The formation of the Council for the Defence of British Universities is a welcome response to their present and future plight, and both Howard Hotson and Keith Thomas have made powerful defences in the LRB of the indispensable moral and intellectual values which the universities represent. A problem, however, is that the people who now determine the universities’ funding seem largely impervious to these defences. They hold the view that such values somehow come at the expense of the universities’ place in the real world: in other words they conflict with the universities’ ability to make money for themselves and for the economy. They take their stand on the ‘common-sense’ argument that the universities must justify their existence to the tax-payer and they must do so now. The criterion, they argue, by which we measure such justification is the contribution the universities do or do not make to the economy and to business; and, above all, to the market. This argument, if expressed properly, is not unfair. It is entirely reasonable to expect the universities to play their part in the country’s economic well-being and to wonder how that part might best be played. We should, therefore, be prepared to meet those who today make funding policy on their own ground. What we find, alas, is that the ‘evidence’ they employ is rarely evidence at all. On the contrary, it is often ideological assertion and wishful thinking. Read more...

Hungary's government on Thursday unveiled a broad-reaching plan that aims to make higher education accessible to more students while creating disincentives for dropping out.
The main points of the plan, approved by the government at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, were outlined by government spokesman András Giró-Szósz and deputy state secretary for higher education Zoltán Maruzsa at a press conference.
Giró-Szász said the plan aims to level the playing field and allow more Hungarians to enter college or university. The merit-based system will allow as many people as possible to enter university, not just the ones with money, he said. State-sponsored student loans, under the aegis of the Diákhitel 2.0 programme, will serve as a disincentive for leaving university before graduating, he said, adding that the dropout rate is almost 50% at present.
Giró-Szász announced measures designed to encourage students to take out the loans through helping loan repayment. State organisations will take over the student loans from their employees, he said, and private sector employers who take over the loans will be offered "significant tax write-offs". He noted that repayments for graduates start at just 4% of earnings. Giró-Szász did not reveal the exact number of state scholarships to be available next year at the press conference but confirmed that they were the same as numbers in a proposal reported in the press. Read more...

In this respect, the Communication emphasises at several instances the importance of languages. In a world of international exchanges, the ability to speak foreign languages is a factor for competitiveness. Languages are more and more important to increase levels of employability and mobility of young people.

The use of the Internet has opened to academic world new opportunities that require policy makers, to address an entire novel set of concerns, according to Pestana (2011). "The knowledge, expertise, creativity and innovation have become key factors for growth and prosperity of society, requiring each person to adapt new skills, learning developed  lifelong, new working practices, different  models of organization ".
Teachers, students or other staff members can bring serious consequences that undermine the functioning  of institutions, leading to high financial costs, loss of data and equipment and service disruptions  all inconveniences  can be avoided  or mitigated by implementing the right policies. This article aims to explore the  ever more pressing  need  of implementation  of  relevant policies and strategies to implement the protection of computer facilities in schools of all levels of education, drawing on the expertise an d strategies that have been implemented by the EU.
The internet security and its use can conscientiously avoid some unpleasantness. Despite the efforts of all the dedicated professionals responsible for network security at a school or university, the use or misuse by each individual can seriously undermine that work, and enhancing the risk  network can be affected by.

