What is PANEL?

PANEL (Positive Aspects of Non-formal Education and Learning) intends to promote life long learning and especially the non-formal education for offenders, ex-offenders and tutors and enhance the potential of individuals who are partially excluded from society, in order to encourage learners to feel positive about educational progress and increase their chances for social reintegration.

The main objectives of the project consist in:

• Explore different processes of addressing inclusion through non-formal education for offenders and ex-offenders in different cultures in Europe, especially in Belgium, Romania, Norway and Denmark for a period of three years.
• To involve the staff and the learners in a dynamic formative process across Europe.

The target group:
Offenders and ex-offenders; Tutors, educators, staff involved in working with offenders and ex-offenders in each country.

What is non-formal education?

Non-formal education refers to education which takes place outside of the formally organized school. The phrase 'non-formal education' refers very often to adult literacy and different forms of continuing education for adults.

This education is called non-formal because:

• it is not compulsory;
• it does not lead to formal certification;
• it may or may not be state-supported.

Panel is in favour of introducing formal ànd non-formal education in prisons.

What is informal learning?

• the learning that goes on in daily life. Friends encourage others to talk about things that have happened in their lives so that they can handle their feelings and decide what to do next…
• the learning projects that we undertake for ourselves. We may take up digital photography, for example, and then start reading around the subject…
• the learning that comes as part of being involved in a community organisation or a social movement…

Informal learning can be all of these things…