INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL EDUCATION: FOREIGN EXPERIENCE

Abstract

Despite the growing attention to extracurricular education, there are currently no commonly used definitions and theoretical frameworks in foreign research and practice. The article attempts to define the general characteristics and features of extracurricular activities. The priority task of extracurricular education in foreign countries is that the entire organization of activities is based on family requests, needs and interests of children and youth. The main trends in the development of out-of-school education are outlined and described. The article presents the accumulated experience of foreign countries in the context of organizing the activities of outof- school education institutions, the structure of institutions, the organization of children's activities and the programs of services provided in the system of out-of-school education. The article presents the principles and international legal documents on which the activities of the European Association of Institutions and Organizations for Children and Youth (EAICY), which was established in October 1991 and of which Ukraine became an associate member, are based. The article identifies the characteristics of the organization, content and nature of interaction with students, families and public organizations that allow us to distinguish out-of-school education from, for example, educational leisure and tutoring. Common characteristics have been identified that allow us to reconstruct the definition of out-of-school education, which is a structured, voluntary activity of children aimed at developing personal and social skills, and which goes beyond the school curriculum. The study argues that over the decades of development of foreign scientific thought, theoretical approaches to the definition of out-of-school education have been formed, despite the fact that they are different in name, but the content is the same.