Proposal for a RECOMMENDATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on European cooperation in quality evaluation in school education
Date: 2000-01-24
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European cooperation, database, education policy, exchange of information, teaching

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 24.01.2000
COM(1999) 709 final

2000/0022 (COD)

Proposal for a

RECOMMENDATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
AND OF THE COUNCIL

on European cooperation in quality evaluation in school education

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.

INTRODUCTION

Quality in school education is a priority for the Member States, every school in
Europe is intrinsically concerned with quality, and the first priority of every teacher is
the quality of pupils’ learning. As stated in Article 149,
the Community shall
contribute to the development of quality education by encouraging cooperation
between Member States. European Community encouragement,
support and
facilitation of the exchange of information and experiences can instigate innovative
measures in improving this quality.

In order to strengthen cooperation at European level in the field of evaluation of
quality in school education various activities were undertaken in 1995-1998. Senior
twice in 1995 to discuss quality evaluation in school
Education Officials met
education. Following four calls for proposals in 1995, 1996, 1997 and 1998, the
Commission allocated financial support for studies, study visits and conferences
focusing on the quality of school education.

When the Commission expressed its intention of launching a pilot project on
Quality Evaluation in School Education at the beginning of 1997, this was strongly
supported by the Ministers of Education at the Council meeting on 6 May 1996. The
Ministers stressed the need to step up co-operation at European level in this vital area.
Later the Council of Ministers at their meeting in Brussels on 20 November 1997
further underlined the importance of improving quality in school education by the
adoption of a Council conclusion in the field1.

The pilot project on quality evaluation in school education was conducted in 1997 and
1998 in cooperation with the competent authorities in the Member States. The aim of
the pilot project was to further raise awareness of the need to evaluate secondary
education in Europe, to enhance existing national procedures, to give a European
dimension to quality evaluation, and to support the exchange of information and
experiences2.

The results of the pilot project were included in an interim report3 and in the final
report4. In national reports, the impact of the project on schools in different countries
is evaluated. In some countries, the pilot project has fed into new laws, notably in the
Netherlands, Austria and Greece.
the
In Italy,
implementation of school autonomy. Portugal continue to run the pilot project
progressively involving more and more schools in the endeavour. In Norway, it has
inspired a White Paper on quality evaluation. The German speaking countries

the project gave input

for

1

2

3

4

Council conclusions of 16 December 1997 on the evaluation of quality in school education (98/C
1/03).
The methods of evaluation employed in the pilot project was described in the “guidelines for
participating institutions”, and “a practical guide to self-evaluation”, translated into all community
languages and distributed to all 101 schools taking part in the pilot project.
Evaluating quality in school education; A European pilot project; Interim report. May 1998.
Evaluating quality in school education; A European pilot project; Final report. June 1999.

2

(Germany, Austria, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein) are continuing school meetings
on a trans-national level.

2.

CONTEXT

Article 149 of the EC Treaty states that
the Community shall contribute to
the development of quality education by encouraging co-operation between
Member States and, if necessary, by supporting and supplementing their action, while
fully respecting the responsibility of the Member States for the content of teaching
and the organisation of education systems and their cultural and linguistic diversity.

There are many aspects to quality in education. The quality of a system or an
arrangement cannot be defined in absolute terms. Quality depends on the objectives
set, the means whereby they are to be attained, and the conditions under which they
are being achieved. Developments in society imply changes in the demands of the
quality of educational provisions. Quality in education depends on the stakeholder
interest (who is assessing the quality of the educational provisions: a student, a
teacher or a parent).

The definition of quality in education is a political debate and part of the democratic
process. The debate is about objectives, means to achieve the objectives, economic
priorities, knowledge about education and learning processes, and the needs and
wishes of citizens.

On different
levels of the education system, quality evaluation functions as an
instrument to measure and evaluate whether the education system lives up to the
objectives set. Evaluation implies dialogue between all concerned parties, and through
proper follow-up adjustment is made to fulfil new quantitative and qualitative criteria.

