The “Learning methods in TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) and Yangsheng: towards excellence in adult education (Nourishing knowledge)” project is based on a wide choice of scientific literature and the partners experience in the field. We believe that Chinese Medicine's traditional teaching and learning methods peculiarities provide clues to develop and fine tune methodological instruments aimed at the assessment of formal and informal learning in adult education. Moreover , this work could enhance production of adequate methodologies intended to develop transversal competences and strong awareness in adult students. The ability to preserve health and to make an appropriate and active utilization of health care services is actually representing one of the basic competences on which citizens of the EU ground their possibility of expressing other professional and social competences during their whole life. Moreover, people that for several reasons are excluded from curricular studies, often choose to engage in non-academic professional training in TCM and CAMs (more than 180.000 practitioners in Europe according to CAMbrella study, 2012). This non curricular approach is often chosen by adult learners in general, generating a strong need for conceptual frames and instruments which could eventually objectively assess their acquired competences.The general purposes of this project are:• Identification of appropriate methodologies for the assessment of those competences in the health field, which are usually developed in informal settings (such as apprenticeship and mutual learning). • Identification of good practices aimed at supporting entrepreneurship's transversal competences for non-medical health sector professionals.• Provide practical instruments intended to effectively enable teachers and other educators to convey transversal skills, suitable to develop European Health LiteracyComparing teaching methodologies adopted in different EU in TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) and Yangsheng (techniques to improve QOL -Quality of Life) and by analizing correspondences and differences among the various core curriculum and learning outputs, our main aim is to develop a method apt to: a) develop an advanced methodology of teaching and of theoretical-practical learning in health literacy, taking into account heterogeneous language codes in a self-awareness framed bio-psyco-social endeavour, involving a large number of people with fewer educational opportunity and socio economic poor conditions . These last two factors are considered as health determinants.b) Assess which teaching methods prove their efficacy in developing those transversal competences needed for Entrepreneurship in the field of non-medical health support. c)Compare methods for assessing informal skills, acquired by the practitioners during their learning process. The foreseen outcome of the project is the construction of an adequate methodology by European standards, for acknowledging, assessing and certifying competences acquired by formal, non formal and informal learning, in the fields of non-medical health support and health literacy.
Background and partnership: The “Learning methods in TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) and Yangsheng: towards excellence in adult education” project, born from the joint efforts of four different partners in four different EU countries (OTTO Tuina and Qigong Professional association – Italy (coordinator), Vestifex – Adult education and vocational training, international mobilities and strategic cooperation, Estonia, Drei – Länder Schule e.V. – School for TCM professional training, Germany, IMNE – Spain -Institute of Natural and Energetic Medicine working for the diffusion of Traditional Chinese Medicine, natural-complementary therapies) took its first steps starting from three different bases, which up to now have not been explored together yet and which may seem not visibly connected at a first glance: Chinese Medicine and Yangsheng ancient practices, adult Education, and health literacy. The Chinese Yangsheng practices could be used enabling people to preserve, support and empower their health and well-being through simple but powerful practices useful to develop transversal competences and strong awareness in adult students, meeting the requirements of modern adult education. The project team includes professionals in the adult education field, with specific expertise in teaching disciplines such as TCM, Tuina and Qigong, experienced in promoting popular science and health literacy through the health promotion approach of the Classical and Traditional Chinese Medicine. Professionals with expertise in competences validation and certification, labour market and professional qualifications are also included. Objectives: The aim the partnership had in mind when starting the project was to mainstream the development of the transversal skills typical learning of the classical Chinese philosophical and medical thought into adult education and training, creating instruments for assessing and recognizing competences (including the ones deriving from non-formal and in-formal learning) and for conveying the transversal skills into adult education and training programmes, especially in the fields of well-being and health. Description of undertaken main activities: Through the partners meetings and the theaching/learning activities, the research of related literature and the ideas exchanges we had over the past two years we have achieved the objectives, though, we felt the goal we set for our project could be expanded to include also other aspects, for example the idea of a new professional called “Yangsheng educator”, which could gather all the competences and skills which emerged from our joint work. Implementing the conceptual model, we have developed a professional reflections process within the workgroup to “build conceptual bridges” in the workgroup itself: a bridge between Yangsheng and adult education and a bridge between adult education and the professional profiles. Activities path: A)Which are the learning methods in the traditional approach to Chinese Medicine; B)What could be conveyed into adult education (in particular in the health literacy field); C)The aim of developing transversal competences in adult students; D)The use of Chinese Medicine and Yangsheng for developping transversal competences; E)A definition of health literacy in the Chinese Medicine and Yangsheng perspective. Other steps: From a keywords library to professional competences, a dynamic comparison among Yangsheng, Chinese Medical teaching and adult education; the description of a new professional summing up the competences of Yangsheng and adult education: the Yangsheng educator. The competences library is presented in tables where the single competences intersect the classification based on typology (core, specialist, transversal). Yangsheng Health Literacy: the curriculum was tested several times in Italy, Germany, Spain, Estonia. TCM-Yangsheng curriculum analysis framework: the instrument aims at accompanying in mapping the state-of-the-art of health education/adult education/TCM-Yangsheng professional profiles and studies curricula based on an analysis model that allows a comparison among the curricula themselves and among curricula from different European countries. Non-formal and intentional informal learning assessment Framework. Results and impact attained: the results aim at giving a contribution to the support of a virtuous salutogenic process and are extensively described in the final output: Yangsheng health literacy Handbook.In the first part, after the introduction, the reader can enter into the different theoretical dimensions on which the project action and its instruments are based. Said instruments are available in the second part both for an immediate use and to further elaboration and development. Yangsheng forAdultEdu TOOL-CASE describes the instruments extensively and in details. Longer-term benefits: the knowledge is now available in a contemporary form also from a scientific point of view.