ON THE ACQUISITION OF COMPETENCES FOR LEADERS OF STUDENT COOPERATIVES

Abstract

In Croatia, before the introduction of the elective course on student cooperatives at the Faculty of Education of the University of Zagreb in the academic year 2006/2007, there had never been institutionalized training and development for coordinators of student cooperatives and their sections. Namely, at that time and even today, there is a persistent gap between the needs and the possibilities of acquiring competencies for coordinators and collaborators in this methodological form of entrepreneurial and civic education. The aim of this paper is to offer a form of acquiring competencies through specific pilot workshops that are methodologically appropriate and suitable for the nature, goals, and educational approach of student cooperatives. In Croatia, they were introduced in 1995 because there was no institutionalized system for training and development of coordinators and collaborators. Only competent and motivated coordinators and collaborators, voluntarily engaged young cooperatives with good sources of knowledge, and research-based (heuristic, exemplary, problem-based, or experimental) teaching, along with non-imposing competent mentoring, enable the transfer of knowledge and skills necessary for acquiring competencies of cooperative or section coordinators.