Most European educational systems have experienced great changes over the last
two decades. One of the main forces at work is decentralisation. A greater degree of
decision-making power is devolved to local levels of the education system and
institutions are becoming more autonomous. In a sense, decentralisation is an
instrument to take the political debate or the democratic process on what constitutes
quality down to lower levels of the education system.

There are basically two perspectives of quality evaluation: external evaluation and
self-evaluation. External evaluation is an attempt by the central government to ensure
that quality education is provided, and that schools use resources efficiently. External
evaluation is the mean to control and guide schools from central level. In the
perspective of bringing the democratic debate on quality in education down to local
levels, self-evaluation is empowering schools themselves to undertake the task.
Self-evaluation is an instrument to organise the democratic debate on what constitutes
the
quality in school education at
involvement of all relevant actors, and it provides instruments to support decision
making and learning.

level. Self-evaluation often asks for

local

Quality indicators or benchmarks are data helping stakeholders at all levels when
evaluating the quality of
the educational provisions. Organisations, business
enterprises, schools or universities become more intelligent by virtue of having at their

3

disposal data which can help them to see more clearly. Data providing lenses through
which to understand the world of school and classrooms.

The point of establishing European level cooperation on quality evaluation and on
to produce evaluation models, which can be
quality indicators is obviously not
generally introduced. It
is precisely the diversity and wealth of methods and
approaches used nationally which will generate a fruitful exchange of information,
which can contribute to improving an enriching existing assessment arrangements.
therefore be based on the different national
Any action at European level must
contexts and the historical, social, cultural and political situation in each country.

3.

LEGAL BASIS FOR THE RECOMMENDATION

the
For the area of education and training, Articles 149 and 150 state that
if
Community’s role is to encourage cooperation between Member States and,
necessary,
their action while fully respecting the
responsibility of the Member States for the content of teaching and the organisation of
education and training systems and their cultural and linguistic diversity.

to support and supplement

The Recommendation respects the diversity of the European education and training
systems and builds on voluntary cooperation and adaptation. Community action in the
field could have an added value in so far as the exchange of information and
inspire
experiences set one’s own national system in perspective, and might
innovations.

4

2000/0022 (COD)

Proposal for a

RECOMMENDATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
AND OF THE COUNCIL

on European cooperation in quality evaluation in school education

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular
Articles 149(4) and Article 150(4) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission1,

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee2,

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions3,

Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

High quality education is an objective for all Member States.

The resources devoted to education have increased in all industrialised countries during
the last decades. Education is seen as the solution to problems of employment and
social cohesion. Lifelong learning is the key to controlling one’s future on a
professional and personal level. High quality education is essential in the light of labour
market policies, and the free movement of workers within the European Union.

In the area of labour market policies the Council adopts each year a set of employment
guidelines building on quantitative target and indicators. In the 1999 employment
guidelines4, Guideline 7 states that Member States will “improve the quality of their
school systems in order to reduce substantially the number of young people who drop
out of the school system early. Particular attention should also be given to young
people with learning difficulties”. In Guideline 8 of the proposed 2000 employment
guidelines5, the Commission is proposing that specific reference be made to developing
computer literacy, to equipping schools with computer equipment and to facilitating
student access to the Internet by 2002, which should positively impact on the quality of
education and prepare the young for the digital age.

1

2

3

4

5

OJ C
OJ C
OJ C
Council Resolution of 22 February 1999 on the 1999 employment guidelines, OJ C 69, 12.3.1999, p. 2.
COM(1999) 441 final.

5

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

In order to achieve the objective of high quality education, a whole range of means are
available. Quality evaluation is a method of monitoring and creating learning and
improving schools, which are capable of transmitting knowledge and equipping
students in the Community with the appropriate skills, qualifications and attitudes
which are essential to meet future challenges.

