The article analyzes the experiences determined by biographical circumstances that encourage individuals to choose the profession of a teacher in the pursuit of their vocation. Based on people’s biographies, it can be argued that many separate stages of human life, viewed as a whole, provide a meaningful context that can help understand the phenomenon of vocation and reveal its links to the development of professional competencies and to the efficiency of the educational system. The research usually explains the efficiency of an educational organization through pedagogical, managerial, economic and institutional aspects and defines it by qualitative characteristics that are related to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, results achieved by children, efficient use of resources, and the improvement of the teaching process. The aim of the article is to reveal a person’s vocation to become a teacher as a condition, on the one hand, leading to the pedagogical educational process through informal learning, and, on the other hand, making the educational system more efficient. The analysis and results of the qualitative research data are based on the abductive theory construction according to Peirce and the methodology of the Grounding Theory according to Strauss / Corbin. The research revealed that the choice of pedagogical profession and the perception of vocation are evoked by biographical circumstances. The pedagogical potential noticed and mentioned by the close people as well as the preferences for certain activities from childhood and the perception of one’s needs become a basis for the further development of existing competences. Thus, when a competent educator who experiences strong dedication to an educator’s profession gives lessons in an educational institution, the effective and purposeful activity of the educator interacts with the efficiency building of the education system.

The article reviews peculiarities of biographical research. Emphasis is placed on the experiences determined by the biographical circumstances, which have served educators as impetus for informal studies, as well as founding layers for the growth of pedagogical professional competencies. When discussing lifelong learning and the growing demands on educators' professionalism, it is most important to understand how the competences of the teaching profession develop in informal learning; next, it is possible to identify the structures that enable this process. The aim of the article is to reveal the peculiarities of a biographical method and the expression of pedagogical competences of the pedagogical professionals formed through informal learning and stimulated by biographical circumstances. The analysis and results of the obtained data base on the study logic of the construction of the abduction theory according to Peirce and the Grounded theory methodology according to Strauss and Corbin [1]. The research revealed that the processes of informal learning, critical for the competencies of an educator‘s profession, take their route in childhood. Learning experiences in childhood, as well as further biographical experiences not only determine the interest in the pedagogical profession, but also determine pedagogical abilities and values.

AUTORIAUS LYDRAŠTISAutoriaus vardas, pavardė: Giedrė Paurienė Mokslo laipsnis ir vardas: socialinių mokslų (edukologija) daktarė Darbo vieta ir pareigos: Mykolo Romerio universiteto Viešojo saugumo akademija, lektorė Autoriaus mokslinių interesų sritys: profesinės užsienio kalbos mokymo(si) problemos; kompetencija ir savaiminis mokymasis, tarpkultūrinės, etinės kompetencijos plėtotė.

Changes in innovation and technology, globalization processes, increasing competition determine changes in the activities of learning organizations (educational institutions). Effective management helps manage these changes and meet emerging challenges. The concept of learning organizations is closely related to future perspectives, perceptions of an institution that is constantly evolving and changing. Those changes affect not only the institution itself but also its employees who need to change, improve, and meet the challenges that arise with it. In order to overcome such changes, not only the purposeful lifelong learning is important, but also the self-directed learning. In both cases, this can only be achieved with innovative and focused leadership that facilitates a variety of forms of employee learning. The essence of effective management in learning organizations is related to the goals pursued jointly both by the organization itself and its employees because otherwise it will be difficult to improve and change. With this in mind, the aim of the article is to identify effective management solutions that help to improve the self-learning of employees in this case the teachers. To achieve the goal, the tasks are formulated to discuss the concepts of effective management and learning organization, to describe the theoretical aspects of self-learning; to reveal the self-learning strategies of the learning organization which is the school. Thus, the research highlighted the opportunities provided by the effective management of learning organizations, reflected in self-learning, for the development of employees so that their skills and knowledge are constantly updated. Emphasized self-learning strategies - practical work, observation, communication and collaboration, reflection, reading - are preliminary guidelines for creating a suitable learning environment within the organization.