Analyzing the Need for Using Didactic Strategies Specific to Non-Formal Education in the Continued Professional Training of Teachers – a Case Study From Bihor County, Romania

Abstract

Non-formal education (NFE) is one of the most important forms of the education process and refers to those activities that professional training institutions offer to their students besides the mandatory instructive-educational programmes. The importance of NFE resides in the fact that it strengthens the theoretical knowledge received during formal education by giving this knowledge a practical character as it is applied in different life situations. The main aim of this study was to identify the teachers’ degree of openness towards NFE, as well as the existing need for continued training through didactic strategies specific to this form of education. The sample consisted of 155 teachers, mostly from pre-primary, secondary and tertiary educational institutions from Bihor County, Romania. The instrument used was a questionnaire with 18 multiple-choice items. The results of the research show that most of the respondents are interested in participating in professional training courses based on didactic strategies specific to NFE. The main themes of interest include health education, managing students’ behaviour problems, social and emotional learning, and so on. Key words: continued professional training, didactic strategies, non-formal education.