Brussels, 23 November 2011 - Up to 5 million people, almost twice as many as now, could get the chance to study or train abroad with a grant from Erasmus for All, the new EU programme for education, training, youth and sport proposed by the European Commission today. Among them would be nearly 3 million higher education and vocational students. Master's degree students would also benefit from a new loan guarantee scheme set up with the European Investment Bank Group. The seven-year Erasmus for All programme, which would have a total budget of €19 billion, is due to start in 2014. See the video.
"Investing in education and training is the best investment we can make for Europe's future. Studying abroad boosts people's skills, personal development and adaptability, and makes them more employable. We want to ensure that many more people benefit from EU support for these opportunities. We also need to invest more to improve the quality of education and training at all levels so we are a match for the best in the world and so that we can deliver more jobs and higher growth," said Androulla Vassiliou, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth.
The Commission's Erasmus for All proposal would allow:
* 2.2 million higher education students to receive grants to spend part of their education and training abroad (compared to 1.5 million under current programmes);
* This figure includes 135000 students getting support to study in a non-EU country, as well as non-EU students coming to study in the Union;
* 735000 vocational students would be able to spend part of their education and training abroad (compared to 350 000 under the current programme);
* 1 million teachers, trainers and youth workers would receive funding to teach or train abroad (compared to 600 000 under current programmes);
* 700000 young people would go on traineeships in companies abroad (compared to 600000 under the current programme);
* 330000 Master's degree students would benefit from loan guarantees to help finance studies abroad under a brand-new scheme;
* 540000 young people would be able to volunteer abroad or participate in youth exchanges (compared to 374000 under the current programme);
* 34000 students would receive grants for a 'joint degree', which involves studying in at least two higher education institutions abroad (this compares to 17 600 supported under the current programme);
* 115000 institutions/organisations involved in education, training and/or youth activities or other bodies would get funding to set up more than 20 000 'strategic partnerships' to implement joint initiatives and promote exchange of experience and know-how;
* 4 000 education institutions and enterprises would form 400 'knowledge alliances' and 'sector skills alliances' to boost employability, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Background
Erasmus for All would bring together all the current EU and international schemes for education, training, youth and sport, replacing seven existing programmes 1 with one. This will increase efficiency, make it easier to apply for grants, as well as reducing duplication and fragmentation.
The Commission is proposing an increase of approximately 70% compared to the current seven-year budget, which would allocate €19 billion to the new programme in 2014-2020. The figure takes account of future estimates for inflation and includes expenditure foreseen for international cooperation.
The new programme will focus on EU added value and systemic impact, with support for three types of action: learning opportunities for individuals, both within the EU and beyond; institutional cooperation between educational institutions, youth organisations, businesses, local and regional authorities and NGOs; and support for reforms in Member States to modernise education and training systems and promote innovation, entrepreneurship and employability.
Two-thirds of the funding would be spent on mobility grants to enhance knowledge and skills.
The streamlined structure of the new programme – together with its significantly increased investment – means the EU will be able to deliver many more opportunities for students, trainees, young people, teachers, youth workers and others to improve their skills, personal development and job prospects. Erasmus for All will also promote research and teaching on European integration, and support grassroots sport.
Since 2007, an average of 400 000 people per year have received EU grants for study, training and volunteering abroad. Under the Commission's proposal, this figure would nearly double to almost 800 000. (In 2010, 560 000 received grants in the 27 Member States, see Annex 1).
Next steps
This proposal is now under discussion by the Council (27 Member States) and the European Parliament who will take the final decision on the budgetary framework for 2014-2020.
For more information: MEMO/11/818, http://ec.europa.eu/. European Commission: Education and Training website.
Annex 1:
Table shows the number of recipients of EU grants for study, training and volunteering under the Lifelong Learning Programme and Youth in Action in 2010. (Erasmus for All will encompass both programmes and aims to nearly double the number of beneficiaries across the EU).
Annex 2:
Proposed funding levels by sector 2014-2020, compared to the 2007-2013 programmes (€ Million, EU-27).
See also: "Erasmus for All", EU sets 20% student mobility target.

Ya queda lejos el 16 de Mayo de 2001 cuando, aprovechando el inicio de la 21ª Conferencia de EUCEN,  se celebró en el IDEC de la U. Pompeu Fabra la primera reunión de los responsables de Formación Postgrado y Educación Continua de las universidades españolas con la participación de 32 universidades.
En dicha reunión se puso de manifiesto la diversidad de formas de gestión, estrategias y tipos de oferta con las que las universidades han organizado su formación postgrado y educación continua así como una gran variedad de temas, inquietudes y experiencias de interés para todos y que, por su especificidad, no habían encontrado un espacio en otros foros universitarios.
Como conclusión principal se destacó el interés generalizado de continuar en dicha línea de trabajo promoviendo el contacto entre las universidades en el tema específico de la FORMACIÓN POSTGRADO Y LA EDUCACIÓN CONTINUA tanto desde el punto de vista académico como el de su gestión especializada.
