Within the past decade, escape rooms have aroused great social and educational interest. Their potential for intra- and extracurricular learning ranges from the promotion of methodical and communicative competencies to problem-solving and teamwork strategies. As a nonformal learning environment, the youth leisure sector is suitable for the…

Taking the 'breakdown' in regular schooling as a result of the COVID pandemic as a catalyst to reimagine education, this article formulates a theoretical framework, using design research, that enables a fundamental reconceptualization and introduction of new actors into the space of schooling, which is a learning environment that traditionally has…

Learning circles has a long tradition in the Nordic countries as a model for adult non-formal education, but has gained little scholarly attention and is thus sparsely theorised. The purpose of this article is to discuss the revitalisation of learning circles as highly relevant in times of what we term 'social innovation imperatives'. To…

In educational gerontology, non-formal education emerges as a possibility for lifelong learning because it is more flexible and less bureaucratic than formal education. In this context, agile culture offers a potential strategy to enhance non-formal education. While there are four manifestos for agile culture in education, their application in…

The escalating planetary crises of human-induced climate change, the depletion of natural resources, and declining biodiversity call for urgent actions to be taken at all levels of society and by the global community. The current political strategy for a sustainable future that emphasizes economic and technological progress is insufficient to…

This paper discusses key questions of pedagogical hope and courage through non-formal educational activities such as football. We look beyond standard assumptions of sports as a vehicle to stimulate social cohesion and prevent anti-social and criminal behaviour among Aboriginal youth to address core philosophical and pedagogical questions that…

This article presents implications of education and training policies on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) from the pre-colonial Kenya to date based on systematic review of education policies and related literature. In the pre-colonial period the non-formal and informal vocational training was demand driven, relevant and…

Quality assurance in higher education extends beyond the boundaries of formal learning to encompass the recognition of non-formal and informal learning experiences. Non-formal and informal learning play a significant role in individuals' acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies. Recognizing the value of these alternative learning…

In this survey paper we focus on mathematics learning in Chinese contexts, as a way to contribute to broader discussions about mathematical learning. We first review the features of Chinese students' mathematical learning depicted in the literature, followed by a review of student mathematical learning in recent Chinese research journals. This…

The article reflects on the crisis occurring today globally by the impact of the environmental changes caused by immense deforestation as these vast advances impinge on the lands located where the indigenous children live and learn. Adapting to new environmental changes in their ancestral forest and, for many, being removed from their home, Orang…

Qualifications frameworks are tools for describing qualifications of an education or training system by classifying them into levels. Each level provides a clear description of what the holder of a qualification knows, understands and is able to do. They are important tools for making qualifications transparent and comprehensible, within and…

The social dimension of higher education seems to have been highlighted in the most recent documents of the European Higher Education Area. Furthermore, the interest in providing future graduates with the competences necessary for their future jobs seems to have grown in recent decades. In this context, the key questions are what social…

This article describes how I, an American music teacher educator, visited the classrooms of eight Musical Futures Champion Teachers in the United Kingdom and observed their teaching with a focus on informal music learning and nonformal teaching. Musical Futures, a professional development organization in the UK, is the original organization that…

Mentoring to many is the informal highly unstructured teaching, advising, and nurturing which we receive from various individuals during our school years and professional lives and then give back to our students and more junior colleagues. However, with the advances in science and technology, the increasing competitiveness in the workplace, fast…

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted non-formal education, which includes children's informal learning and social development. Due to the required closings of many informal learning spaces, children have been left without methods to construct their learning physically and socially. This essay discusses how informal…