EAEA´s advocacy work paid off as MEP´s voted for increasing the budget for adult learning and keeping the Grundtvig subprogramme for adult education on board in the forthcoming Union Programme for Education, Training, Youth and Sport (YES Europe), previously known as Erasmus for All. The Committee on culture and education (CULT) strongly endorsed the draft report of the rapporteur, MEP Doris Pack (EPP, DE), at a vote in Brussels on 27 November 2012.
- Over the good ideas of the European Commission […] we made a better programme. This programme is not only mobility, it is cooperation, it is really working together, therefore I think we managed it in a good way, Pack said in her statement.
EAEA is pleased that a number of MEPs across different groups and parties during have supported its aims during the process. We appreciate all their efforts to improve the prorgamme, to strengthen adult learning, to support social inclusion and access to the programme, and to increase the participation of different stakeholders.
Budget on adult learning increased
The Association lobbied successfully for the budgetary increase for adult learning in the forthcoming programme. In the Commission´s proposal the portion of adult education was alarmingly low, only 2% of the total budget. Endorsing the rapporteur´s suggestion, the CULT Committee decided to increase the budget earmarked for adult learning to 6%. EAEA believes that this is a big improvement, although a clear assessment is currently difficult as the overall budget is yet to be decided.
- I would be happy if the governments would at least pay what they promised for this and next year. I am very cautious because they did not give the money promised for the Erasmus mobility programme for this year and for the next year […] I would be happy if we can increase the budget as the Commission has foreseen it for the next seven years. If you do not invest in education and youth we can forget the European Union, stated rapporteur Doris Pack.
For EAEA it was a relief that the financial allocation for the Programme shall also cover specific and sustainable administrative grants to European organisations active in the field of education, training and youth. This concerns EAEA´s core funding. Read more...

On 20 November, the European Commission presented a new Communication on ‘Rethinking Education’. Meanwhile, following the recent European Council Summit on the EU Budget for 2014-2020, discussions on the proposals for the next long-term programmes for research and education are continuing at the level of the European Parliament and Council of the EU (member states).
European Commission Communication on ‘Rethinking Education’
Last week, the European Commission presented a new Communication: entitled ‘Rethinking Education: Investing in skills for better socio-economic outcomes’.
The Commission said the strategy aimed to encourage member states to take immediate action to ensure that “young people develop the skills and competences needed by the labour market and to achieve their targets for growth and jobs”. The recommendations outlined in Communication are based on the findings of the 2012 'Education and Training Monitor', a new annual Commission survey which outlines skills supply in the member states.
Amongst the issues outlined by the EC and in the Communication are:

• The need for a stronger focus on developing transversal skills and basic skills at all levels of education.
• The quality of teaching, which it says is a critical issue in “higher education aswell”. The communication states that “both research and teaching should be supported by sound professional development provision. Yet it is teaching that primarily influences student outcomes, enhances graduate employability and raises the profile of European higher education institutions worldwide. Currently, only a few countries have strategies to promote quality in higher education teaching, including the training of teaching staff in pedagogical skills”. The Commission said its recently established High Level Group on Modernisation of Higher Education would make recommendations to policy makers and higher education institutions on how to promote quality in teaching and learning.
• The need to "improve the recognition of qualifications and skills, including those gained outside of the formal education and training system".
• The need for debate at both national and EU level onfunding for education – "especially in vocational education and higher education".
• Technology, in particular the internet, should be "fully exploited". "Schools, universities and vocational and training institutions must increase access to education via open educational resources".

The Commission Communication said there would also be a focus on strengthening the analytical base of country-monitoring through: regular peer reviews in the framework of the Open Method of Coordination for Education and Training; a framework for cooperation between the European Commission and OECD in the area of skills policies (including the launch of the public portal "Education and Skills Online Assessment" in autumn 2013, allowing individuals and enterprises, through the PIAAC methodology, to benchmark skills against other survey users); and enhanced monitoring of the education and training benchmarks, including a new benchmark on language teaching.
More information on the Communication is available here.
EU long-term programmes for education and research
EU Heads of State and Government meeting at last week’s Budget Summit were unable to reach an agreement on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2014-2020 (which includes the proposed programmes for education, Erasmus for All, and research, Horizon 2020). While the MFF budget negotiations are expected to resume early in 2013, discussions on the different elements of the Erasmus for All and Horizon 2020 package proposals are continuing in the European Parliament and Council of the EU. Both member states (Council of the EU) and the Parliament will have to come to an agreement on these elements before the programmes can begin in 2014.
EUA will continue to monitor, and provide input where necessary on behalf of its members, to the discussions and negotiations taking place at the level of the European Council, Parliament and the Council of the EU in the coming months. Further updates will be published through the EUA newsletter.

Η Επιτροπή Πολιτισμού και Παιδείας έχει υιοθετήσει το νέο πρόγραμμα της Τρίτης ΕΥΡΩΠΗ ΝΑΙ (Νεολαία Αθλητικής Παιδείας), η οποία περιλαμβάνει τώρα όλα τα προγράμματα της ΕΕ στον τομέα της εκπαίδευσης, της κατάρτισης και του αθλητισμού , Erasmus για την τριτοβάθμια εκπαίδευση. Περισσότερα...