Desde entonces ha habido mucho trabajo hecho que, cada año se resumía en los encuentros anuales:

• Valencia (UNiversidad Politécnica de Valencia) 2001
• Granada (Universidad de Granada) 2003
• Santander (Universidad de cantabria) 2004
• Madrid (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid) 2005
• Salamanca (UNiversidad de Salamanca) 2006
• Tarragona (Universidad Rovira i Virgili) 2007
• Sevilla (Universidad de Sevilla) 2008
• Logroño (Universidad de la Rioja) 2009
• Vigo (Universidad de Vigo) 2010

Con ya casi 10 años de vida, se decidió dar el paso importante de constituir una red formal: la RED UNIVERSITARIA DE ESTUDIOS DE POSTGRADO Y EDUCACIÓN PERMANENTE, que ya es una realidad.
El pasado 14 de Junio de 2010 se celebró la primera Asamblea General Constituyente con la elección de la primera Junta Directiva desde su constitución que dirigirá los primeros pasos de esta nueva etapa de la RED.
El lema del encuentro “la formación permanente, una estrategia para toda la vida” nos  invita a las universidades e instituciones a adquirir un compromiso a largo plazo con la sociedad, participando en su desarrollo a través de la formación avanzada de sus alumnos acompañándoles desde la formación universitaria inicial hasta el resto de su vida profesional e incluso después de la jubilación.
Las universidades y sus fundaciones llevan mucho tiempo desarrollando una oferta propia sólida y cualificada que atiende a demandas puntuales en todos los ámbitos del conocimiento más allá de la formación reglada. Testimonio de esta larga trayectoria es el hecho de que en este año 2011 coinciden dos importantes acontecimientos, por un lado el vigésimo aniversario del Centro de Formación Permanente  de la Universidad Politécnica de Valencia desde su creación por el Consejo Social en 1991 y, por otro, el 10º aniversario de la creación de la red RUEPEP en unas Jornadas del IDEC en Barcelona en 2001.
Sin embargo la formación permanente universitaria ya no se puede entender como un área independiente y aislada de la universidad, sino que debe formar parte de la estrategia institucional de la universidad, de forma integrada con el resto de la estrategia global.
En este encuentro queremos hacer un repaso “de fuera hacia adentro”: desde las estrategias nacionales e internacionales y desde nuestro entorno socioeconómico hacia el interior de las universidades para plantearnos cómo respondemos a los retos que nos demandan la sociedad actual.
Esperamos que este encuentro permita el intercambio de experiencias entre sus asistentes que redunde en la mejora del conocimiento del propio sector y su entorno y en la mejora de la toma de decisiones y desarrollo de estrategias de formación permanente universitarias.

Le cadre de qualification, une aide à l’orientation pour la formulation des learnings outcomes, est lancé.
La Conférence universitaire suisse (CUS) a approuvé le 1er juillet 2011 le cadre de qualifications pour le domaine suisse des hautes écoles. Pour les universités, la décision de la CUS ouvre la voie à l’implémentation de cet instrument, telle que fixée par le communiqué de Londres en 2007. Les recteurs des universités suisses sont convaincus que le cadre de qualification permettra de mieux comparer les diplômes sans toucher à la diversité des enseignements. Ils appellent de leurs vœux une implémentation suffisamment coordonnée, mais le moins réglementée possible. Télécharger le Cadre de qualifications.
Le cadre de qualification pour le domaine suisse des hautes écoles a été élaboré conjointement et adopté en automne 2009 déjà par les conférences des recteurs des universités, des hautes écoles spécialisées et des hautes écoles pédagogiques. Après l’approbation de cet instrument par la Conférence universitaire suisse (CUS), toutes les universités pourront l’appliquer en développant les curricula conformément à l’étape 8 fixée par le Bologna Follow Up Group pour l’élaboration et l’implémentation du cadre de qualifications: «Implementation at institutional level; reformulation of individual study programmes to learning outcomes based approach»).
Le cadre de qualification pour le domaine suisse des hautes écoles a été élaboré conjointement et adopté en automne 2009 déjà par les conférences des recteurs des universités, des hautes écoles spécialisées et des hautes écoles pédagogiques. Après l’approbation de cet instrument par la Conférence universitaire suisse (CUS), toutes les universités pourront l’appliquer en développant les curricula conformément à l’étape 8 fixée par le Bologna Follow Up Group pour l’élaboration et l’implémentation du cadre de qualifications: «Implementation at institutional level; reformulation of individual study programmes to learning outcomes based approach»).
La crainte selon laquelle le cadre de qualifications créerait un nouvel obstacle administratif est, pour Jacques Lanarès, vice-recteur de l’Université de Lausanne responsable de la qualité et des ressources humaines et cheville ouvrière du cadre suisse, infondée. Ce nouvel instrument doit être compris comme une aide à l’orientation pour la formulation des learning outcomes: «Il permet d'avoir un cadre de travail commun et sert de base à la discussion avec les équipes pédagogiques. Les learning outcomes spécifiques aux cursus peuvent être rattachés aux compétences du cadre. En ce sens il constitue un point de départ aux discussions sans pour autant les enfermer.»
