Case studies: Adult learning coordinator: Caroline

Caroline had a lengthy background in community arts projects before completing a degree in fine art photography and a postgraduate diploma in community learning and development. She is now an adult education coordinator based in a community school.

My interest in community groups started when I was sixteen. I left school with no qualifications but had a keen desire to get into art school. I thought I would bolster my CV by volunteering with a community arts initiative working with disadvantaged 12-year-olds in the Glasgow area. The project, which featured dance, theatre and prop making, as well as art, brought me into contact with community workers who were also artists and I was hooked! I worked for that project for three consecutive summers and further enhanced my community experience by becoming a youth worker and running family art sessions while I studied for a degree in fine art photography.

My current position as an adult education coordinator has further broadened my experience and given me access to the workplace based route to obtaining the postgraduate diploma in community learning and development. I work full time and study in the evenings and go to university classes for two to three days every four months. It has given me the theoretical background to support the practical work and training I have received in the workplace.

My work focuses on engaging people in the community who are between sixteen and - well, as old as people get, to identify learning needs and try to address them. We do have a formal programme of learning run through a local college for people in the community but we also do hands on work with parents and kids, run confidence and assertiveness groups, tutor in drug proofing kids, computing classes and support in house programmes involving discussion groups and older people groups.

The kind of work that I do requires a real interest in people and their development, as well as the ability to speak to anyone who comes along. Forward planning and lots of adaptability are important as every day is different. It’s vital to be approachable so people feel that they can talk to the coordinator. It is also important to be a good facilitator, respecting the different backgrounds people come from as well as maintaining their confidentiality. It’s a brilliant job which I really enjoy although it’s also a bit compulsive. I am still very interested in community art and find myself rooting about for art books and materials for use in groups even when I am not at work!

The variety of the work that I do is a real plus point but it can be a little difficult to shut off and of course there are unsocial aspects to the job. We provide learning when people can attend so there is some evening and weekend work but the flip side is a lot of satisfaction and the next morning off.

I was fortunate that I came into community education with many years of volunteering and youth work behind me. The best start for someone considering the profession would be to approach their local community centre and find out about volunteering. By volunteering in different areas, it not only builds your portfolio of experience but lets you see the area you might want to specialise in.