Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the Communication from the "Commission to the Council and the European Parliament The eLearning Action Plan Designing tomorrow's education"
Date: 2001-09-19
Institutions: European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: EU programme, action programme, education, multimedia, new technology, teaching

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the Communication from the ‘Commission to the
Council and the European Parliament “The eLearning Action Plan Designing tomorrow’s
education”’

(2002/C 19/09)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS,

having regard to the Report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament on The
eLearning Action Plan Designing tomorrow’s education COM(2001) 172 fin;

having regard to the decision of the European Commission of 19 April 2001, under the first paragraph
of Article 265 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, to consult the Committee on this
matter;

having regard to the decision of the Bureau of the Committee of the Regions of 12 June 2001 to instruct
Commission 7 — Education, Vocational Training, Culture, Youth, Sport, Citizens’ Rights — to draw up
the relevant opinion;

having regard to the Draft Opinion adopted by Commission 7 on 29 June 2001 CdR 212/2001 rev.
(rapporteur: Irma Peiponen),

adopted the following Opinion unanimously at its 40th plenary session of 19 and 20 September 2001
(meeting of 19 September).

The Committee of the Region’s views and recommen-
dations

3. When the eLearning Action Plan is being implemented
at the national level, Member States must, in accordance with
the subsidiarity principle and the distribution of powers, seek
to work in partnership with local and regional authorities.

1.
The Committee of the Regions welcomes the Com-
mission’s eLearning Action Plan and considers it ambitious in
terms of its objectives. Effort and motivation are required if
Europe is to play a leading intellectual role in human resource
development. Indeed the Committee of the Regions considers
it important to develop competitiveness in all those activities
which support the eEurope Action Plan. The main tools are
eLearning and lifelong learning. The Member States’ strength
must be emphasised during implementation of the eLearning
Action Plan, in order to ensure European competitiveness in,
for example, the development of digital
technology. The
Action Plan provides the opportunity to use the EU’s different
programmes and funding and to seek out synergy. The
Committee would point out
that the open co-ordination
procedure agreed on by the European Council did not modify
Articles 149 and 150 of the Treaty, and so the Community’s
limited terms of reference in the field of education have not
been extended.

2.
eLearning is high on the CoR agenda. The Committee
considers it important for local and regional authorities to
be involved in the development and application of open
coordination so that their experience and service evaluation
procedures are taken into account. The Committee of the
Regions welcomes the fact that its expertise as the representa-
tive of local and regional authorities is employed at the
European level in developing and applying the open coordi-
nation method. This helps to create partnership which is
necessary for achieving effective results.

4.
In many Member States local and regional government
have key responsibilities in the field education and training.
They have an important role in:

— the delivery of multimedia educational services,

the
development of infrastructures and provision of equip-
ment;

— the development of school networks, exchanges of experi-

ence as is the case in certain regions;

— the promotion of innovative training practices, as major
employers and service providers, they have direct experi-
ence in managing the introduction of new technologies
in training programmes and can offer role model;

— the promotion of public and private partnerships at local
level which are crucial in funding necessary infrastructure
and services. They can encourage in particular start up
funding mechanisms;

— ensuring that the needs of both producers and users
are met whilst not compromising the content of the
educational material and ensuring full respect of cultural
and linguistic diversity by effectively involving relevant
actors, parents, pupils, social partners, minority groups
alongside industry;

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— the promotion of equitable access to new technologies:
key role in ensuring all schools including peripheral areas
and disadvantaged areas are able to benefit from new
technologies and that all means are available to them;

— also extending access to new technologies to children in
hospital or convalescing at home, to pupils with special
educational needs, and to adults who require basic or up-
dated learning in order to ensure their social integration.

timetable is in itself

The establishment of high quality infrastructure requires
5.
generous resources. A tight
to be
welcomed, but realistically the objectives require funding
additional to that of the Structural Funds, which cannot be left
solely to the responsibility of local and regional authorities.
The Committee of the Regions expects the Commission to
present funding proposals. A redirecting of resources should
not result in a reduction in the resources actually available for
teaching.

Equipment planners and designers must improve user-
6.
friendliness. This is particularly important for groups at risk of
exclusion. Moreover, there should be no obstacles in access to
eLearning for the disabled.

7.
In addition to new technology, consideration must also
be given to the use of different distribution channels in order
to enhance the current level of service. For example, the use of
digital technology in television transmission may provide new
practical solutions for remote and sparsely populated areas.
The Committee of the Regions considers it important for the
eLearning Action Plan to be implemented in a way which
promotes regional equality.

