COUNCIL CONCLUSIONS

of 6 May 1996

on the White Paper 'Teaching and learning: towards the learning society`

(96/C 195/01)

I. INTRODUCTION

1. The Council meeting on 6 May 1996 discussed the White Paper 'Teaching and learning: towards the learning society` presented by the European Commission on the initiative of Commissioners Edith Cresson and Pádraig Flynn with the agreement of Commissioner Martin Bangemann.

The considerations below are the Education Council's contribution to the debate taking place on issues which are central to education and training in the Member States and the European Union; the debate, which began in Venice (2 and 3 February 1996) on the occasion of the inauguration of the European year of lifelong learning, will continue throughout 1996 and beyond.

The considerations which follow are not therefore intended as the last word on the subject but as an intermediate stage both in internal national debate and in a process of analysis and discussion which will involve the European institutions and the other technical bodies and will continue under the Irish and Netherlands Presidencies.

2. The Education Ministers wish first to thank the Commission for this further contribution to the analysis of the major issues facing the development of the Member States' education and training systems, an analysis which the White Paper on growth, competitiveness and employment, drawn up on the initiative of Jacques Delors, and various Commission documents on vocational training, higher education and distance learning have already developed significantly.

In this connection, the conclusions of the Madrid European Council meeting in December 1995 and those of the previous two European Council meetings in Essen and Cannes should also be mentioned, conclusions which drew attention to the serious economic and employment situation in the countries of the European Union, the measures to be adopted to improve prospects for development and growth and the importance of promoting national and Community investment in research, development and education.

1996, proclaimed by a decision of the European Parliament and the Council as European Year of Lifelong Learning, clearly provides an important opportunity for an examination of the issues, requirements and medium and long-term objectives of education and training in the Community, to be taken forward in the various fora of European cooperation and in individual Member States.

With this in mind it is necessary to use to the full the opportunity provided by the presentation of this White Paper, a policy document analyzing problems of education and training which is also relevant for the period of its presentation at a stage when Articles 126 and 127 of the Treaty establishing the European Community have begun to bear fruit and which coincides with the launch of the new Socrates and Leonardo programmes for Community cooperation.

A further important aspect is the White Paper's unified approach to education and training problems. Policy debate cannot be divorced from a method of analysis which looks simultaneously at the problems of individuals' education and those of economic growth and the development of the labour market as they are linked to vocational training.

Lastly, the advantages should again be emphasized of holding a Community-level discussion which is consistent with the debate going on in individual countries and in line with innovation and reform in national policies and which, at the same time, focuses on certain problematic aspects wich those policies take into account. In this connection, it is necessary to highlight the central role of teachers in the processes of innovation and of enhancing the quality of education and training systems.

3. The White Paper describes the society of the future as a learning society, to which education and training systems need to make a suitable response, including through Europe-oriented strategies, with due regard for Member States' prerogatives.

In the society of the future, education and training would not just be required to find solutions to the problems of integrating young people into working life; they will have an increasingly central role to play in every aspect of personal development, in social integration and in the awareness of shared values, in handing on the cultural heritage and in developing individual self-reliance.

The White Paper identifies three major factors of upheaval for present-day European society:

- the spread of information technology and its radical transformation of the content and organization of work and the production process,

- the globalization of the economy,

- the accelerated growth and dissemination of scientific knowledge and the technologies derived from it.

A preliminary point that needs to be made relates to the general framework for the analysis of the problems facing our changing society.

The White Paper can give the impression that the main though not the exclusive stress is laid on the economic dimension of human activity. The title 'Towards a learning society` also risks being ambiguous if interpreted simplistically to mean that there is a linear relationship between learning, economic development and employment growth.

The Council takes the view that the framework for analyzing education and training problems in Europe now and in the future should place suitable emphasis on the cultural and educational aspects as well as the strictly economic aspects of development. Economic activity is also part of civil life and must not ignore the ethical aspects of social development. The philosophical and value-related dimension should have a significant place as a corrective to what may seem an Enlightenment view of social change, in which excessive hopes are placed in knowledge as an end in itself.