Plusieurs universités suisses ont déjà lancé des travaux sur les learning outcomes
Une enquête menée auprès des membres du Réseau Bologne de la CRUS a révélé que presque toutes les universités suisses ont lancé des travaux de développement et de formulation d’acquis de formation, de compétences ou de profils de qualification. Dans quelques cas, les équipes ont déjà recours au cadre de qualification suisse. A Lausanne, «quatre facultés sont en train de réfléchir à la mise en place de leurs nouveaux plans d’études, témoigne Jacques Lanarès. A l’occasion des évaluations de cursus, plusieurs bachelors et masters devraient être décrits dans ce cadre d’ici à la fin de l’année. Une personne a été spécialement recrutée pour ces projets et le Centre de soutien à l'enseignement accompagne les équipes pédagogiques de ces facultés pour réfléchir sur la mise en place du cadre et plus globalement la mise en œuvre d'une approche-programme.»
La discussion menée dans le Réseau Bologne a en outre montré que les experts des hautes écoles connaissent bien le cadre et comprennent son utilité. Il reste en revanche largement méconnu du corps enseignant, où un grand besoin d’information a été identifié pour les années à venir. Romina Loliva, membre du comité exécutif de l’Union des étudiants de Suisse, résume l’enjeux: «les hautes écoles reçoivent des instruments pour concevoir des programmes et des cursus orientés sur les learning outcomes et pour opérer la reconnaissance des prestations d’études en fonction des compétences acquises et non pas en fonction des inputs délivrés. Evaluer comment les étudiants obtiennent leurs diplômes est désormais moins pertinent. »
Des descripteurs génériques pour des learnings outcomes spécifiques
Pour les enseignants et les spécialistes universitaires, c'est le caractère générique des descripteurs propres aux différents niveaux qui est essentiel. De tels descripteurs permettent d’assurer un point de départ solide à la formulation des acquis de formation de tous les cursus sans remettre en question ou mettre en danger la diversité de l’offre voulue par les universités suisses. La définition de learning outcomes spécifiques tient ainsi de la seule compétence des équipes responsables de l’enseignement dans les hautes écoles, en particulier des professeurs. Selon Jacques Lanarès, «la mise en place du cadre entraîne une modification profonde de la culture académique concernant l'élaboration des plans d'études». Il s’explique: «La mise en œuvre d’un cursus dans ce cadre invite les enseignants à opérer un double changement. D’une part passer d’une approche centrée sur les contenus à transmettre à une approche focalisée sur les apprentissages des étudiants et d’autre part sortir d’une approche-cours classique pour adopter une approche-programme où les décisions concernant les contenus et les learning outcomes sont prises au niveau collectif par l’équipe enseignante et non au niveau individuel par l'enseignant.»
Les avantages du cadre de qualification sont connus depuis l’adoption du méta-cadre européen, en 2005. A côté du développement de cursus orientés sur les compétences acquises, il permet de mieux comparer les diplômes et les prestations offertes au niveau national et international. La reconnaissance s’en trouve améliorée, ce qui encourage la mobilité. Pour  Romina Loliva, le doute n’est pas permis: «le cadre de qualification crée plus de transparence à tous les niveaux et améliore l'information pour les étudiants. De cette manière, le chemin vers une mobilité sans obstacle est, au moins en théorie, tracé.»
Niveau intermédiaire: vers des descripteurs spécifiques aux disciplines?
Pour aborder la mise en place du cadre de qualification dans les hautes écoles de façon coordonnée et l’accompagner, le recours à une étape de concrétisation semble nécessaire. Cette étape permettrait de maintenir le caractère générique des descripteurs, tout en se plaçant à un niveau inférieur. «Je crois que la nécessité de concrétiser ce cadre général ne fait pas de doute, éclaire Antonio Loprieno, recteur de l’Université de Bâle et président la CRUS. Comme je le dis toujours, je pense que c’est aux disciplines de faire ce travail, car il me paraît important que nous évitions de nous retrouver dans cinq ans avec des interprétations lucernoise, lausannoise et bâloise du cadre. Cela ne ferait pas de sens!» L’introduction de descripteurs spécifiques aux disciplines pourrait de la sorte entrer en ligne de compte: ils garderaient un niveau d’abstraction suffisamment élevé pour englober les offres les plus diverses, tout en étant assez précis pour définir les caractéristiques des disciplines. La faisabilité de cette procédure sera évaluée prochainement dans différentes filières d’étude.
Les learning outcomes demeurent prioritaires
La préoccupation principale est et reste toutefois le développement et la formulation de learning outcomes, qui est pour les universités suisses une des priorités dans la poursuite de la réforme de Bologne pour les années 2009 à 2011, et demeure au sommet de l’agenda avec le lancement du cadre de qualification. Aux yeux de Jacques Lanarès, «la formulation des learning outcomes permet aux équipes enseignantes de s'interroger dans un premier temps sur la finalité, les buts d'un programme d'études. Une fois les learning outcomes du cursus définis, cela permet d’apporter une cohérence au cursus, d’éviter des redondances entre certains enseignements et d’améliorer la complémentarité entre différents modes d’enseignements, les cours et les séminaires par exemple.»

Not surprisingly, in the absence of a globally recognized accreditation body for Islamic finance and business education, quality and standards are at best mixed, with some courses bordering on the ordinary and mediocre. At the same time, students who do graduate, complain that it is very difficult to find employment placements in the Islamic finance industry, sometimes even as internships.
