Financement de l'enseignement supérieurEurydice publie un rapport intitulé « Financement de l'éducation en Europe 2000-2012: l'impact de la crise économique ». Selon l’étude, près de la moitié des 28 pays étudiés ont réduit la part de leurs budgets dédié à l’enseignement supérieur et à la formation tout au long de la vie en 2011. Les baisses les plus importantes ont été réalisées en Slovaquie, en République Tchèque, en Irlande, en Italie, au Royaume-Uni (Irlande du Nord) et en Islande.
En savoir + > Funding of Education in Europe.
High quality education and training are essential if Europe is to make a speedy recovery from the most severe economic and financial crisis for 50 years. Qualified people with the right skills can boost the European Union's economy by leading innovation and improving competitiveness. However, as a result of the financial and economic crisis, public finances in all Member States are under great pressure. Governments are seeking ways to reduce budget deficits and manage public debt without dismantling the foundations of sustainable growth. While no direct link can be established between the level of funding of the education systems and student's learning outcomes, there is a general understanding that investing in high quality education and training should continue to be a priority. Nevertheless, the sector is not immune to austerity measures, particularly in countries where the need for short-term fiscal consolidation is greatest.
This report looks at the trends in education spending over the period 2000-2012 and examines the recent impact that the financial and economic crisis has had on education budgets across Europe in 2011 and 2012. The analysis covers the developments in education funding from pre-primary to tertiary level, while also providing an overview of the main trends in the adult learning sector. As Eurostat data on expenditure in education for 2011 and 2012 will not be available before mid-2013, for these years the report uses information from national education budgets. Education budgets adopted by national authorities can be seen as a reliable proxy of education spending in the respective years and provide a key to understanding the political priorities for the sector.
The comparative analysis is arranged in five chapters, two chapters deal with the overall changes in education funding and three thematic chapters assess the impact of the downturn on three of the pillars of the education system, namely, human resources, education infrastructure and financial support for students. In each chapter, the appraisal of the more recent changes in funding and policy priorities is based on information collected from the Eurydice Network. This analysis is accompanied by a view of the longer term trends based on statistical data available from Eurostat. The main findings of the report are explained in an executive summary following this introduction.
The first chapter presents the economic context in which European countries have been managing their public finances. It looks at Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and growth rates over the last decade as well as at levels of public debt in Europe since 2007. This general overview provides the financial framework in which recent education policies have been developed.
The second chapter provides an in depth analysis of the changes in actual public expenditure on education and the developments in national education budgets. The first section shows the trends in public expenditure over the last decade both as a share of total public expenditure and in comparison with national GDP; the cost per student is also examined. In the second section of this chapter, the most recent changes in education budgets for 2011 and 2012 are discussed; examining the proposed spending at different levels of education and the budgets allocated to various categories of expenditure. The spending priorities defined by countries for 2013 are also considered in the last section of the chapter.
Chapter three analyses the trends in the funding of human resources - the largest category of expenditure in all European countries. Firstly, the changes in the numbers of teachers are compared with the changes in student populations to provide an indication of whether such changes were affected only by the demographic evolution or the economic downturn has also affected human resource costs. Secondly, the changes to teachers' statutory salaries and allowances in 2011 and 2012 are presented, explaining the different national policies in this area. In the last section of this chapter, the funding for continuing professional development (CPD) is analysed, as this provision is important for the development of the professional skills of the work force.
Chapter four examines the recent mergers and school closures and assesses the degree to which they are related to the crisis. In addition, the budgets for educational infrastructure and for specific programmes of educational support are analysed. Although these categories of spending represent only a small share of the total public resources invested, they can have an impact on the quality of education provided. As local authorities and/or institutions have a degree of autonomy in managing these resources, any information provided on the extent of the reforms to infrastructure spending between 2010 and 2012 does not necessarily reflect a complete picture.
Finally, in chapter five, the latest trends in funding and changes to national policies for the financial support of students are examined. The budget allocated to such support is one of the key elements in ensuring high levels of participation in education, especially for disadvantaged groups of students. These support systems, however, are likely to come under pressure as a result of the possible reductions in the available public funding and the increased demand for contributions from private sources, especially in tertiary education.