A broader interpretation of the problems and challenges facing present-day society allows for the influence of factors other than information technology and the globalization of the economy in expected developments, e.g. significant demographic changes, the confrontation of cultures, environmental issues, threats to the ways we live together in democracy and the serious problem of social marginalization, which is largely the result of the divide in terms of knowlegde and the use of capacities to master it.

4. The White Paper identifies a twofold response to these challenges: the acquisition of a broad knowledge base and the development of employment skills (employability).

It notes the danger of a rift developing in European society between those able to understand, those who can only 'consume` and those who are pushed out of mainstream society and rely upon welfare support; in other words between those who know and those who do not know.

The White Paper highlights the need to develop the European dimension in education and training. This is set to be the fundamental level at which certain instances and means of cooperation between the Member States will be carried out:

- with regard to procedures, by establishing appropriate fora for discussing the issues,

- with regard to funding, by respecting the individual Member States' choices and accepting that the Community can provide no further funding for the moment but recommending that education remain a priority,

- with regard to responsibilities, by adhering strictly to the Maastricht principles on Member States' responsibility for the content of teaching and the organization of their education and training systems and restating the principle of subsidiarity.

To implement these ideas the White Paper identifies five general objectives and a number of support measures:

- to encourage the acquisition of new knowledge (a number of support measures are proposed: launching a European system for recognizing key skills, a personal skills card and a European skills accreditation system; facilitating student mobility; supporting the development of multimedia educational software),

- to birng schools and the business sector closer together (opening up education to the world of work; involving businesses in training; developing cooperation between schools and businesses),

- to combat exclusion (supporting 'second-chance` school schemes by concentrating resources and capacity in deprived areas; promoting European voluntary service initiatives),

- proficiency in three Community languages (providing support for language learning at pre-school level and during vocational training through the use of systems for assessing and guaranteeing language teaching quality),

- to treat tangible and intangible investment on an equal footing (by changes in the fiscal and accounting treatment of expenditure on training).

II. CONCLUSIONS

The Education Council considers the objectives laid down in the White Paper as indications of a possible course for the development of education and training in the Member States and at European Union level; it would like the proposed measures to be the subject of an in-depth discussion under the Irish and Netherlands Presidencies, which would also cover any proposals that might be brought forward by the Commission.

The Council considers it necessary to make the preliminary point that any action which may be decided on upon completion of the debate on the White Paper must observe:

- the principles laid down in Articles 126 and 127 of the Treaty establishing the European Community,

- the principle of subsidiarity enunciated therein,

- the need to comply with the financial perspective set for education.

The objectives defined in the White Paper and the measures it proposes raise problems which cannot be ignored:

A. Recognition of key skills

With this end in mind, the need for transparency in the certification of training routes, in order also to ensure Community-wide mobility, is one that is strongly felt, not least because transparency in certification is an important tool for promoting the quality of training. At present, given the diversity of education and training systems, recognition of non-formal routes appears difficult to achieve. This is therefore a matter which deserves further detailed examination, bearing in mind, as well, the experiments which are under way in some countries.

At this stage and on the basis of the Council Resolutions of 3 December 1992 and 5 December 1994, it would be possible and desirable to compare trials under way in the Member States on certifying training routes and to support Member States' schemes for creating new certification models. Many Member States see the need to avoid the risk of excessive bureaucracy, which would adversely affect the flexibility and mobility of the market.

B. Bringing schools and the world of work closer together

The problems of unemployment, especially youth unemployment, in the Member States make this a central theme of training and social policies. Numerous different experiments designed to facilitate the transition process are under way, both in the Member States and at European level, within Community programmes, most recently in the Leonardo programme. The very variety of these experiments makes them a valuable resource for associating the work done in schools and training establishments with the business sector. A single reference model would be reductive even if it where implemented in accordance with the ways in which education and training systems are organized.

It should also be emphasized that the objective must not be seen simply as mechanically adjusting training courses to cater exclusively for the world of work, but as ensuring that every individual has the capacity to adjust to change.

As stated in the OECD, there should be a strengthening of the partnership between all sectors of society capable of improving the relationship between school and the world of work.

It is also necessary to establish greater cooperation between the bodies responsible for analyzing new occupational requirements.