8.
The Committee of the Regions welcomes the Com-
mission’s wish to develop eLearning indicators and to report
on both quantitative and qualitative progress. The indicators
must take into account the type of digital literacy demanded
by different situations. As stated in previous opinions, the
Committee of the Regions wants to be involved in developing
training indicators and reiterates the need to involve local and
regional authorities in their development.

10.
eLearning will create an entirely new kind of learning
environment in schools. The role of teachers and schools will
change considerably, and this may present cultural difficulties.
There are positive experiences tailoring tuition to needs
through virtual schools and universities. Motivation for net-
work-study and virtual mobility can be promoted through
new networks and events (e.g. European Schoolnet, Netd@ys).

The Commission must create a portal for the exchange

11.
of good practice.

12.
eLearning is however merely a means of improving
learning in further education, working life and as a citizen in
society. The EU’s priority areas (foreign languages, natural
sciences,
technology and society, culture and citizenship)
contribute to achieving the general education and training
objectives and are compatible with the eLearning Action Plan.

13.
The new learning environment must not lose touch
with reality. Responsibility for the social, individual and ethical
education of children and young people must also be assumed
in the digital age. Information obtained from the Internet and
other forms of multimedia must be viewed as critically as
information obtained from traditional channels.

14.
Schools and learners must be encouraged to take part
in new learning communities, as learning is always a social
process. Distant learners should also have an opportunity to
meet each other. Multilingual eLearning communities in
particular contribute to improving mutual understanding in
Europe.

15.
The shift away from traditional teaching methods to
the full-scale use of new technology is a considerable step and
requires commitment to the training of teachers, principals
and instructors, as well as dialogue between teachers and
pupils. Implementation of the Action Plan must give sufficient
emphasis to these elements.

eLearning is part of lifelong learning. NGOs, trade
16.
unions and different kinds of adult education institutes can
provide each student with teaching which is quantitatively and
qualitatively appropriate. People have different needs. For
those at risk of exclusion, digital literacy is a way of improving
their employability and making them more active as citizens.

9.
The promotion of independent information and infor-
mation distribution channels is important for the success of
the eLearning Action Plan. Students, information seekers and
teachers must have extensive information reserves at their
disposal. This is why the various players must have access to
decentralised data banks. These high quality data bases must
be accessible through different distribution channels. The
Committee of the Regions welcomes the Commission’s pro-
posal to link schools to the research network.

17.
To ensure the creation of a successful eLearning
environment, special attention must be paid to content
production and the quality of
learning, while bearing in
mind the human dimension of education objectives and the
interaction between people. The Committee of the Regions
feels that a far-reaching dialogue must be initiated on intellec-
tual property rights and conditions governing payment of
authors.

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18.
Teaching materials are culturally rooted. In order to
preserve cultural diversity the Commission must support
content production in minority languages, as it is not profitable
to produce a large range of digital material for small numbers
of users. Cultural and linguistic diversity must be included
among the indicators.

19.
Content production must be funded by the Structural
Funds or through training and cultural programmes, on
condition that the Open Source principle is applied. However
the ambitious timetable also requires the EU to make an
additional contribution. The Committee of the Regions is
waiting for the Commission to produce an initiative on
additional funding.

Developing employability is one of the main objectives
20.
of education and training. As the skills in demand change
rapidly in the knowledge-based new economy, partnership is
required between education and training establishments and
companies. The Committee of the Regions has frequently
stressed the importance of training in an entrepreneurial
society, and local and regional authorities are part of this
partnership. The advantages of cooperation are two-way: the
region prospers if its citizens manage to find work as a result
of high quality education and training, while companies benefit

Brussels, 19 September 2001.

the commercialisation of

from employees with the right skills. Partnership should not
entail
training. Partnership also
works well with regard to lifelong learning. Local and regional
authorities can encourage small companies to join in efforts to
seek out new opportunities in innovative ways.

21.
The Committee of the Regions also wishes to emphasise
that NGOs and trade unions should be involved in public-
private partnership.
Indeed in many Member States it is
grass-roots players who have the main responsibility for
implementing the eLearning objectives. However a variety of
players must be brought together to discuss the objectives and
how they are to be implemented.

22.
The Committee of the Regions considers it important
for the eLearning project to extend beyond the network of
educational establishments, for example to libraries, museums,
sport and leisure centres. It is essential for these activities to
be undertaken at the grass-roots level. Local and regional
authorities also have a key role to play here.

23.
The Committee of the Regions is concerned about the
prospects of applying the eLearning action programme in the
applicant countries. Efforts must also be made to ensure that
these countries have sufficient infrastructure at their disposal
and that digital literacy is a possibility for all.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Jos CHABERT