Cultural education is not tied to a particular place. There is a wide variety of programs and institutions that offer a wide range of cultural education projects. There are institutions for which cultural education is one of the main attributions, such as art schools, music schools, cultural centers, cultural associations, museums, libraries, theaters, opera houses, etc., but besides these there are many other conventional spaces or less conventional spaces (such as parks, neighborhoods) where cultural education can equally occur.
Like the spaces where cultural education takes place, guiding the process can be done by a variety of specialists with different professions: artists, writers, actors, musicians, cultural mediators, cultural educators, museum educators, art pedagogues or teachers in general, storytellers and other representatives of the associative environment. Names vary from country to country and culture to culture and are interpretable and fluid in definition.
Whether or not the artists come out of the space of the art gallery or their own workshop, they propose programs of non-formal education through art, collaborative/participatory workshops.
Art pedagogues/teachers find the emotional, cognitive, etc. connections. between students and the world of art/culture. They are the ones who use cultural heritage integration methods as an educational resource that favors curriculum integration.
Museum educators create bridges between visitors’ life experiences, knowledge and heritage, and especially try to arouse their curiosity for future visits, through a process of connection and learning in relation to the museum space.
Storytellers make connections between the past and the present. Through the stories/stories they tell, they reinforce those cultural values that must be passed on to future generations. Storytellers generate topics for reflection and dialogue through the mechanisms specific to stories. Through stories and their interpretations, storytellers thus also have the role of educating.
Cultural mediators are specialized in communication and creating relationships between all forms of art, culture, heritage. They are the ones who facilitate the meeting between the cultural event and its audience. A specific note is the fact that the dialogue between the cultural mediator and the public takes place on an equal footing.
Cultural educators facilitate the connection between the public and heritage. The recent closure of museums due to the pandemic has highlighted the effectiveness of cultural educators around the world. They quickly developed digital programs such as virtual tours, online trails, online workshops, learning kits and experiments. Thus, cultural educators can select and develop appropriate formats and methods by which they communicate their content online, offering participatory projects through which they can interact with the public.
It is often educational and interactive programs tailored to target groups that enable an institution to fulfill its public mission. Cultural educators essentially contribute to the mission and goals of cultural institutions and their programs.
Last but not least, specialists working in the field can benefit from standards included in the classification of occupations. An example of this is the Museum Education Specialist. According to some decisions from 2017, the National Authority for Qualifications in Romania (ANC) approved the occupational standards for education and professional training for this occupation, at the initiative of the National Institute for Cultural Research and Training (INCFC, https://www.culturadata.ro ) in partnership with the Association of the National Network of Museums in Romania (RNMR, http://www.muzee.org), considering the requirements and the reality of the labor market in the field of culture and in accordance with the current professions practiced in Romanian cultural institutions and European. Details about this position of Museum Education Specialist (with skills in the development of educational projects and programs) can be found here: http://intern.anc.edu.ro/virtualanc/crud/standarde/standarde_occupationale_2014_prezent/brain/upload/Specialist%20educatie %20muzela.pdf