In the UK, maintains Professor Simon Archer of the ICMA Center and the Henley Business School, Reading University, which offers Masters and PhD courses in Islamic Finance, "a number of universities responded to this demand for human capital development in the Islamic finance industry with varying levels of quality. Some of these responses it seems to me personally to be rather opportunistic. They saw this bandwagon and the chance of fees to be earned from new students, and decided to jump on. There are some very honorable exceptions to this, especially Durham University."
Indeed the IE Business School in Madrid earlier this month organized a seminar on Islamic finance and business education and the role of universities in its development and expansion, with Reading University, IE Business School, Durham University, Strasbourg University, King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah and Casa Arabe in Madrid all participating.
The consensus was that there is a dearth of excellent text books on Islamic finance; research literature is somewhat sparse and where it exists it is spread out in a number of journals on Islamic finance which are not tremendously accessible.
Perhaps to some people's surprise, IE Business School, which is in the Top 10 of the FT Business School rankings, is spearheading education in Islamic finance and business and has the aspiration of becoming the Islamic finance education hub in Europe. Its campuses in the financial district of Madrid and elsewhere in the city are second to none, and it already offers Islamic finance as a subject or component of nits MBA and Masters in Finance degrees.
Next October, the IE Business School, according to Professor Ignacio de la Torre, academic director for Masters Program at the school, will introduce a first Degree in Finance "of which Islamic finance will be a key component." The school earlier this month also launched a credit and trading room to train students in the rubrics and dynamics of trading floor activity, including Islamic finance.
Professor de la Torre is also aware that education should also serve the wider interests of the economy and society. "In the business school environment, we have to make people aware of asset growth and bubbles and the dangers of too much leverage," he stresses. But he defers the responsibility of teaching financial literacy in schools, in the workplace and to housewives to the government. However, some 30 percent of IE Business School Masters in Finance students opt to study courses such as microfinance, including Islamic microfinance.
One of the big gaps in the market is job creation in the Islamic finance market. "There are not many jobs in Islamic finance going in Europe. Employers in general prefer students who have some experience — not necessarily in IF but in banking per se. It is a catch 22 situation. In the Middle East, jobs are more on the basis of personal contacts than market dynamics. It is important that industrial placement programs and internships are developed. At the same time executive education is also an important field - shorter courses for middle and senior managers. In Europe, France has the largest Muslim population and is a tremendous potential market. But, demand for such courses will depend on the perception that courses are of a required quality. This in turn will depend on the particular university," maintains Professor Archer.
In fact, there have been some important developments in industrial placements in recent weeks. The Kuala Lumpur-based International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF), the Global University for Islamic Finance, the Islamic finance education arm of Bank Negara Malaysia, last month signed a landmark agreement with the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the private sector funding arm of the Islamic Development Bank, whereby the latter will finance a capacity building programme, the Islamic Finance Talent Development Program (IFTDP), for selected participants to be delivered by INCEIF.
The agreement was signed by Daud Vicary Abdullah, the new president and CEO of INCEIF and Khaled Al-Aboodi, CEO of ICD, in the presence of Zeti Akhtar Aziz, the chancellor of INCEIF. According to the two parties, the IFTDP aims to address the global shortage of Islamic finance professionals. INCEIF will educate postgraduates students selected by ICD from its 46 member countries through its Chartered Islamic Finance Professional (CIFP) program. In return ICD will offer corporate attachments to the participants within the ICD and IDB Group as well as ICD's investee companies globally. The 2-year work-and-study programme will commence in first quarter 2012.
According to Daud Vicary, the ICD is a perfect fit to INCEIF as both share a vision to develop talent for the Islamic finance industry. Al-Aboodi is confident that this strategic collaboration will be the catalyst in laying the foundation in addressing the talent shortage of Islamic finance professionals and serve as "building in the knowledge in-roads" to the growing interest in Islamic finance in Central Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa and other parts of the world.
There is a need for closer alignment between the industry and the providers of human capital development. "The Islamic finance industry," maintains Vicary, "continues to grow and develop apace and a standard-setting body, such as ACIFP (Association of Chartered Islamic Finance Professional) which represents the industry, needs to move further into this space and create appropriate industry standards for human capital development. The delivery against these industry standards would need to be independently accredited. We are still in the early days of development as an industry, but would envisage ACIFP taking on a global role such as CIMA and ACCA have in the accounting profession, for example."
INCEIF has and will continue to keep its channel of communication open with the industry players through, among others, focus group discussions and engaging the industry in enhancing our syllabus to keep it current with industry needs.
Vicary also believes that build on and to enhance quality of education is important because although Malaysia is one of the global front runners in Islamic Finance, "we are aware that others are playing catch-up. Therefore, we are always striving to improve, benchmarking ourselves against international standards not just on Islamic finance, but other encompassing aspects that make an organization world class be it services and product offerings."
There also has been important progress on the accreditation front. Earlier this year the Government of Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak and Bank Negara Malaysia allocated RM3.17 million for the establishment of the Association for Islamic Finance Advancement (AIFA), which aims to be the main accreditation body for Islamic finance programs worldwide and will develop initiatives to ensure the quality, industry relevance and global recognition of Islamic finance education and its related areas.
