Uczelnia Korczaka

The Higher School of Pedagogy of the Society of Public Knowledge in Warsaw was established 1993 by the Polish Association for Adult Education as a non-public University according to the Polish law. The University is growing since then dynamically and has become one of the largest private universities in Poland. It has developed a very strong regional structure which is its main feature. In the academic year 2007/2008 we offered 4 courses at our branches in Warsaw, Lublin, Katowice, Olsztyn, Szczecin and Czluchow and enrolled 8 000 students in our intramural and extramural programs.

Our University is licensed to run master and bachelor degree curricula in the following fields: Education, Political Science, Foreign Language Studies, Education with Political Science (double-major), and Polish Language. The educational offer of the Pedagogical University, which holds high positions in many prestigious rankings, is addressed mainly, though not exclusively, to teachers and educators. While maintaining a high standard of teaching, we try to keep the tuition lower than charged by the government, thus offering a chance to study to less affluent persons. Courses are given by over 100 professors, many of whom are outstanding specialists in their fields to guarantee high professional qualifications to our alumni. We offer our students the opportunity to gain high professional qualifications and knowledge of education, political science and modern languages. We provide them the chance to participate in the social and political life of our country and the many changes that so dynamically occur at national, regional, and local levels. Thanks to our international policy our students can also study in other European countries.

The Higher School of Pedagogy has developed since its establishing a very strong internationally oriented policy and cooperates with other European Universities in accordance with the membership of Poland in the European Union. The University is a Member of various networks and Projects within the Lifelong Learning Program: Erasmus, EUCEN, European University Continuing Education Network and EuLLearN. We contain contacts to several European Universities, previously within numerous Socrates Projects in the field of University Continuing Education and currently within the Lifelong Learning Program.

The Higher School of Pedagogy of the Society of Public Knowledge in Warsaw actively cooperates with other European Universities in disseminating experiences and results in University Continuing Education. Within the LLP Projects we often organize conferences, workshops and publish papers. We have published a number of editions of The Managers Handbook addressed to European Managers and university staff occupied with University Continuing Education. Members of the Higher School of Pedagogy contribute actively to the publication providing case studies from Polish Continuing Education Universities. The intensive contacts to European Universities have considerably improved the European dimension of the teaching process in the Higher School of Pedagogy. University contacts with academic teachers within THENUCE have been used to invite them to give lectures for our students.

The Partnership of the Higher School of Pedagogy within the Socrates Projects in the past years considerably improved the research and teaching process at the University and led to numerous innovations in the curricula. Many new courses have been introduced especially in the subject of European Integration.

The result of this partnership in the Socrates Projects mentioned is the increasing internationalization of administrative staff and academic teachers.

Last but not least we would like to mention our Participation in the Socrates/Erasmus Mobility Program. It has started with our first Application for an Institutional Contract in 1998. The approval of our Application by the European Commission gave us the opportunity to strengthen our contacts and cooperation with Partner Universities in Austria, Portugal, Spain, France, Greece, Bulgaria, Belgium and the United Kingdom. Exchanging students and academic teachers with Universities in Partner countries have additionally improved the process of internationalization of teaching and improved the orientation of our students to European wide studying. The achievements of our students in Partners Universities within the Erasmus program are fully recognized after their return to the Pedagogical University.

The Higher School of Pedagogy in Warsaw supports students not only within the Erasmus program but also students from Eastern Europe and third countries. We provide scholarships and accommodation in order to enable their study at the University. In the past years we have hosted students from the Ukraine, Turkey, Peru and Russia. All of them were supported by our University according to an agreement of the University with the President Office of the Republic of Poland.

In all Socrates Projects as well as in the Erasmus Mobility Program students and academic staff are supported in considerably by the Pedagogical University. Erasmus outgoing students receive a supplement to their scholarship.

We would also like to emphasize the policy of the University towards our students to attend courses in European Integration. Annually we organize a visit for them to the Institutions of the European Union and other European Institutions.

One of the strengths of the Higher School of Pedagogy in Warsaw is its policy towards students from poorer regions. We outline two important features which enable students from poorer regions to attend lectures at the University. Firstly, the fees in our University are below the average among non-public universities in Poland. Secondly, the University has a well developed regional structure in six other cities outside the main campus in Warsaw. Therefore students do not have extra expenses for travelling and subsistence in Warsaw and can attend courses in their own region. Participating in the Socrates Mobility Program the Higher School of Pedagogy in Warsaw gives students from its regional branches the opportunity to take part in the Erasmus exchange. Also academic teachers from the branches outside of the main campus in Warsaw participate in the exchange within Erasmus. Their experiences and high qualification as academic teachers have already been recognized by our Partner Universities.

Implementing our European Policy Statement from previous years of our Institutional Contract and implementing the Bologna Process the Higher School of Pedagogy has introduced the ECTS.

The European Policy at the Higher School of Pedagogy is of strategic importance to us. The main priority of the European policy of the Higher School of Pedagogy in the period 2007/2013 will be, first of all, to sustain the continuity of our international cooperation with European Universities and with other higher education institutions in Europe in research and teaching. In order to reach this aim we will increase the number of students participating in the Erasmus exchange by funding their study abroad. We fully recognize the study abroad in accordance with the Learning Agreement with our students.

We will continue our partnership within the various Lifelong Learning Program projects in the coming years. The exchange of experiences and publishing together with Partner Universities within this Project is a powerful tool in our work. The Academic staff of the University is strongly encouraged to participate in transnational Projects. The quality control and evaluation of our participation in Socrates Projects has shown that this participation increases the internationalization of teacher staff, administration and students.

To ensure high quality of student and teaching staff mobility we will continue our selection policy and choose for the Erasmus exchange our best students and academic teachers. Disseminating of the results of our activities within the Lifelong Learning Program Projects and particularly in the Erasmus Mobility Program belongs to the European Policy of the Higher School of Pedagogy.

The implementation of the Bologna Process has a strategic importance in the European Policy of the Higher School of Pedagogy. During the past years we have introduced many changes in curricula and the organization of teaching process in order to achieve the aims of the Bologna Declaration. One of them was the introduction and implementation of the ECTS. All our courses and levels of study are adjusted to the requirements of the Bologna Declaration.