Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the European Council in Lisbon was, at that time, rightly concerned about the international position of Europe and discussed the possibilities of new technologies. The emergence of information and communication technology is of great importance, we can no longer imagine life without it, and it has many implications in many different areas, including education. ICT places new demands on education, and therefore also on teachers. Students must be prepared to participate in the knowledge society. This not only means extra work, however; it can also mean an enrichment for education. After all, it also opens up new opportunities for the transfer of knowledge. We cannot rule out the fact that ICT will require a massive change in the structure of education in the future. We formulated our first thoughts on eLearning in 2002. Now we need to elaborate upon these in our working plan. This is an important and ambitious plan to implement a high-quality ICT infrastructure at a reasonable price and in a reasonable period of time in order to improve the quality and accessibility of ICT in education – a massive challenge. Right from the start it was clear that this cannot simply be about making equipment available and being able to operate this equipment. Just as important is how teachers and students are able to use this equipment as an educational tool in the learning process. This brings us to the didactic, pedagogic and educational dimensions of eLearning. I am glad that attention has been given to this in the report. After all, the question ‘what for?’ is also important. Education not only relates to the transfer of knowledge but also to such things as communication skills and social skills, which are important for personal development. It should also contribute to a feeling of citizenship, social involvement and, when it comes to Europe, respect for cultural diversity. Can it also be used for this? Yes. The report offers good points of departure for this, particularly where it talks about making software available, when it talks about content and when it talks about the importance of training teachers. I am convinced that this plan is an excellent opportunity for making a young generation familiar with new technologies and that it can promote a new intercultural dialogue, which is so important for Europe. Peace is not something we can take for granted; we have to work on it every day. In Europe we do that via dialogue and cooperation, and that seems to be a good formula. It will, however, also require commitment on the part of a future generation. In order to interest them in this and motivate them, it is important that people get to know each other and understand each other. In order to achieve this, contact across borders, international contact and experience are of great importance. This eLearning programme offers new opportunities in this area. We all know – and it has already been said – how successful exchange programmes are and what tremendous experience schools and students can gain with them. ICT increases the opportunities in this area via virtual campuses, school twinning, via the Internet and by promoting teaching partnerships. As my colleague Mrs Hieronymi has already said, however, virtual encounters cannot replace real encounters, although they can be an important enhancement of them. I therefore thank the rapporteur for his excellent work.

Political group: PPE-DE