Nowadays it is important to have a look at different kinds of non-formal teaching methods and strategies to discover their potentialities in enhancing education effectiveness. Thinking beyond the brick-and-mortar walls of the traditional classroom when it comes to learning and preventing early school leaving, non formal education is “any organised educational activity outside the established formal system – whether operating separately or as an important feature of some broader activity – that is intended to serve identifiable learning clienteles and learning objectives” (Philip Coombs, 1973).
The new edition of the course “Non-Formal Education Teaching Methods and Strategies​” took place in Bologna from 07/07/2024 to 13/07/2024. The participants came from all across Europe, with Amaya from IES San Andrés in Spain, Antigoni from SECOND CHANCE SCHOOL OF VOLOS in Greece , Sabrina from Lycée Professionnel Léon de Lepervanche in France and Anica  from Pucko otvoreno uciliste Kutina in Croatia.

During the course, the participants engaged in a variety of activities designed to explore and integrate non-formal education (NFE) methods into their teaching practices.
On Monday, they introduced themselves with NFE and explored the differences between formal, non-formal, and informal education by sharing examples from their teaching practices.
On Tuesday, they were engaged in many speaking games and role plays to integrate NFE in the curriculum through gamification and creativity. Wednesday saw the participants experiencing team building activities, games, and collaborative learning strategies to work on membership in the classroom in a non-formal way. Thursday was dedicated to exploring Project-Based Learning (PBL) as an innovative technique to encourage collaboration between students, and participants also defined and experienced various tools for formative assessment in a non-formal context. Finally, on Friday, participants experienced NFE activities and games to promote diversity in multicultural classes.
After having analysed together the different tools and the various strategies of non-formal education, each participant had the opportunity to autonomously develop a new tool to use in their own school context. Thanks to the creativity and the effort of each participant, at the end of the course we collected new practical and creative tools ideated by the teacher
After having analysed together the different tools and the various strategies of non-formal education, each participant had the opportunity to autonomously develop a new tool to use in their own school context. Thanks to the creativity and the effort of each participant, at the end of the course we collected new practical and creative tools ideated by the teacher.
In conclusion, during these days the participants had the opportunity to experiment innovative methods in a safe and stimulating environment, enhancing skills like teamwork, empathy, and critical thinking, and had the occasion to create new and unique non formal tools!

Discover more about this course here.