TOY - Trainers Online for Youth
This is a reference for Matia Losego
The main aim of the Get Up, Stand Up! training course was to explore and understand how democracy and active citizeship are translated into youth work practices and to support participants to better empower young people as active citizens.
The training course has the following objectives:
● To increase the understanding of the concepts of democracy and active citizenship.
● To explore how individual beliefs and values influence youth workers’ educational approach.
● To explore the challenge of being an educator in complex and ambiguous times.
● To understand how promoting democracy and active citizenship can lead to active participation of young people.
● To explore the opportunities of the Erasmus+ Youth in Action Programme to better support active citizenship among young people.
What can you gain out of Get Up, Stand Up! TC
The training course will create the conditions to:
● Better support young people to explore the dimensions of active citizenship in democratic contexts
● Face ambiguity, complexity and responsibility which come along with being an active member of the society
● Experience how approaches like Betzavta [democracy and peace education] and Human Rights Education work within the topic of the TC
● Know about good practices related to active participation in the field of youth work
● Explore different tools for more active participation.
The group was composed by 13 participants from 6 countries - Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal and Turkey. The group was composed by experienced youth workers, newcomers in the Programme and local decision makers. The team was composed by 3 trainers from Portugal, Germany and Bulgaria.
The educational approach and the methodology of this training course were based on the principles of non-formal learning.
Participants were invited to reflect upon their own understanding of democracy and active citizenship as individuals and professionals at different levels [organizational, local, national, European, global]. By exploring good practices and project examples, the participants then transfered the acquired competences and reflections to their youth work realities and drafted an action plan on how to better support young people in their political and active participation in the society.
A range of methods, including group discussions, experiential learning activities, role-play and simulations and individual reflections was used to explore the topic of the TC. Examples of the methods used are:
:: An activity from Betzavta approach
:: Democracy museum
The training created the conditions to:
:: explore democracy behind the democratic mechanisms of society, tackling also our democratic attitudes in relation with other people.
:: understand active citizenship as a set of action based on a political view of society
:: design follow up action, mostly at organizational level.
I was a full time trainer responsible, in cooperation with the rest of the team, to::
:: Design a coherent training programme
:: Design and deliver training sessions
:: Feedback and co-facilitate other training sessions
:: Support participans in their learning processes
:: Evaluate the training and deliver the final report.
I had the privilege to work together with Matia on "Get up, stand up! Tc in 2017. It was a learning experience that enriched not only the participants, but also my expertise as a trainer. One of the reasons is that I had the opportunity to learn from my co-trainer Matia. He is very experienced, with rich knowledge and deep understanding on social and political processes, related to democracy and participation. His proactive approach and cooperative attitude made the learning process for all parties involved a unique and fruitful experience. I would gladly recommend Matia as a highly professional trainer in the field of youth.