Child and Youth Afterschool Education

The aim of the study is to prepare a graduate who is equipped with professional competencies focused on working with children and youth, especially in the areas of education and leisure pedagogy. The competences of the educator are mainly focused on the target group of minors. The undergraduate training of the educator is, among other things, focused on the development of social competences and skills. The graduate is prepared for positive educational influence and development of the personality of children and youth, which affects in terms of value, is equipped with professional competences focused on the profession, which includes theoretical knowledge, a spectrum of basic practical social skills, skills in leisure time and also a certain professional ethical identity. The educational goal of the field is the professional preparation of educators for leisure and extracurricular education. The basic and applied pedagogical and psychological disciplines offer a primary orientation in these areas, through which the professional competences and skills of the educator are deepened.

The study program Educator is designed both for those who want to work with children and youth in the school and after-school (leisure) spheres, but also for those who want to gain some orientation in current pedagogical and psychological disciplines that facilitate communication between people and offer reflection in the field of education.

After successfully completing his/her studies the graduate is able to:

• understand the basic concepts of pedagogy, psychology and leisure activities;
• communicate and cooperate effectively and openly with pupils, family members and other actors of the educational process;
• work in an inclusive environment, participate in its creation and development;
• support children and adolescents in difficult life situations, choose the appropriate method of intervention;
• positive educational influence towards different target groups of children and adolescents;
• develop the potential of different target groups of children and adolescents in their interests and other areas of leisure pedagogy
• activate children and youth towards value orientations in the 21st century;
• coordinate, organize and implement leisure activities (short-term or long-term programs) with different age categories of children and youth, in different types of environments;
• use and support own creativity, critical thinking and flexibility in working with children and youth, while being able to support and develop these qualities in children and youth;
• to use effectively the acquired knowledge and skills in working with children and youth and develop creativity in this field (drama, physical or environmental education).

The range of career opportunities for graduates is wide. The graduate will be prepared for comprehensive pedagogical work with various age groups of children, adolescents, and youth, but will focus mainly on activities with children in compulsory school age. Specifically, graduates are generally employed as educators in various types of educational, social, educational, social or leisure facilities (such as schools and after-school centers, specialized counseling, welfare institutions, aftercare centers, therapeutic communities, children's crisis centers, diagnostic institutions, children's homes, leisure centers, crisis and contact centers, youth homes, low-threshold clubs for children and youth, etc.). However, alternative employment can also be found in the field of social and health services (eg in psychiatric hospitals, correctional facilities, and rehabilitation centers, in the prison system, in the police force, in refugee facilities, in the integration of foreigners, etc.). The educational influence of meaningful leisure time as an important social pedagogical factor affects all age and social groups of the population. It is known from pedagogical practice and surveys that the active use of free time is a significant part of the prevention of addictions and other socially pathological phenomena. Not only education in leisure time, but also education in leisure time is considered important.

The educator is, therefore, an important educational worker not only in the field of education but also in the field of leisure and extracurricular pedagogy, where his main task is to work with children and youth through activities and skills acquired in one of the offered profiles. He also plays an important role in the prevention of social pathologies that affect a wide range of children and young people.

• Educator

The standard scope of the bachelor thesis is 72,000 to 90,000 characters including footnotes of the title page, contents, index of literature and annotations. Students must be able to work with sources, even with foreign languages and critically work with professional texts. The bachelor thesis can be theoretical, theoretical-empirical or methodical. It is supposed to be original, capable of creating its own scientific text, the ability to analyze research data and interpret it in a broader context. Students choose a topic from the educational field. The student follows the prescribed standard for the creation of scientific work at the Faculty of Education. Questions on the SFE and other information on the standards of scientific work are available from the Department's website here:

http://katedry.ped.muni.cz/socialni-pedagogika/studium/statni-zaverecne-zkousky.

After completing the bachelor's degree, the student can continue in the follow-up master's degree program N7501 Pedagogy, field Social Pedagogy and Leisure (full-time form of study). field of Social Pedagogy (part-time study).