The Regional Teacher Development Centre ‘WOM’ in Częstochowa (aka RODN ‘WOM’) is an institution of professional training for teachers, educational management and pedagogic supervision staff. It operates in Silesia Province, particularly in the city of Częstochowa and in the following districts: częstochowski, kłobucki, lubliniecki and myszkowski. It enables teachers to update their professional knowledge, raise their qualifications as well as acquire new skills related to creating modern education.
RODN „WOM” was established in 1989 as a result of the transformation of the previous local branch of the Teacher Development Institute. Since 1999 it has been functioning in a comfortable, spacious and hi-tech equipped building. It has a good basis for conducting training: a multimedia conference hall for 140 people and several educational rooms, including two computer labs with Internet access.
The activities of RODN ‘WOM’ include:
- diagnosing the needs of teachers for further professional development
- conducting various forms of training for teachers: conferences, seminars, workshops, qualification courses, development courses, on-line courses, videoconferences, tutorials, webinars, trainings for pedagogical councils
- individual and group consultations
- supporting the within-school programmes of teachers’ further development by cooperating with leaders of the programmes, subject teams and management staff
- supporting teachers in their career progression
- helping to solve behavioral and educational issues
- popularizing innovative educational practice and professional experience through publications of good practices in the educational bulletin and on the website of RODN ‘WOM’
- coordinating the work of methodology advisers
- inspiring educational and cultural initiatives
The pedagogical staff of RODN ‘WOM’ consists of teacher consultants of high professional competence. Among them are educators, examiners and experts on teachers’ career progression.
RODN ‘WOM’ is a publisher of an educational quarterly magazine , ‘Częstochowski Biuletyn Oświatowy’ (‘The Częstochowa Educational Bulletin’). The periodical is aimed mainly at teachers and people involved or interested in education.
The exchange of teachers’ professional experience is also fostered by Teachers’ Forum on the website of RODN “WOM”.
RODN ‘WOM’ has already participated in the following initiatives at European level:
- The TERM programme
- The SOCRATES ARION programme
- The VALINT project of the SOCRATES COMENIUS programme
- The CITIZEN E project of the Socrates Minerva programme
- The E-TUTORING IN A RURAL SCHOOL project
RODN ‘WOM’ cooperates with local universities and colleges, local government authorities, teachers’ associations and other educational institutions.
RODN ‘WOM’ incorporates also:
The Public Pedagogical Library of RODN ‘WOM’ in Częstochowahas existed since 1948. It was affiliated with RODN ‘WOM’ in 1991. The library has 4 branches located in Kłobuck, Lelów, Lubliniec and Myszków. Since 2003 the library has been functioning in a modern and comfortable building.
At present, its collection of books amounts to 70 000 volumes, 8 000 multimedia sets and over 100 titles of periodicals and magazines subscribed regularly. Among the library users there are teachers and educational staff, students and pupils of secondary schools.