The Commission conducted a pilot project on quality evaluation in higher education in
1994 and 1995. Council Recommendation 98/561/EC of 24 September 1998 on
European Cooperation in quality assurance in higher education6 underlines the
importance of the exchange of information and experiences and cooperation regarding
quality assurance with other Member States.

invites the Commission to
in particular Action III.3.1,
The Socrates programme,
promote the exchange of information and experience on questions of common interest.
Evaluating quality in school education is one of the priority themes of the said Action.

The Commission has, since March 1996, launched various studies and operational
activities to examine the question of evaluation from different perspectives with the aim
of describing the wide variety and wealth of approaches and education evaluation
methodologies used at different levels.

The Commission conducted a pilot project during the academic year 1997/1998 in
101 upper and lower secondary schools in the countries participating in the
Socrates programme. An Advisory Working Party
together
Member States’ appointed experts on education evaluation assisted the Commission in
the implementation of the project.

brought

that

including representatives of

the 101 schools,
The participants in the project,
decision-makers
school
from national
stakeholders adopted a declaration during a final conference in Vienna on 20 and
21 November 1998. That declaration states that “The Pilot Project has raised the
awareness of quality issues in our schools and in almost all our schools, the project has
helped to improve the quality of education during the project period7”.

administrations,

researchers,

and

(10) All 18 countries (EU Member States and Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) taking
part in the pilot project have written national reports exploring the impact of and their
experiences during the pilot project. Those National Reports are predominantly positive
and stress the importance of learning from one another internationally through the
exchange of experiences and of good practices.

(11)

The final European report8 emphasises a range of methodological elements as important
elements for successful self-evaluation. Those elements include networking nationally
and internationally and support and encouragement from national level.

(12)

In its conclusions of 16 December 19979, the Council stated that evaluation is also an
important element for assuring and where appropriate, improving quality.

6

7

8

OJ L 270, 7.10.1998, p. 56.
At the final conference of the pilot project in Vienna on 20 and 21 November 1998, the participants
adopted a declaration.
Evaluation quality in school education, A European pilot project, Final report, June 1999.

6

(13)

It is necessary to take account of the principle of subsidiarity and Member States’
exclusive responsibilities for the organisation and structure of their education systems,
as well as the autonomy and independence of their educational institutions,

I.

RECOMMEND:

THAT MEMBER STATES SUPPORT THE IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY IN
SCHOOL EDUCATION, BY:

1.

Supporting and, where appropriate, establishing transparent quality
systems with the following aims:

(a)

(b)

(c)

to safeguard the quality of school education as a basis for lifelong
learning, within the specific economic, social and cultural context of
each Member State while taking due account of
the European
dimension,

to encourage school self-evaluation as a method to create learning and
improving schools, within a balanced framework between school
self-evaluation and any external evaluations,

to clarify the purpose and the conditions for school self-evaluation, and
to ensure that the approach to self-evaluation is consistent with other
forms of regulation;

2.

Supporting and, where appropriate, developing systems of external
evaluation with the following aims:

(a)

(b)

to monitor and provide methodological support and encouragement for
school self-evaluation,

to provide an outside view of the school ensuring that it is in a process
of continuous improvement;

3.

Encouraging and supporting the involvement of all school stakeholders in
the full process of evaluation in schools with the following aims:

(a)

(b)

to add a decisive and creative element to school self-evaluation,

to ensure shared responsibility for the improvement of schools;

9

OJ C 1, 3.1.1998, p. 4.

7

4.

Supporting training in the management and the use of self-evaluation with
the following aims:

(a)

(b)

to make school self-evaluation function effectively as an instrument
strengthening schools’ capacity to improve,

to ensure an efficient dissemination of examples of good practice and
new instrument within self-evaluation;

5.

Supporting schools’ capacity to learn from one another nationally and on
a European scale, with the following aims:

(a)

(b)

to identify good practices, efficient tools and benchmarks,

to form networks to support each other and provide outside impetus to
the evaluation process;

6.