As the Delors White Paper made clear, we must move towards a 'training society` in which education and training serve not just as a key to the world of work but are also a means of maximizing the potential of each individual.

C. Combating exclusion

Paradoxically, the development of scientific research and the dissemination of technology risk widening the gap between those who have knowledge and control its use and those who may not possess the new literacy.

The real challenge for education systems is to create the conditions under which everyone can be offered appropriate education and training opportunities with lifelong learning in view.

Accordingly, greater efforts must be made to improve the quality of education and initial training systems, in order to avoid individuals experiencing disadvantage and failure. To deal with the latter two situations, each Member State will adopt the measures it considers necessary and will encourage a broader exchange of experience.

Many Member States do not consider that the problems of educational failure can be solved by a single institutional measure. In order to provide further chances for those who have left the education system early without any qualifications, each Member State will endeavour to introduce and develop such arrangements as it considers necessary to offer those people various opportunities and will encourage exchanges of experience to fuel further consideration of the subject.

D. Knowledge of languages

Community cooperation has always considered this objective as fundamental for promoting individual mobility and intercultural education. Against this background, it is essential to make full use of current Community programmes. Some Member States take the view that the attention they pay to the languages of the European Union, which are considered important and given priority under the 1995 Resolution to promote multilingualism, cannot of course, in the context of their national policies, rule out that paid to other languages.

In order to achieve the aim of proficiency in three languages of the European Union, the Commission proposes in particular a quality label for initiatives encouraging language learning. Such an idea meets with objections from the Member States. The Commission takes the view that this point warrants particular attention during the debate under way.

E. Treating tangible and intangible investment on an equal footing

This proposal to consolidate the levels of funding for all those involved in education and training is not a simple one; it has implications for the use of public resources. It raises accounting and fiscal problems with regard to expenditure on education and training. Examination of the state of the art on this issue in Member States is desirable.

In conclusion, the Council is at one in considering that the White Paper offers a background on which, over the coming months, to base examination of the key aspects of approaches to education and training in the next few years.

A strategy for further Community cooperation cannot in any event disregard two essential aspects of the development of education and training systems:

- the role, the responsabilities and the professional skills of teachers, to whom political decision-makers should devote the greatest attention,

- the quality of the education and training systems, which finds its true measure in the needs of society as a whole as reflected in the expectations and demands made of such systems by pupils, parents and the community in general.

In terms of continuing education also, as Ministers have repeatedly stated on other occasions, a sound basic training is essential for individuals' full personal development and their ability fully to develop their occupational skills.

The debate is set to continue, given the complexity of the problems of education and training in a rapidly changing society and in view of the growing responsabilities devolving on public authorities, and on the social partners, for designing integrated training systems and for offering continuing education, which will concern individuals throughout their lives.

The analysis which will be conducted can therefore be expected to open up areas for Community cooperation. A contribution along these lines will be offered by the reports that the Commission will be making in the light of the findings of the forthcoming specialized conferences.

Discussion will also be useful because the problems dealt with in the White Paper have been or are being examined in other international fora, such as the OECD, the Council of Europe and Unesco, also very much aware of the global dimension of education and training issues, their connection with the labour market and employment and their cultural or purely educational implications.

The Commission's White Paper fits into a framework of analysis and proposal which deals with the most important topics on the international agenda: mobility and the free movement of human resources, promotion of multilingualism and intercultural education, processes of transition, development of the role of the social partners in training systems, introduction of new information technologies into teaching and provision of equal opportunities having due regard for the quality of training systems.

The analysis carried out at Community level should perhaps be given political significance marking Member States' cooperation in their search for reasons for pursuing, through means which include education and training measures, the European Union's overal objectives in its three roles, as an integrated economic area, as a community of citizens and as a protagonist in international relations.

The Community institutions, each within its role, must contribute to defining areas for common action which strictly adhere to the provisions of the Treaty. Member States' doubts and reservations about certain of the White Paper's proposals (skills recognition, a European apprenticeship scheme, quality certification of schools, and 'second-chance` institutions) have to be seen as relating to complex issues; before drawing up coherent and specific action programmes involving the deployment of financial resources, it would be useful to consider those issues further and carry out a closer comparison of the experiments conducted in the Member States.