The Ministerial Conference "Opening up education through technologies: Towards a more systemic use for a smart, social and sustainable growth in Europe" to be held in Oslo, Norway on 9-11 December 2012.
The goal is to dedicate particular attention on how education and training systems can fully reap the benefits of modern technologies so as to create innovative ways of accessing learning content, building creative learning environments and fostering virtual learning communities.
Elearning Europa will be live-tweeting from the event.
Sufficient return on public investments in education and our ability to innovate are today more important than ever for future growth, competitiveness and strong social cohesion. The conference will constitute a unique opportunity to capture the key issues that matter for a systemic approach to educational innovations which facilitate quality 21st century education for all.
Input from the recently closed EC Consultation on the topic of "Opening up Education - a proposal for a European Initiative to enhance education and skills development through new technologies" will be presented at the Conference.
As part of the Cyprus EU Presidency Program during the second half of 2012, the Conference will bring together Ministers of Education from the Member States of the European Union, candidate countries, as well as the EFTA States. The debates will be stimulated by key notes from highly profiled international experts from both academia and the private sector and will aim at identifying good practices at national level.
Mr. Pierre Mairesse, DG OER and Skills, European Commission will present the new EU initiaitve "Towards a new EU Initiative "Opening up education" a proposal to exploit the potential contribution of ICTs and Open Educational Resources to education and skills development, which will be launched by mid-2013. Background document for the Ministerial Conference. Program.
Live tweeting from the Ministerial Conference "Opening up education through technologies" in Oslo, 9-11th December 2012
Elearning Europa (@elearningeuropa) will be tweeting live from the Ministerial Conference that will take place in Oslo in the following days.
During the different sessions we will have the oportunity to listen to renowned experts from the fields of Education and Educational Technologies and official authorities such as Nancy Law, Grainne Conole, Kristin Halvorsen, George Demosthenous, Androulla Vassiliou, Pierre Mairesse, Morten Løkkegaard, John Higgins, Pat Manson, Stephen Heppel, David Istance, Fred Mulder, Ana-Carla Pereira, Charoula Angel, and Marc Durando.

2nd regional meeting of Ministers of Education on the implementation of the European Higher Education Area
This meeting gathered delegations from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation and Ukraine. The meeting focused on the issues of particular relevance to ministries of education of the countries concerned, with specific focus on the implementation of national qualifications frameworks and its link to quality assurance.
A declaration was adopted at the end of the meeting.
In September 2011 a regional meeting of Ministers of Education was held in Kyiv under the Ukrainian Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. Following on from the success of this meeting, the 2nd regional meeting of Ministers of Education on the Implementation of the European Higher Education Area was held in Strasbourg on 22-23 November 2012.
The meeting was attended by the delegations of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation and Ukraine, as well as by observer organisations.
The meeting examined issues of particular relevance to ministers of education of the countries concerned, with specific focus on the implementation of national qualifications frameworks and its link to quality assurance.
At the end of the meeting a declaration was adopted.
Main documents
- Declaration (in English and in Russian)
- Programme (in English and in Russian)
- List of participants
- Powerpoint and text presentations
National Qualifications Frameworks in the European context by Mr Sjur Bergan, Head of the Education Department
Self- certification of National Qualifications Frameworks against the EQ-EHEA by Mr Stephen Adam, Higher Education Expert
An analysis of self-certifications by Mr Bryan Maguire, Head of Qualifications Services Designate, Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority of Ireland
Beyond structures: implementation of the national qualifications frameworks (general principles) by Mr Stephen Adam
Implementation of the national qualifications framework: students’ view by Ms Nevena Vuksanovic, Executive Committee member, European Student Union
National qualifications frameworks and quality assurance by Ms Lena Adamson, Higher education expert
State of play and main challenges by the national representatives: Mr Armen Ashotyan, Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia (PPT)
Mr Gulu Novruzov, Deputy Minister of Education of Azerbaijan (PPT)
Mrs Ketevan Natriashvili, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Georgia (PPT)
Mr Bakytzhan Zhumagulov, Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan (PPT in English, PPT in Russian and text)
Ms Maia Sandu, Minister of Education of the Republic of Moldova (PPT)
Mr Victor Chistokhvalov, Director of the Institute for Comparative Educational Policy of the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (text in Russian)
Mr Dmytro Tabachnik, Minister of Education and Science, Youth and Sports of Ukraine (PPT).

