Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, on the recognition of the value of non-formal and informal learning within the European youth field
Date: 2006-07-20
Institutions: Council of the European Union, Representatives of the Governments of the Member States
Subjects: continuing education, cooperation in the field of education, education, education policy, non-formal education, personal development, young person, youth policy

20.7.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 168/1

I

(Information)

COUNCIL

Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States,
meeting within the Council, on the recognition of the value of non-formal and informal learning
within the European youth field

(2006/C 168/01)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE REPRESENTA-
TIVES OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES, MEETING
WITHIN THE COUNCIL,

Whereas:

(1) The Conclusions of the Lisbon European Council on 23
and 24 March 2000 define new strategic objectives to
strengthen employment, economic reform and social
cohesion as an integral part of a knowledge-based
economy. Member States were invited by the European
Council to adopt the necessary measures in their constitu-
tional provisions and the Council and the Commission,
its own competences, were
each within the limits of
invited to develop inter alia a common European blueprint
for curricula vitae to be used on a voluntary basis, which
would make it easier for educational and training institu-
tions as well as employers to assess skills acquired and
promote mobility.

(2) The White Paper A new impetus for European youth of 21
November 2001 (1), with regard to the recognition of
learning, emphasises the need
non-formal and informal
for a clearer definition of
the skills
acquired and of quality standards, a higher regard for
those involved, greater recognition of these activities and
and
greater
training.

complementarity with formal

the concepts, of

learning

(3) The Barcelona European Council on 15 and 16 March
2002 adopted a concrete work programme with the
objective of making the education and training systems a
worldwide quality reference by 2010. It agreed that the
three basic principles underlying this programme should
be improved quality, facilitation of universal access, and
opening to the wider world.

(4) The Council Resolution on lifelong learning of 27 June
2002 (2) invites the Member States to encourage coopera-
tion and effective measures to validate learning outcomes,
crucial for building bridges between formal, non-formal
and informal learning and thus a prerequisite for the crea-
tion of a European area of lifelong learning.

(5) On the basis of the joint Commission and Council of
Europe working paper Pathways towards Validation and
Recognition of Education, Training and Learning in the Youth
Field the January 2005 ‘Bridges for Recognition’ confer-
ence in Leuven developed approaches towards the assess-
ment and recognition of education, training and learning
in the field of youth and underlined the need for a better
validation of non-formal learning.

(6) The comprehensive work of the Council of Europe in the
field of non-formal and informal learning, for instance by
means of a European Portfolio for Youth Leaders and
Youth Workers, underlines the value of this type of educa-
tional experience and emphasises the need to recognise it,
particularly given the significance of life-long learning.

(7) The Conclusions of 28 May 2004 of the Council and of
the representatives of the Governments of the Member
States, meeting within the Council, advocated, in accord-
ance with the Copenhagen Declaration of 30 November
2002 (3):

— the adoption of a set of common European principles
for the identification and validation of non-formal and
informal learning;

— the development and dissemination of European
instruments to recognise non-formal and informal
learning.

(1) Doc. 14441/01 — COM(2001) 681 final.

(2) OJ C 163, 9.7.2002, p. 1.
(3) doc. 9600/04.

C 168/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

20.7.2006

(8) The Council Conclusions of 21 February 2005 (1) called
on the European Council to integrate the European Pact
for Youth initiative into the mid-term review of
the
Lisbon Strategy and to adopt guidelines on concrete
measures.

(9) The Presidency Conclusions of the European Council of
23 March 2005, which agreed on the European Pact for
Youth, state that a package of strategies and measures
dedicated to youth should form a fully integrated part of
the Lisbon Strategy. One objective is to develop closer
cooperation between the Member States on transparency
and comparability of occupational qualifications as well as
to recognise non-formal and informal learning.

and training system, have a participative and learner-
centred approach, are carried out on a voluntary basis and
are therefore closely linked to young people's needs,
aspirations and interests; by providing an additional
source of learning and a possible route into formal educa-
tion and training, such activities are particularly relevant
to young people with fewer opportunities;

(3) non-formal and informal learning in the youth field takes
place in a wide and varied range of settings and that, for
the self-development of young people and their social,
cultural and professional integration, specific and appro-
priate methods and instruments are required;

(10) The Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives
of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within
the Council, of 15 November 2005 (2), addresses the
implementation of the European Pact for Youth and the
promotion of active citizenship and defines action lines.

