CONTINUING EDUCATION IN THE CONTEXT OF TEACHING: COMPETENCIES AND FUNCTIONS FOR EDUCATION

Abstract

In a constantly evolving world, lifelong learning is a sign that a school that always produces new opportunities leads to socially productive individuals in the future. The same fact also applies to teachers who, in practice, have the obligation to remain updated and periodically update themselves so that they are always adapted to international and national standards of science, education, and social development. In this case, old training models are no longer sufficient; in the current scenario, students, who come from different cultural realities and personal histories, need new and dynamic approaches, specialized and integrated at the same time. Therefore, the objective of this research is to present the contributions that continuing education offers to teachers and the teaching-learning process, revealing its importance. This study does not aim to provide a parametric evaluation based on a specific educational level (basic, elementary, secondary, or higher education) nor on a specific direct teaching model (i.e., private, public, or mixed). Instead, it focuses on developing the competencies and functions of the teaching role from the perspective of contemporary literature, through a narrative bibliographic review. The findings indicate that continuing education results in four central dimensions: developing an understanding of each student's specific learning style and adapting teaching style accordingly; detailed and flexible knowledge of the subject/content; improved classroom management skills; knowledge of different cultural patterns of group behavior specific to the school and the environment in which students live (classroom management as a social system); and awareness of the profession's own ethics. Therefore, continuing education is essential to ensure that the teaching-learning process does not become motorized, mechanized, or outdated.