Encuentro Universitario de Sostenibilización Curricular Universidad Europea - Diseñando la Educación para una Sociedad Sostenible
El Vicerrectorado de Calidad e Innovación Académica de la Universidad Europea de Madrid junto con la CADEP y la CRUE les dan la bienvenida al I Encuentro Universitario de Sostenibilización Curricular, que tendrá lugar en Villaviciosa de Odón (Madrid) los días 24 y 25 de enero de 2013.
En las últimas décadas, el con­cepto de sostenibilidad ha evolucionado y se ha ex­pandido a otros ámbitos desde que comenzara a hablarse del respeto al medio ambiente y el consu­mo responsable de los recursos en la Cumbre de la Tierra en Río de Janeiro en el año 92.
A su vez, la entrada de la Universidad Española en Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior ha brindado la posibilidad de incorporar contenidos interactivos e integrales, que requieren que el profesorado integre los nuevos retos de la sociedad, en su enseñanza, como la sosteni­bilidad. Aparece funda­mental, hoy más que nunca, crear compromiso y sensibilidad, desde la Universidad, hacia la sostenibilidad socio-cultural, medioambiental y económica de nuestra sociedad. Es un reto que, entre todos, nos proponemos asumir. En este primer Encuentro Universitario, cuyo coste de participación es patrocinado, buscamos lograr:

• Reflexionar sobre la incorporación de la sostenibilidad al entorno universitario en el ámbito de la Universidad española
• Concienciar y sensibilizar la comunidad universitaria sobre la importancia del enfoque sostenible (social, económica y medioambientalmente) y su necesaria relación con el ámbito universitario.
• Visibilizar la sostenibilidad curricular y sus buenas prácticas.
• Involucrar a estudiantes y profesores de la importancia del concepto de la sostenibilidad para la universidad del presente / futuro.
• Generar un punto de partida de Networking: Impulsar contactos entre centros o progra­mas de sostenibilización curricular para crear una red útil de trabajo común.

Las conclusiones obtenidas se publicarán posteriormente al evento y la investigación permanecerá activa para todos aquellos que deseen contribuir a este reto que consiste en la asimilación e implementación de la sostenibilidad curricular.
Confiamos en que las Jornadas sean un excelente foro de intercambio de experiencias, espacio de reflexión para todos los miembros de la educación universitaria, llegando a la generación del conocimiento colectivo, que nos permitirá ir dando pasos hacia la sostenibilidad en los planes de estudios.

• Punto de Partida del I Encuentro de sostenibilización curricular
• Programa
• Comité Científico y Organizador
• Sede e Información alojamientos.

La carte de séjour temporaire portant la mention "carte bleue européenne" peut être délivrée aux personnes qui justifient d'une rémunération annuelle brute au moins égale à une fois et demie 35 168 €, ainsi que d'un contrat de travail d'une durée d'au moins un an.
Les demandeurs doivent aussi être titulaires d'un diplôme sanctionnant au moins 3 années d'études supérieures délivré par un établissement d'enseignement supérieur reconnu par l'Etat dans lequel cet établissement est situé ou justifier d'une expérience professionnelle d'au moins 5 ans d'un niveau comparable. Arrêté du 17 octobre 2012.
Une carte bleue européenne pour les étrangers occupant des emplois hautement qualifiés
La loi relative à l’immigration, à l’intégration et à la nationalité renforce la lutte contre le travail illégal, et notamment l’emploi d’étrangers sans titre de travail. Elle transpose 3 directives européennes parmi lesquelles la "carte bleue européenne" prévoyant les conditions de séjour des étrangers pour des emplois hautement qualifiés.
Les ressortissants d’un Etat tiers à l’Union européenne, souhaitant exercer un emploi hautement qualifié devra solliciter l’obtention d’une carte de séjour temporaire mention « carte bleue européenne ». Pour l'obtenir, ils devront être titulaires d’un contrat de travail d'au moins un an, occuper un emploi dont la rémunération annuelle brute est au moins égale à 1,5 fois le salaire moyen annuel de référence et être titulaires d’un diplôme sanctionnant au moins 3 années d’études supérieures délivré par un établissement d’enseignement supérieur reconnu par l’Etat dans lequel cet établissement se situe ou justifier d’une expérience professionnelle d’au moins 5 ans d’un niveau comparable.
Cette carte de séjour a une durée de validité maximale de 3 ans, renouvelable. Si le contrat de travail a une durée comprise entre un an et moins de 3 ans, elle sera délivrée et renouvelée pour la seule durée de ce contrat. Loi n° 2011-672 du 16 juin 2011.