The state EPALE conference 2022 on the topic “Initiatives on creativity and culture in adult education” was held on December 14 – 15, 2022 in Teslić. The organizer and host of the conference was the Agency for Pre-Primary, Primary and Secondary Education, within which the State EPALE Support Team in Bosnia and Herzegovina operates. The conference brought together over 50 representatives of various BiH institutions, representatives of the non-governmental sector, education providers and practitioners in the field of adult education.
In 2022, the EPALE community had four parallel themes in focus: young adults, innovative solutions for the skills revolution, learning communities and creativity and culture for social cohesion. The topic of creativity and culture was discussed during the two-day State EPALE Conference 2022.
Encouraging dialogue between cultures and supporting individual empowerment and democratic awareness in adult learners, cultural education is a prime mover and driver of social cohesion. Precisely for this reason, during this year’s EPALE conference, participants had the opportunity to exchange opinions and experiences about initiatives on creativity and culture in adult education, to explore multidisciplinary cultural spaces, such as libraries, and learn about new initiatives and projects implemented by libraries from country and region.
In the first part of the second day of the conference, examples of good practice were presented by representatives of the National and University Libraries of the Republic of Srpska, Ms. Aleksandra Rendić and Ms. Lana Šaula. They talked about the role of the library as an inspiring cultural space in the development of skills and (in) formal education of adults. The representative of libraries from the region, Mr. Bojan Kundačina, spoke about ‘Improving key civic skills in the post-truth era: Newspaper literacy and critical thinking’ and presented the ESSENTIAL project implemented by the Belgrade City Library in the Republic of Serbia.
In addition to culture and creativity, the focus of the EPALE State Conference this year was also communication. Conference participants had the opportunity to learn more about ‘Motivational Communication in adult education’ during the plenary presentation by Dr Aleksandar Bogdanić, regular professor of the Department of Journalism and Communication at the Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Banja Luka.
In addition to the inspiring plenary presentation by Professor Bogdanić, three parallel workshops were held on the second day of the conference on the topic ‘Language of motivational communication’, during which conference participants had the opportunity to learn about the characteristics of motivational communication and its application in adult education. ‘Encouraging communication gives good results in education, in the workplace, in healthcare and elsewhere. Therefore, it is useful and fruitful in adult education, regardless of didactic-methodical approach used,’ Professor Bogdanić concluded.
All presentations and materials used during the conference program are available online at EPALE resources.