AIFA will collaborate with international accreditation bodies such as the US-based Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business to develop the standards and curriculum for Malaysia's higher education institutions. AIFA is also cooperating with US publisher, John Wiley, to publish five standard textbooks related to Islamic finance and banking.
With these developments, Malaysia is fast emerging as a global cluster for Islamic finance and banking education spearheaded by the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) and INCEIF, which was last year accorded university status, and the numerous other training, educational and research institutes.
Indeed, IIUM is spearheading the AIFA initiative. "This year, we have already received 2,000 students locally and globally to undergo Islamic banking and finance courses in higher education institutions in the country and we are confident of getting 6,000 students next year. At the core of the cluster is a new comprehensive curriculum for Islamic banking and finance education while the existing programs will be expanded," explained Professor Mohd Azmi Omar, Dean of IIUM.
The target is to have 55,000 local students and 28,000 foreign students in Islamic finance and business education by 2020.
The AIFA initiative should also be seen in the context of Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak's Economic Transformation Program for Malaysia (ETF), which aims to develop Malaysia into one of the world's leading Islamic finance education hubs. This sector is expected to contribute RM1.2 billion to gross national income and to create 4,300 related jobs by 2020.

The Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC) Vice-Chairman T.P. Sreenivasan has said that any debate on reforms in higher education sector in the country should take into account the rapid changes occurring in the world.
Inaugurating the 'National seminar on higher education in India: challenges and prospects' organised by the Kannur University Union on the university campus at Mangattuparamba here on Tuesday, Mr. Sreenivasan, former diplomat, said that education should cater to the requirements of future. The whole mammoth endeavour of educating the millions in the country would elicit wonder as to how it had worked so far and how it would work in future, he said. The academic community, perhaps, was the only segment in society that resists any changes, he said adding that when the change was imposed it was done half-heatedly. Unless the change was accepted, the academic community could not equip students for future, he added.
Stressing the importance of employability as a major purpose of education, Mr. Sreenivasan said that unless the educational institution was able to provide its students knowledge and skills that would help them earn a living, education would fail to serve its purpose. He also said that there should be strong linkages between industries and educational institutions. In many countries, industries were part of the education process, he said adding that there is no ideology in educational thoughts.
Referring to debates about autonomy of universities, the KSHEC Vice-Chairman said that autonomy should be linked with responsibility.
Touching on the controversial issue of campus politics, he said that campus politics was acceptable if it would enable students to be future leaders of the country. However, politicisation of universities and colleges was a bane.
He also said that education in the country had benefited immensely from private educational institutions. He also said that ideology had to be set aside while debating participation of foreign universities in the country. Not a single Indian Institute of Technology had been included in the list of 200 best universities in the world, he said.
"We have to think hard how far our educational institutions can be built on external models," he asked,
Mr. Sreenivasan said that the KSHEC was mulling the idea of creating the State Assessment and Accreditation Council which would enable the council to pick and choose better institutions to be given incentives.
Economist Prabhat Patnaik in his keynote address at the seminar struck a different note saying that the purpose of education was to create organic intellectuals to serve the social order. If the purpose was to create students employable in the market, ordering of institutions was bound to be the outcome. The country did not want clones of foreign institution, he pointed out. Education in different societies could not be homogenous, he said adding that there was an effort to homogenise education to make deviant universities conform, he observed.
Admitting that there was remarkable deterioration of quality in higher education in the country despite increase in the number of educational institutions, Dr. Patnaik said that the concept of employability makes education a commodity. Stating that a university is a place for intellectual engagement, he said commoditisaton of education requires standardisation. Observing that this was now demanded by international mobile capital, he said that India was making a major departure by having institutions set up by capitalists. Privatisation of education produces commodities and not people who think, he pointed out. The objective of higher education must be to inculcate the values in our Constitution, he added.
Stating that the higher education in the country was facing serious crisis, Dr. Patnaik said that the crisis was associated with commoditisation of education which had become official policy. He also called for an urban employment guarantee programme that would ensure minimal income for the unemployed educated youth. He also questioned the tendency to debunk students and teachers from politics.

The Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC) Vice-Chairman T.P. Sreenivasan has said that any debate on reforms in higher education sector in the country should take into account the rapid changes occurring in the world.
Inaugurating the 'National seminar on higher education in India: challenges and prospects' organised by the Kannur University Union on the university campus at Mangattuparamba here on Tuesday, Mr. Sreenivasan, former diplomat, said that education should cater to the requirements of future. The whole mammoth endeavour of educating the millions in the country would elicit wonder as to how it had worked so far and how it would work in future, he said. The academic community, perhaps, was the only segment in society that resists any changes, he said adding that when the change was imposed it was done half-heatedly. Unless the change was accepted, the academic community could not equip students for future, he added.
Stressing the importance of employability as a major purpose of education, Mr. Sreenivasan said that unless the educational institution was able to provide its students knowledge and skills that would help them earn a living, education would fail to serve its purpose. He also said that there should be strong linkages between industries and educational institutions. In many countries, industries were part of the education process, he said adding that there is no ideology in educational thoughts.
