Brussels, 03/07/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 3 July, Commissioner Jan Figel, responsible for education, training, culture and youth, presented his contribution to the objectives of the renewed social agenda for the 21st century (EUROPE 9695). Three documents were adopted by the European Commission to this end. The first is on improving competences in schools, the second relates to the integration of migrant children in EU education systems, and the third is on the mobility of young volunteers. “The political world is able to create opportunities for the accessibility and quality of education for each and everyone”, Commissioner Figel said. “We must focus on content, qualifications, skills. We want to make a difference in coming years”, he assured.
In its communication entitled “Improving Competences for the 21st Century”, the Commission encourages member states to cooperate in making school systems more effective. This document, adopted on Wednesday, is part of the series of measures presented by Commission President José Manuel Barroso to strengthen access, opportunities and solidarity for all citizens of the European Union. Stressing the absolute need to give young people new and fuller skills to prepare them for the challenges of the 21st century, the Commission recognises that progress made on the basis of reference criteria are disappointing. The Commission proposes an agenda for cooperation in three areas: - 1) a focus on giving all pupils the competences they need for life. This includes: increasing levels of reading literacy and numeracy, reinforcing learning-to-learn skills, and modernising curricula and learning materials; 2) a commitment to provide high quality learning for every student. This includes: generalising pre-school education, improving equity in school systems, reducing early school leaving, and improving support within mainstream schooling for students with special needs; and 3) improving the quality of teachers and school staff. This includes more and higher quality teacher education, more effective teacher recruitment, and help for school leaders to focus on improving learning.
The Commission has also adopted a Green Paper on the challenges posed by immigration for European education systems. National and international data show that many migrant children in the European Union suffer from an educational disadvantage in comparison to their native peers, the Commission states. Early school leaving is more common among migrant pupils. Even more worryingly, second generation migrant children show lower school performance than the first generation, indicating that the social divide has become deeper over time. Segregation based on socio-economic criteria is also on a downward spiral, with parents from better-off areas tending to withdraw their children from schools where there are migrant children, leading to a further rise in disparities between schools. The Green Paper reviews policies likely to promote school performance among migrant children. It above all shows that the systems which place emphasis on equity in education are the ones that are most successful in integrating pupils. Policy areas which seem particularly useful for addressing the issue are pre-school education, language learning, additional educational support such as mentoring and tutoring, and intercultural education as well as partnerships with families and communities. “Some member states are managing to take up the challenge. Exchanging experiences and learning from each other can be fruitful, and the European Commission wishes to support such exchange”, Commissioner Figel commented. The European Commission calls on interested parties to make their views known on the issue by 31 December 2008. It will then analyse the results and publish its conclusions in early 2009.
Finally, the Commission presented a recommendation on the mobility of young volunteers. Cross-border volunteering offers young people a special experience that can have a strong beneficial impact on their personal development. This kind of “non-formal” education - learning outside the classroom - can improve young people's employability and career prospects while at the same time strengthen their sense of solidarity with, and active citizenship of, the society of which they are a part. Youth volunteering differs widely across Europe. At European level, there is the EU's Youth in Action programme which offers opportunities for volunteering, including the European Voluntary Service (EVS), which enables young people to be full-time volunteers for up to one year in another country participating in the programme. The demand for cross-border volunteering among youth in Europe exceeds by far the capacities of the EVS alone. The Commission hopes to encourage young people to pursue volunteering activities and encourages member states in its recommendation to improve the interoperability of national youth volunteering schemes in order to make it easier for a volunteer from one country to participate in the volunteering scheme of another. It is not a matter of making radical changes but of ensuring the development of mechanisms already in place in member states, the Commission stresses. Mr Figel added: “With this proposal, the Commission now invites the member states to change the European youth volunteering landscape by giving young people more opportunities for cross-border volunteering”. (I.L./transl.jl)