(4) public and private investment in the youth field at local,
regional, national and European level have an important
economic and social impact;

(11) The Presidency Conclusions of the European Council on
16 and 17 June 2005 propose Integrated Guidelines for
Growth and Jobs (2005 –2008) which include the imple-
mentation of the European Pact for Youth.

(5) the social and economic importance of the youth field is
evident in its potential impact on the development of key
competences that are of practical relevance to the labour-
market, and its fostering of participation, active citizen-
ship and social responsibility.

(12) The Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament
and of the Council creating the ‘YOUTH IN ACTION’
programme (3) gives European cooperation a key role in
promoting non-formal and informal learning.

RECOGNISE that

the

(13) The Joint Report of the Council and the Commission
Modernising Education and Training: a vital contribution to
prosperity and social cohesion in Europe on progress in imple-
Education and Training 2010 work
menting
programme (4) emphasises the importance of achieving a
balance between the social and economic objectives of
education and training policies and of developing diverse
learning partnerships which include those engaged in
both formal and non-formal sectors;

AWARE that

(1) non-formal and informal learning are important elements
in the learning process and are effective instruments for
making learning attractive, developing readiness for life-
integration of
long learning and promoting the social
young people;

(2) non-formal and informal

learning can enable young
people to acquire additional knowledge, skills and compe-
tences and contribute to their personal development,
social inclusion and active citizenship, thereby improving
their employment prospects;

(1) the work and achievements of young people and those
active in youth work and youth organisations deserve
greater recognition in order to enhance their value and
visibility, and should be given due consideration by
employers, formal education and civil society in general;

(3) non-formal and informal

learning activities within the
youth field can provide significant added value for society,
the economy and young people themselves; the contribu-
tions which such activities make should therefore be
made more visible, as well as better understood, recog-
nised and supported;

(2) non-formal and informal

learning activities within the
youth field are complementary to the formal education

(1) OJ C 85, 7.4.2005, p. 5.
(2) OJ C 292 of 24.11.2005, p. 5.
(3) Doc. 11586/04 — COM(2004) 471 final.
(4) OJ C 79, 1.4.2006, p. 1.

(4) the YOUTH and future ‘YOUTH IN ACTION’ Programmes
make an important contribution to the acquisition of
competences
in
providing young people with opportunities for non-
formal and informal learning in a European dimension.

therefore key instruments

and are

20.7.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 168/3

INVITE THE MEMBER STATES AND THE COMMISSION to

(1) encourage, while taking into account the specific situation
in each Member State, the development of a comparable
and transparent youth-specific element within Europass
for identifying and recognising the skills and competences
acquired by young people through non-formal and
informal learning, that could be attached to or form an
integral part of, certificates or other recognition tools in
order to make it easier for third persons — particularly in
another Member State — to understand what the original
certificate means in terms of the knowledge, skills and
competences acquired by its holder;

(2) enable by this means the identification of those compe-
tences acquired and actually used, with a view to their
recognition on the labour market;

(3) encourage public bodies and NGOs to use and, where
instru-
appropriate, adapt comparable and transparent
ments for recognising competences of
those active in
youth work and youth organisations, in accordance with
the European Portfolio for Youth Leaders and Youth
Workers currently being developed within the Council of
Europe;

(4) recognise and support, within their respective compe-
tences, the specific contribution made by youth organisa-

and other non-governmental organisations

tions
providing non-formal and informal learning;

in

(5) promote application of the common European principles
identification and validation of non-formal

for
learning to the specific needs of the youth field;

the

(6) encourage further research into the impact of non-formal
and informal learning provided by those working in the
in particular their
youth field and youth organisations,
contribution to society and the economy,
inter alia by
making comprehensive use of the information provided
by the European Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy;

(7) encourage the social partners to acknowledge the quality
and diversity of young people's non-formal and informal
learning and to recognise its social and economic added
value;

(8) encourage innovative partnerships between formal and
non-formal learning providers, in order to develop peda-
gogical approaches that could be attractive for different
groups of learners;

(9) promote access

instruments
existing at national and European level and encourage
young people to use these on a voluntary basis.

to Europass and similar