Referring to debates about autonomy of universities, the KSHEC Vice-Chairman said that autonomy should be linked with responsibility.
Touching on the controversial issue of campus politics, he said that campus politics was acceptable if it would enable students to be future leaders of the country. However, politicisation of universities and colleges was a bane.
He also said that education in the country had benefited immensely from private educational institutions. He also said that ideology had to be set aside while debating participation of foreign universities in the country. Not a single Indian Institute of Technology had been included in the list of 200 best universities in the world, he said.
"We have to think hard how far our educational institutions can be built on external models," he asked,
Mr. Sreenivasan said that the KSHEC was mulling the idea of creating the State Assessment and Accreditation Council which would enable the council to pick and choose better institutions to be given incentives.
Economist Prabhat Patnaik in his keynote address at the seminar struck a different note saying that the purpose of education was to create organic intellectuals to serve the social order. If the purpose was to create students employable in the market, ordering of institutions was bound to be the outcome. The country did not want clones of foreign institution, he pointed out. Education in different societies could not be homogenous, he said adding that there was an effort to homogenise education to make deviant universities conform, he observed.
Admitting that there was remarkable deterioration of quality in higher education in the country despite increase in the number of educational institutions, Dr. Patnaik said that the concept of employability makes education a commodity. Stating that a university is a place for intellectual engagement, he said commoditisaton of education requires standardisation. Observing that this was now demanded by international mobile capital, he said that India was making a major departure by having institutions set up by capitalists. Privatisation of education produces commodities and not people who think, he pointed out. The objective of higher education must be to inculcate the values in our Constitution, he added.
Stating that the higher education in the country was facing serious crisis, Dr. Patnaik said that the crisis was associated with commoditisation of education which had become official policy. He also called for an urban employment guarantee programme that would ensure minimal income for the unemployed educated youth. He also questioned the tendency to debunk students and teachers from politics.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, December 14, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The Department of Human Resources, Science and Technology (HRST) is organizing a two-day official launching of the Pan African University (PAU). The first day of the launch, 13 December, comprised participants from the Association of African Universities (AAU) which, on behalf of the AUC invites its member institutions, represented by Vice Chancellors, Rectors and other institutional heads, as well as other higher education stakeholders, particularly researchers, development partners, student representatives and policy makers from AU Member States.
On the first day of the planned two day launch activities, three themes were discussed:
1. Promoting intra-African trade through higher education;
2. Quality imperatives of African higher education;
3. Financing of African higher education.
The Director of HRST, Mrs. Vera Brenda Ngosi observed that it was an exciting day for the AUC to have such distinguished academics present for the realization of the dream of the PAU.
In her welcome remarks, Mrs. Ngosi said that the PAU is a priority education project of the Commission of the African Union, which has been endorsed at the highest political levels in recommendations of the Conference of Ministers of Education of the African Union (COMEDAF) and decisions of the Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union. She said that the development of the project concept was through engagement with a wide range of stakeholders, from representatives of African academic institutions and governments; international partners; and the Africa Roundtable of the World Conference on Higher Education (WCHE), among others. A High Level Panel (HLP) composed of leading African intellectuals was appointed by the Chairperson of the AUC to support the implementation of the PAU.
Despite the enormous challenges, the African Union Commission, working closely with its higher education partners that include the Association of African Universities (AAU), which is designated as the lead implementation agency, has developed the blue print based on the revitalization of Africa higher education component of the Plan of Action for the Second Decade of African Education (2006 – 2015), and the Africa Consolidated Plan of Action for Science and Technology. The conceptualization of this model- Pan African University, was endorsed by the Fourth Ordinary Session of the Conference of Ministers of Education of the African Union (COMDAF IV) held in Mombasa, Kenya in November 2009 as an academic network of already existing post-graduate and research institutions.
The Pan Africa University provides an opportunity for the continent to claim her rightful place in the global knowledge-based economy. In itself, the PAU is not an isolated new institution but one based on already existing centres across the continent, seeking to promote science and technology in Africa and a strong link between scientific research and economic development. The PAU will enhance the triple missions of modern universities around the world, namely; education and training; research; and public service/ engagement, which in the case of the PAU, is the entire African continent.
The following five areas constitute the thematic areas of PAU:
1. Space sciences (Southern Africa, with a host institution yet to be identified);
2. Water and Energy Sciences, including climate change (North Africa, with a host institution in Algeria);
3. Basic Sciences, Technology and Innovation (Eastern Africa, with Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenya, as the host institution;
4. Life and Earth Sciences, including health and agriculture (Western Africa, with University of Ibadan, Nigeria, as the host institution).
5. Governance, Humanities and Social Sciences (Central Africa, with University of Yaounde I, Cameroon as the host institution)
The PAU will be officially launched at the AU Commission's conference center on 14 December 2011, followed by a press conference. In addition to the PAU launch, the Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Awards for Women will also take place at the same venue.
Journalists are invited to cover the opening ceremony of the Launching of the Pan African University (PAU) at 10:00 am, and participate at the Press Conference at 13:30. For more information, visit the AU website: www.au.int.

