Study circles 2012

Study circles are a non-formal way of learning, which gather people who wish to learn something new on certain topics, to keep each other company and to do something useful for their living environment or for other people. Study circles have spread all over Slovenia and present a way of motivating those parts of the population who rarely get engaged in standard forms of education. For small places and places where there is a lack of learning possibilities, study circles present an opportunity for learning, meeting and being active in the community. Their aims are to promote knowledge necessary for the development and preservation of rural areas, and for active citizenship, as well as to stimulate the participants' personal development. The purpose of monitoring and researching study circles is to determine characteristics of informal learning in small groups taking place across Slovenia throughout the year. Learning is financed by Slovene ministry of education under certain conditions (mentor capabilities, the principles of study circles). Exploration takes place in the regular tasks of Slovenian Institute for Adult Education. Research results serve financer for the development of adult education, an exploratory study of specific issues (eg. the response of certain segments of society, the specificities of the Community Learning), to observe the time dynamics (eg. financial investments of municipalities in adult education) and for comparisons with other countries, especially Scandinavian ones.