Updates on EU developments in education and research

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.