New Delhi: The UPA Government is trying hard to get the new Bills for Higher Education in India approved in this winter session of Parliament. Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD) is leaving no stone unturned to convince the UPA allies and Party MPS on these Bills.
As per the recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on HRD, the Union Cabinet has approved the amendments to the 'Prohibition of Unfair Practices in Technical Educational Institutions, Medical Educational Institutions and Universities Bill, 2010'.
While The Educational Tribunals Bill, 2010 was postponed in the Rajya Sabha over a year ago, another controversy regarding the New Bills for Higher Education proposed by MHRD has evoked.
Legal luminaries have pointed out that the move of the UPA Government to control and regulate the Universities is "Unconstitutional". They informed that according to the exclusion contained in Entry 44 of List I, Parliament does not have legislative competence to legislate in issues of universities.
The State legislatures have a right to alone forming the regulatory regime for universities in their respective state.
Former Chief Justices of India analyzed the Bills named as 'The Prohibition of Unfair Practices in technical educational institutions, medical educational institution and Universities Bill, 2010', 'The National Accreditation Regulatory Authority for Higher Educational Institutions Bill, 2010', 'The Educational Tribunals Bill, 2010', and 'Higher Education and Research Bill 2010' on the Constitutional Anvil.
Astonishingly, provisions contained in these above mentioned Bills, proposed by UPA to include universities oppose to the provisions of the Constitution and the Federal Structure of the country.
Justice Madan Mohan Punchhi, former Chief Justice of India & former Chairman, Commission on Centre State Relations, Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India commented on 'The Educational Tribunals Bill, 2010' that the State Legislatures can only draft an enactment for establishment of Educational Tribunals for final judgment of universities matters.
Therefore, the clauses mentioned in the new bill to include universities violates the constitution and the concept of separation of powers. The bill lacks legislative competency and if it is enacted as a law, it will be beyond the powers of constitution.
Justice Punchhi expressed the same opinion in case of other bills as well.
Justice A S Anand, former Chief Justice of India& former Chairperson, NHRC, said that the Parliament does not have power to legislate in matters of universities to establish any regulatory regime according to the exclusion mentioned in Entry 44 of List I and the State Legislatures alone have the power to constitute the regulatory regime regarding universities in the respective states.
Thus, the proposed Bill if enacted by the parliament would lack legislative competence and in that case would be ultra-vires the Constitution.
Justice K N Singh, former Chief Justice of India and former Chairman Law Commission of India analyzed 'The National Accreditation Regulatory Authority for Higher Educational Institutions Bill, 2010' and expressed that the legislative power under Entry 25 of List III cannot override provisions contained in Entry 32 of List II and Entry 44 of List I which do not provide power to the Parliament to enact law to control or regulate Universities.
Therefore, the New Educational Bill is Unconstitutional and the proposed law will be highly controversial to the extent that court may strike it down.
According to R.C.Lahoti, former Chief Justice of India, the creation of tribunals by the Centre has dual impact. Firstly, The Centre envisages taking over the administration of universities including the ones which are enacted by State Legislature. Secondly, the final judgment of any disputes regarding universities will be transferred in hands of the Tribunals set up the Centre.
Overall, several clauses contained in the New Education Bill are against constitutional Provisions as stated time to time by the Supreme Court of India.
Failing to get through the test of constitutional validity and encroaching upon the State's right, these bills might be the next big issue to be raised by the opposition in parliament.

By Iman Sherif. Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan said the importance of higher education has given prominence to commissions and associations of academic licensing and accreditation.
Abu Dhabi: Establishing clear principles and benchmarks for quality education was the focus of the Arab Network for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, held in the capital.
"Determining the scope of our operations now and in the future requires the adoption of international best practices, benchmarks, assessment methods, strategies and effective systems for accreditation," said Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, addressing the meeting.
He added that the importance of higher education had raised the prominence of commissions and associations of academic licensing and accreditation.
"The increasing role of knowledge as an engine of social and economic activities in our region and the world has led to the increased importance of higher education in society, not only in supporting efforts of development and growth but also in preparing students for rich and productive lives," he said.
Several specialists and professors deliberated on ways of ensuring how institutions in the UAE can offer a world-class higher education.
"We are looking at finding benchmarks to ensure that the outcome achieved by UAE students is equal in quality to those of their worldwide peers," Sue Parner, senior manager in charge of qualifications framework at the National Qualification Authority, told Gulf News.
"The higher education here in the UAE does not provide students with sufficient on-the-job training opportunities to practice what they are learning while studying," she added.
Nick Harris, international adviser shared his view with Gulf News. "A qualification framework provides a direct and understandable link between the needs and expectations of the society and its individuals and all forms of education and training and their quality assurance."
The feasibility of adopting models of successful enterprises and how they leverage integration of students in their professional workforce was among the topics discussed.
Dr Victoria Lindsay, deputy director of validation services at UK Open University, explained to Gulf News about the partnership with the Arab Open University. "Some 22,000 students are currently benefiting from this partnership that will allow them to receive two degrees so that they meet both the European and Arab requirements in Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and Jordan," he said.