By Graeme Paton. Britain’s first profit-making university has been created as part of radical Coalition reforms to the higher education system, it was announced today.
In a groundbreaking move, it was revealed that the College of Law, the country’s largest provider of legal education and training, had been granted full university status. It is the first private university to be established since Buckingham – officially a charity – was awarded the full title almost 30 years ago. But it the first time a profit-making organisation has been turned into a university.

The Education and Science Ministry’s alternative assessment of Latvian universities and colleges’ curricula, based on the Higher Education Council’s quantitative data, will not be used in the distribution of national budget funds among higher education schools until the Education and Science Ministry completes an audit of the Higher Education Council’s data, said Education and Science Minister Roberts Kilis’ advisor Reinis Tukiss, reports LETA. The ministry says it has information that Higher Education Council members themselves filled out part of the curricula assessment forms, and the Ministry’s evaluation of universities and colleges’ curricula is based on this quantitative analysis.
The Education and Science Ministry will nevertheless observe its principle that budget funds only go to quality curricula, and study programs that are of poor quality could receive budget funding only in exceptional cases - if they have no alternatives or if employers demand this. More...

By Andrew Marszal. Applications by mid-November for university courses starting next year have dropped by a record amount, dashing hopes that last year's fall was a temporary blip. Only 120,000 British students had applied by mid-November to university courses starting next year, a decrease of more than 13,000 or nearly 10 per cent from the same stage last year.

By Simon Baker. The number of people applying to universities in the UK as part of the main applications cycle has fallen by 14 per cent compared with last year, new figures show. According to the latest statistics from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, there were 8.4 per cent fewer applicants to UK institutions at 19 November this year compared with the same point last year.
However, these figures include those who must apply to university by October each year - such as applicants to Oxbridge and medical schools - which have remained relatively steady year-on-year. When these statistics are taken out of the figures, the number of applicants to other universities and courses has fallen by 14,513 or 14.1 per cent. More...

By Rebecca Ratcliffe. Ucas figures 'should set alarm bells ringing in government,' says thinktank. The number of UK-born students who have applied to start university next year has fallen by 8.4%, with a 9.9% drop in applicants from England, according to statistics released by the university admissions service. This continues the downward trend in university application rates prompted by the introduction of fees of up to £9,000 a year in autumn 2012.
The latest statistics, published by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas), show 120,194 applicants from the UK, compared with 133,357 this time last year. By this point in 2010, before tuition fees were introduced, there were 157,116 applicants. The figures do not represent the final numbers – the deadline for most university applications is January. Applications by students in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have also fallen by 10.5%, 9.3% and 8.7% respectively. More...

Beim nächsten Versuch müssen sich die Politiker mehr Mühe geben. Im ersten Anlauf ist die Einführung von Studiengebühren in Deutschland gescheitert. Von sieben Gebührenländern sind nur Bayern und Niedersachsen übrig geblieben. Und ob die Gebühren dort die Landtagswahlkämpfe überstehen, ist fraglich. Der Kampf gegen die vermeintlich unsozialen Studiengebühren ist ein zu verlockendes Wahlkampfthema für SPD und Grüne, da denkt in der Union nicht nur Horst Seehofer daran, die für Politiker leidige Angelegenheit aus der Welt zu schaffen.
Doch die Wette gilt: Schon bald werden Studiengebühren wieder auf der Tagesordnung stehen. Die Länder haben zu wenig Geld, die Hochschulen auf Dauer so auszustatten, wie es für Spitzenforschung und gute Studienbedingungen nötig wäre. Da ist ein kleiner Obolus der Studenten hilfreich. Mehr...

Euroguidance : 20 ans ! Nouveaux outils, nouveaux usages
Mercredi, 12 Décembre 2012 - Paris
Euroguidance organise les troisièmes rencontres nationales du réseau qui rassembleront les professionnels impliqués dans les questions d'orientation tout au long de la vie et de mobilité en Europe. Euroguidance est un réseau européen de centres nationaux de ressources pour l'orientation et la mobilité cofinancé par la Commission européenne. Programme et inscription.
Euroguidance organise les 3° rencontres nationales du réseau et profite de cette occasion pour fêter les 20 ans du programme!
La conférence « Euroguidance: 20 ans! Nouveau programme, nouveaux outils » réunira une centaine de professionnels de la mobilité et de l'orientation. Au cours de cette journée seront présentés les outils développés par le réseau ELGPN, par les collègues Belge et Suédois et par la France. Aura lieu également une table ronde sur le thème: « les nouvelles technologies au service de la professionnalisation des acteurs de l'orientation et de la mobilité ». Attention: le nombre de places étant limité, une confirmation de votre inscription définitive vous sera envoyée par retour d'email. Contacts: Laurent Lascrou et Elodie Delalande.
En France
Pour la promotion de la mobilité en Europe et pour développer la dimension européenne de l’orientation  tout au long de la vie, il existe deux  réseaux de centres nationaux de ressources Euroguidance sous la tutelle de deux ministères. Un comité de pilotage comprenant des représentants de toutes les institutions concernées fixe des priorités et identifie les actions communes à mettre en place. Il coopère avec les représentants du réseau ELGPN, réseau pour les politiques d’orientation. Ces deux réseaux travaillent en partenariat, la coordination et la gestion d’Euroguidance sont  assurées par l’agence nationale Europe Education Formation France (www.europe-education-formation.fr). Site du réseau Euroguidance France.