OEEK, Organization for Vocational Education & Training, Greece

I was very intrigued by the idea (and the results) of the e-conference and especially by the quantity of very interesting new information that I got there. Actually the whole thing got me thinking that being a trainer is so much work in itself, that it is really difficult to take time out and develop your own skills. You get so involved in everyday activities and responsibilities that you forget about your own personal development and ‘widen your horizons’. You forget that the trainer is also someone who needs to be trained continuously, who needs all kinds of skills. A trainer has to be professional, reliable, articulate, communicative. But no matter how important this is, if you take a look around, it seems that informal learning is completely undervalued in the vast majority of organizations. Usually, no facilities or special tools exist to facilitate self-driven informal learning activities. However, as you progress as a professional trainer, your interests, doubts and questions quickly start to diverge from the ones that you had during your formal learning. And then you realize that you have to take steps towards achieving such skills yourself when you feel that you need them.

But what can a trainer do in order to engage in wider informal learning activities? I think that it’s always nice to put yourself back to the learner’s chair and get a fresh view of your work through seminars and training courses. This doesn’t harm you. But if it gets too boring, you can also find more relaxed ways to spend time with people from your own field to exchange ideas and experiences. I believe that conversation is a great tool. And then you can always find various ways to structure conclusions coming out of it (e.g. putting everything down in a blog or a specialized wiki and let other people know about it). I know that this requires time, but it’s a process that can also give great satisfaction through personal contact with people that you may know or not know, in your own country or across the ocean. That’s something that always fascinated me about the web and that’s exactly what impressed me so much during the e-conference (it was my first one ever, so I think I am allowed to be that impressed!). I think it’s a great way to start developing yourself. Am I too optimistic?

Hello, all! It was really nice to meet everybody in person in Leiden, only a few days ago. I think that it is much more inspirational to work with people, with whom you also create a personal relationship. Common goals seem much more realistic and feasible, this way. I just wanted to thank you for your collaboration and I hope that we will all work closely in order to make this platform a place to actually meet other people who share our interests and concerns and a place to exchange new ideas. We’ll try to spread the word out in Greece about the e-conference in November. We’ll stay in touch for any news that will arise in this part of Europe. Cheers!

Hi Cristina,

Thank you very much for your answer! I will now follow your link to the flash meeting recording, to see if I can relive the moment! Since I can see that you are quite available to answer urgent questions, I will take advantage of you in the future!

Thanks again. Have a nice week

Dora Thymiopoulou

Hello, everybody! This is my first post, just to say hi! I registered after Cristina’s suggestion and I am still trying to find my way around. We were sorry that we were not able to meet with the rest of the network due to technical problems during the last flash meeting. Do you know if there is a link already where we can find the minutes or if they will be sent to the members of the network in due time?

Thanks

Dora Thymiopoulou

OEEK, Greece