Development of Critical Thinking for Successful Future Career: Training Programme for Kaliningrad Region Educators
Project duraion: 2002 m.
Project funder: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania
Project coordinator: Modern Didactics Centre (Lithuania)
Project partners:
Youth Career and Advising Center (Lithuania)
Chernyakhovsk Pedagogical College (Russia)
Immanuel Kant State University (Russia) (former Kaliningrad State University)
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PROJECT RELEVANCE
This project was highly relevant in helping educators in the Kaliningrad region transition to a democratic education model, where the student becomes an active participant in the learning process. Critical thinking skills are an essential tool, enabling teachers and their students to objectively evaluate rapidly changing social and economic information and to make independent decisions.
Today’s market economy imposes significant demands on young people seeking successful professional self-realization. Ever-increasing requirements for employee skills and competence, competition in the labor market, and unemployment are among the greatest challenges facing young people today. These issues are relevant not only in Lithuania but also in all former Soviet Union and Eastern European countries. The program’s focus on future careers directly responds to shifts in the labor market, where creativity and problem-solving abilities become more important than the mechanical reproduction of knowledge. Furthermore, cooperation through education strengthens the region’s integration into the broader European cultural space, promoting openness, tolerance, and the search for shared values. Ultimately, enhancing the competencies of educators in this specific region will help reduce regional isolation by providing teachers with the modern methodological tools necessary to foster a modern and competitive personality.
PROJEKTO TIKSLAI
- To deliver to Kaliningrad region educators knowledge of critical thinking development and successful career planning.
- To develop young people skills of critical thinking and lifelong learning, to help them adjust to ever changing society and successfully plan their professional career.
- To strength international cooperation.
PROJECT TARGET GROUP
22 pedagogues from Kaliningrad region education institutions.
PROJECT ACTIVITIES
On 27 September 2002 the first meeting of project coordinators and partners in Vilnius, Modern Didactics Center was held. During the meeting the following questions were discussed: course and stages of the project, date and place of pilot seminars, the way of participants’ selection and other organizational aspects.
On 28–29 October 2002 the first seminar at Chernyakhovsk Pedagogical College was organised.
Participants were acquainted with the conception of critical thinking and its significance in career planning. During the first day the critical thinking framework was presented; according this framework participants have to prepare a lesson plan and present it to the group.
The second day was set on text analysis and environment for critical thinking development. At the end of the seminar got a homework – to plan and to lecture lesson/lecture according critical thinking framework.
On 21–22 November 2002 the second seminar at Chernyakhovsk Pedagogical College was organised.
At the first day participants presented homework, shared their feelings on lectured lessons, answered to colleagues’ questions. Later the conception of career planning was presented, career planning possibilities in the process of education were discussed. A special attention was stressed on choice of profession as initial stage of a career planning.
On the second day participants have a possibility to apply acquired knowledge into practice: they analysed education programmes and possibilities to integrate career planning into the process of education. Teachers planned they subject teaching lesson according critical thinking framework integrating into it information about carer planning and career seeking.
PROJECT RESULTS
- Kaliningrad region educators acquired knowledge and skills of critical thinking development and career planning.
- The project was successful, because it meet expectations of participants and indicate the necessity and interest of such topic projects for educators.
- It was succeed to round an international team open to further communication and collaboration.