Encouraging the cooperation between the authorities responsible for
quality in school education and promote European networking:

This cooperation could cover some of the following areas:

(a)

(b)

(c)

the exchange of
methodological developments and examples of good practice,

information and experiences,

in particular on

the development of comparable data, indicators and benchmarks on
national education systems to compare strength and weaknesses with a
view to exchanging good practices,

the building of European expertise in the area, which could be made
available for authorities in Member States concerned,

(d)

promoting contact between experts internationally.

II.

INVITE THE COMMISSION:

1.

to encourage, in close cooperation with the Member States, and on the basis of
existing programmes, and subject to their objectives and normal, open and
transparent procedures, the cooperation referred to in point 6 between the
responsible for quality in school education, also involving
authorities
organisations and associations of
school education institutions with a
European remit and the necessary experience in quality assessment and quality
assurance;

1.1.

2.
to establish a database for the dissemination of tools and instruments of
school self-evaluation. The database should also contain examples of best
practice within school evaluation. The database should be accessible on the
Internet;

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3.

triennial reports to the European Parliament,

the
to present
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on progress
in the development of quality assurance systems in the various Member States
and on cooperation activities at European level including the progress achieved
above.
with

the Council,

objectives

referred

respect

the

to

to

Done at Brussels,

For the European Parliament
The President

For the Council
The President

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FINANCIAL STATEMENT

1.

TITLE OF OPERATION

European Parliament and Council Recommendation on European Cooperation in
Quality Evaluation in School Education

2.

BUDGET HEADING(S) INVOLVED

The A-part of the general budget, section III (Commission).

The establishment of
Socrates programme.

the database will

involve budget

item B3.1001 of

the

3.

LEGAL BASIS

Articles 149 and 150 of the EC Treaty

4.

4.1

DESCRIPTION OF OPERATION

General objective

The logic of the recommendation is to obtain a mandate to establish a European
network of institutions working in the field of quality evaluation, indicators and
benchmark.

4.2

Period covered and arrangements for renewal

The recommendation is indefinite.

5.

TYPE OF EXPENDITURE OR REVENUE

The implementation of the recommendation implies the establishment of a database
for the dissemination of tools and instruments of schools- self-evaluation. The
database should also contain examples of best practice within school evaluation.
Within the framework of the recommendation two expert meetings are foreseen
per year.

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6.

FINANCIAL IMPACT

The implementation of the recommendation implies the establishment of a database. A
call for proposal is envisaged.

6.1

Itemised breakdown of cost

Commitment appropriations EUR million (at current prices)

Breakdown

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006 and
subs. Yrs

Establishment and
running of database

0.05

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.03

Total

0.05

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.03

6.2

Schedule of commitment and payment appropriations

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

EUR million

2006 and
subs. Yrs

Total

0.05

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.25

Commitment
appropriations

Payment
appropriations

Year n
n+1
n+2
n+3
n+4
n+5
and subs. yrs

Total

The amount is found within existing resources of DG Education and Culture.

7.

ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENDITURE (SECTION III, PART A OF THE BUDGET)

Actual mobilisation of the necessary administrative resources will depend on the
Commission’s annual decision on the allocation of resources, taking into account the
number of staff and additional amounts authorised by the budgetary authority.

11

7.1

Effect on the number of posts

Type of post

Staff to be assigned to
managing the operation

Source

Duration

Permanent
posts

Temporary
posts

Additional
resources

Existing
resources in
the DG or
department
concerned

Officials or
temporary
staff

A
B
C

Other resources

0.5
0.25
0.25

Total

1

0.5
0.25
0.25

1

7.2

Overall financial impact of additional human resources

Amounts

Method of calculation

Officials

108 000

108 000 x 1/an (A1, A2, A4, A5 and A7)

EUR

Temporary staff

Other resources
(indicate budget heading)

Total

108 000

The amount is found within existing resources of DG Education and Culture.

7.3

Increase in other administrative expenditure as a result of the operation

Budget heading

Amounts

Method of calculation

A-7030

19 500

2 meetings x 15 participants x 650 euros

EUR

Total

19 500

The expenditure set out in the above table under heading A-7 will be covered by
credits within the DG Education and Culture global envelope.

12