On 22nd May, another edition of the “Encontros de Pedagogia Social” (Social Pedagogy Meetings) took place at the Universidade Católica in Porto. The event was promoted by the Master's Degree in Science of Education - Specialisation in Social Pedagogy and was attended by around 100 participants, including students, teachers and professionals in the field of education and educational intervention.
The event took place in an atmosphere of sharing, reflection and debate on key issues in education and social solidarity and, in this edition, coincided with the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Master's Degree in Science of Education of the Faculty of Education and Psychology of the Universidade Católica.
Celebrating education, social inclusion and citizenship
The event, organised under the theme “Training, Research and Service”, took place between 9:00 and 17:00 at the Carvalho Guerra Auditorium of the Universidade Católica in Porto.
One of the highlights was the conference “Itineraries of Life and Learning - Arco Maior Project”, organised by Joaquim Azevedo. The Professor from the Faculty of Education and Psychology of the Universidade Católica (FEP-UCP) presented the Arco Maior project, which aims to integrate young people who have dropped out of school in the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia and who are at risk of social exclusion.
This moment was also marked by the testimony of a group of five young people who are part of the project and who recounted their life journeys, explaining how Arco Maior helped them overcome adversity.
This was followed by three themed workshops in the areas of Service-Learning, Education and Social Inclusion and Education, Participation and Citizenship, organised by leading professionals in the field of socio-educational intervention. These workshops allowed participants to deepen their knowledge in the aforementioned areas.
In the afternoon, Rui Trindade, Professor at the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences of the Universidade do Porto, delivered a lecture on the topic “Lifelong Learning and Citizenship in Solidarity”.
For Isabel Baptista, coordinator of the Master's Degree in Science of Education and the individual responsible for organising these gatherings, “this event offered an exclusive chance to deepen our comprehension and debate the difficulties and prospects in the field of social pedagogy, with the objective of constructing a fairer and more supportive society.
Social Pedagogy: an area of impact at FEP-UCP
FEP-UCP has been engaged with the field of Social Pedagogy since 2004. The programme represents a pioneering initiative in Portugal, offering a wealth of knowledge that is particularly relevant to the fields of training and research for human development. Over the course of two decades, the programme has been developed in a way that dynamically articulates academic learning with the dynamics of community service.