Governmental and Non-Governmental Forms of Teacher Development Organization in Poland

Abstract

The article analyzes the activities of governmental and non-governmental institutions aimed at orginizing teacher development in the system of postgraduate education in Poland. The author pays attention to the most prominent governmental institutions involved in advanced teacher training, namely, the Center for Education Development and the National Center for Supporting Vocational and Continuing Education in Warsaw, the Polonia Teachers’ Center in Lublin, which is part of the Centre for Polish Education Development Abroad. The activities of governmental institutions for teacher training in Poland operate at such three levels as central, regional and local. These institutions realize the main goal that is mainly related to teaching staff in the system of teacher development in accordance with the priorities in the country’s education policy. The funding allocated for the activities of central institutions for teacher development is provided under the budget of the Ministry of Education. Non-govermental centers for advanced teacher training are established by natural or legal entities. There are more than 370 institutions of this kind in Poland. In addition, teachers can participate in various training courses offered through the EU projects and funded by the European Social Fund. Based on Polish experience, it was proved that the European vision of education and new quality criteria motivate the teacher to develop both national and pan-European identity in their students.