WRITTEN QUESTION E-0944/03

by Jorge Hernández Mollar (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(26 March 2003)

Subject: Lessons learned from the BEST procedure

The BEST procedure on education and training to encourage entrepreneurship within the Multiannual Programme on Enterprise and Entrepreneurship (2001-2005) is intended to identify and compare the various European initiatives to promote entrepreneurship within the educational system, from primary school to university.

The final outcome of the scheme was due to become available in September 2002, including a general summary of existing measures.

Now that September 2002 is well behind us, what lessons can be drawn from the BEST procedure and what guidelines does the Commission intend to put forward as a result?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(24 April 2003)

As a result of the Best Procedure project on Education and Training for entrepreneurship, an Expert Group Report on existing measures to promote entrepreneurship education in Europe was finalised in November 2002(1). The document offers a picture of entrepreneurship teaching through formal education from primary school to university in the Member States and Norway.

The report acknowledges the existence in most cases although to varying degrees of a national policy commitment to promote the teaching of entrepreneurship, but notes that the requisite activities and programmes are not yet generally available to students. Although many interesting experiences do exist throughout Europe, they are not normally integrated into national structures or curricula, and teacher training is insufficient. Initiatives are often isolated, taken by individual institutions, by partnerships or by local authorities. Frequently, they are driven by external actors and not by the education system itself. Entrepreneurship is more likely to be seen as an extra-curricular activity.

Furthermore, a lack of detailed national figures on the numbers of schools involved in entrepreneurship, and the numbers of students taking part, makes it difficult to monitor progress.

The report also highlights some well established examples of good practice, with a particular focus on learning by doing, for instance by means of students at secondary level creating and running mini-companies during one school year.

The report suggests possible action to be taken at various levels. In particular, it calls for national administrations to carry on converting the existing commitment into concrete measures, ranging from changing the national curriculum to providing incentives to the schools or training the teachers.

On that basis, a follow-up to this initiative open to candidate countries has already been launched aiming to establish a methodology for achieving progress in this area. This work will lead to a new, more policy-oriented report. Final results are expected by July 2003. The whole process aims at encouraging policy change one of the essential features being that the project is carried out jointly by the Commission and by the national administrations concerned and may eventually lead to proposing national targets, to be reached on a voluntary basis by the participating countries.

(1) The Report is available (in 12 languages) on the Enterprise DG web pages, at the following address:http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/entrepreneurship/support_measures/training_education/index.htm.