundtvig programme) and a member of executive board of The Slovenian Adult Education Association.
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