By Yauheni Preiherman. Although the level of academic freedoms in Belarus is far from desirable, the country's integration into the European Higher Education Process would greatly benefit the new generation of Belarusians and should be encouraged by European policymakers.
On 12 December 2011 the Bologna Working Group reviewed the application of the Ministry of Education of Belarus to join the European Higher Education Area (the Bologna Process). The group will announce its opinion during the Ministerial Summit of the Bologna Process member states on 26-27 April 2012. If the application is successful, the Belarus may discontinue being the last ‘non-Bologna’ state of Europe.
The application has provoked a mixed reaction inside and outside the country. The Belarusian Independent Bologna Committee set up by a group of experts in Minsk emphasized in its report that ‘without complex higher education reforms Belarus’s full membership of the European Higher Education Area will not be effective’.  And the European Students’ Union appealed to European states to block the country’s accession to the Bologna Process.
The argument that the Belarusian education system falls short of the Bologna standards is undeniable. Moreover, it cannot be brought close to those standards in the existing political realities. However, this should in no way be used as a counter-argument against Belarus’s membership of the European Higher Education Area.
Defying Bologna
The Belarusian way to the Bologna Process has been long and full of contradictions caused by political reasons. At the beginning of the 2000s the Belarusian government introduced a number of novelties to the education system that were supposed to bring it closer to the European Higher Education Area standards.
For example, high school education was extended from 11 to 12 years and universities started to award bachelor’s and master’s degrees in addition to the Soviet-style specialist degree. But beginning from 2004 and particularly after the 2006 presidential elections the Bologna-oriented reforms were ‘frozen’. It was a reaction to the growing dissatisfaction with the government’s policies among the youth, which the authorities explained by the ‘Western influence’. As a result, a series of counter-reforms were carried out that reintroduced some Soviet traditions such as 11 year long high school education and 5 year long university education.
In September 2011, the new Education Code entered into force. Some provisions of the Code clearly contradict the Bologna Process principles. For example, it established the principle of ‘responsible autonomy’ for universities. Essentially, this principle further limits the academic freedoms and autonomy of universities.
Interestingly, in parallel with the elaboration of the Education Code the Belarusian government again declared its willingness to join the European Higher Education Area.
Alternative Report
This month Belarusian Independent Bologna Committee released report 'Belarusian Higher Education: Readiness to the European Higher Education Area Admission'  which concluded that the Belarusian higher education system is not ready for the Bologna Process. The authors argued that Belarus needs a comprehensive transformation of the education system to become a generic part of the European education space.
They also suggested that the country’s accession to the Bologna Process should take place in three stages and be based on the ‘Road Map for Reforms’. The first stage envisages de-politicizing and state control elimination over higher education, in particular the re-installment of transparent and fair elections of university rectors. The second stage focuses on a legal framework reform. And the third stage includes such technical actions as the completion of the academic degree and qualification reform, the completion of the quality assurance system reform, and the establishment of the national system for supporting mobility.
Why Belarus Should Be a Part of the Bologna Process
There is no doubt that the Belarusian education system needs a fully-fledged reform in the ‘Bologna spirit’ and that the road map suggested by the Belarusian Independent Bologna Committee is essential for that. But it is extremely important that Belarus becomes a member as soon as possible even without such a reform. And here are three core arguments in favor of that.
First, applying ‘accession conditionality’ (i.e. membership only after reforms) will simply produce no results. The carrot of the Bologna Process is too small and of no big value for the incumbent government. Moreover, a comprehensive education reform that corresponds to the ‘Bologna spirit’ is inconceivable in Belarus without a reform of the existing political system which may or may not happen soon. Therefore, imposing ‘accession conditionality’ will have no impact on the state of higher education in Belarus.
Second, keeping Belarus out because of its politicized education system will only have adverse effects. It will further isolate the country and Belarusians from the rest of Europe. This would be particularly undesirable because ‘Bologna isolation’ will not hurt the regime, but primarily the young generation – the future of the country. On the other hand, opening the ‘Bologna door’ for Belarus will facilitate better social exchange and more contacts between people. In other words, it will be a new effective channel for transmitting European values to Belarus.
Importantly, the potential of this new channel will be much higher than that of the limited number of existing scholarship programs. The recent initiatives, such as the Open Europe Scholarship Scheme specifically designed for Belarusian citizens will do a great job in promoting Europe in Belarus. But capacity of such initiatives is limited. The number of students who are awarded scholarships and complete full degrees abroad is small. Therefore, letting Belarus in the Bologna Process will expose many more young Belarusians to European values.
Third, the Bologna Process will open a new window of opportunities for Belarusian universities. It will enable them to develop cooperation links with leading European universities. International research projects and exchange of experience, staff and students will gradually impact the academic quality of the higher education institutions in Belarus. As a result, the universities will produce better qualified graduates with foreign language skills and a higher degree of understanding how democracy and market economy works.
There is still a possibility that hardliners in the Belarusian regime will try to prevent the country's accession to the Bologna Process. But there is a hope that if they fail, young Belarusians will have a chance to experience the benefits of being a part of wider democratic Europe without borders. Yauheni Preiherman is Policy Director at the Discussion and Analytical Society “Liberal Club” in Minsk.