Brussels, 29/04/2013 (Agence Europe) - Androulla Vassiliou, the commissioner for education, culture, youth and multilingualism, presented European education ministers, meeting in Helsinki on 26 and 27 April for a conference organised by the Council of Europe, with the proposals and initiatives of the European Commission to reform the education sector in EU countries and to allow it to respond more effectively to current challenges. She presented the Rethinking Education strategy, which was unveiled on 20 November 2012 and which was designed to encourage the member states to rethink and reform their education and training systems with a view to bringing them into line with the employment market. She also announced an initiative to be proposed by the Commission in the course of 2013, “Opening up Education”, the aim of which is to develop the use of ICTE (information and communication technologies for education) and free educational resources, in order to modernise the education and training systems by means of innovative education policies. The ultimate objective is to achieve quality teaching for all. “In most European education systems, quality is uneven and budgetary constraints add to all the other difficulties (…). Making quality education available to all citizens should be a key objective for implementing reform and managing our educational institutions”, Commissioner Vassiliou said.
“Governance and quality education” was central to the talks of the 24th conference of the education ministers of the Council of Europe, which was attended by ministers and high-level representatives of 43 European countries, including the 27 member states of the EU, and Mexico. After the work session, the participants adopted a declaration in which they subscribe to the idea of creating a platform covering the whole of Europe to fight corruption and fraud in education. They also supported the proposal to bring in ethical lines of conduct for teachers. This platform and these guidelines are part of a five-point plan, the aim of which is to ensure access to quality education for each pupil and student in Europe and beyond, including the Roma and other children living in situations of vulnerability and disadvantage. The platform will provide information on training, codes of conduct, accreditation and quality assurance, as well as a space to share best practice. “For millions of children and young people, their school routine is not simply preparation for life; it is life itself. It is therefore necessary to make schools places that respect, inspire and empower the key actions of their daily life. This is an essential dimension of quality. And this is also the job of good education governance”, said Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou. (IL/transl.fl)