Proposed EU Integrated Action Programme for Life-Long Learning
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HOUSE OF LORDS European Union Committee 17th Report of Session 2004-05 Proposed EU Integrated Action Programme for Life-long Learning Volume 2: Evidence Ordered to be printed 5 April 2005 and published 14 April 2005 Published by the Authority of the House of Lords London: The Stationery Office Limited £23.00 HL Paper 104-II CONTENTS Oral Evidence Department for Education and Skills (DfES), the British Council and the European Commission Written Evidence, DfES 1 Written Evidence, British Council 11 Oral Evidence, 19 January 2005 16 Supplementary Written Evidence, DfES 38 Supplementary Written Evidence, European Commission 58 Universities UK (UUK) and University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES) Written Evidence, UUK 60 Oral Evidence, 26 January 2005 65 Written Evidence, UACES 77 Oral Evidence, 26 January 2005 80 UK Socrates-Erasmus Council, Association of Colleges and the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) Written Evidence, UK Socrates-Erasmus Council 90 Oral Evidence, 2 February 2005 97 Written Evidence, Association of Colleges 105 Written Evidence, NIACE 108 Oral Evidence, 2 February 2005 111 Sylvia Mingay, Marguerite Hogg, Mark Cullens, ARCH, Grampus Heritage & Training Ltd and Morthyng Ltd Written Evidence, Sylvia Mingay 121 Written Evidence, Marguerite Hogg 122 Oral Evidence, 9 February 2005 125 Written Evidence, ARCH 132 Written Evidence, Grampus Heritage & Training Ltd 135 Written Evidence, Morthyng Ltd 142 Oral Evidence, 9 February 2005 145 Mr Ray Kirtley, University of Hull, Ms Jill Ritchie, Bristol Local Education Authority, Ms Julie Winyard, Benhall St Mary’s CofE Primary School, Saxmundham, Ms Sue Laffey Ounsdale High School,Staffordshire and Mr Martin Moorman, Ravenscliffe High School,Halifax Written Evidence, Ray Kirtley 153 Written Evidence, Jill Ritchie 153 Oral Evidence, 23 February 2005 154 Written Evidence, Julie Winyard 163 Written Evidence, Sue Laffey 169 Written Evidence, Martin Moorman 170 Oral Evidence, 23 February 2005 170 Learning and Skills Council Written Evidence, Learning and Skills Council 178 Oral Evidence, 24 February 2005 180 Dr Kim Howells MP, Minister of State for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education, Department for Education and Skills Oral Evidence, 2 March 2005 191 Supplementary Written Evidence, DfES 202 Supplementary Written Evidence, UUK 215 Written Evidence ALG European Service 218 Bristol University 218 Letter from Baroness Thomas of Walliswood to CBI 219 Central Lancashire University 223 CILT, the National Centre for Languages 225 City & Guilds 228 Cumbria County Council Officers 229 Dr Paolo Dardanelli 230 ECOTEC 231 Educational Centres Association 233 Eurydice Unit at the National Foundation for Educational Research 234 Professor Robert Fisher 239 Glasgow University 240 Lawrence Hardy 241 Help the Aged 242 HEURO 243 The IEE (Institution of Electrical Engineers) 256 Leeds University 258 London Metropolitan University 262 Luton University 264 National Association of Language Advisers (NALA) 265 National Postgraduate Committee of the United Kingdom 265 North London Colleges European Network (NLCEN) 267 Open University 270 Liverpool John Moores University 270 Plymouth College of Further Education 271 SPRITO 273 Third Age Trust 274 David Tolliday, Projects Officer, Otley College 278 UK Erasmus Student Committee 279 Union of Industrial and Employers’ Confederation of Europe (UNICE) 282 Universities Council for the Education of Teachers (UCET) 289 University Council of Modern Languages (UCML) 290 Professor Roger Vickerman 292 Welsh Assembly Government 295 Work Foundation 300 Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) 301 NOTE: The Report of the Committee is published Volume 1, HL Paper No 104- 1. The Evidence of the Committee is published in Volume 2, HL Paper No. 104-2 Minutes of Evidence TAKEN BEFORE THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE EUROPEAN UNION (SUB-COMMITTEE G) WEDNESDAY 19 JANUARY 2005 Present Colwyn, L Howie of Troon, L Dundee, E Massey of Darwen, B Greengross, B Neuberger, B Harrison, L Thomas of Walliswood, B (Chairman) Howarth of Breckland, B Trefgarne, L Memorandum submitted by the Department for Education and Skills Subject Matter 1. The Commission’s 9 March 2004 Communication (Scrutiny Ref: 7351/04), heralded its intentions for a new generation of Community education and training programmes after 2006. On 14 July, the Commission adopted its formal proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and the Council to establish a new integrated lifelong learning programme for the period 2007–13 (document 11587/04, COM (2004) 474 final), building on the current education and training programmes: Socrates, Leonardo da Vinci and eLearning, the Europass initiative and the various actions funded through the Community action programme to promote bodies active at European level and to support specific activities in the fields of education and training. The draft Decision is broadly consistent with the Commission’s intentions as set out in its earlier Communication and contains specific programme objectives, scope, activities, target groups, delivery mechanisms and procedures. The Commission’s EM accompanying the draft Decision also foreshadows a longer term proposal to incorporate the Erasmus Mundus programme within the integrated lifelong learning programme in 2009, after the current Erasmus Mundus programme ends. 2. The overall objective of the integrated programme is to contribute, through lifelong learning, to the Lisbon goal for the EU to become an advanced knowledge-based society with sustainable economic development, more and better jobs and greater social cohesion. It aims to support these goals through promoting the exchange of best practice, co-operation and mobility between education and training systems within the EU, while respecting national diversity. Integrating Community support for these transnational activities is aimed at meeting the need (identified via current programme evaluations and public consultations including with the Member States) for better coherence and synergy between the diVerent education and training activities to support lifelong learning approaches; for simplified, more user-friendly and flexible programme implementation; and for more coherent, structured and eYcient administration mechanisms. The draft Decision proposes: a structure of common actions and procedures across the range of constituent Community activities, with a single programme committee to ensure overall coherence; greater decentralisation; and changes to reduce bureaucracy. 3. In addition to the Commission’s EM, the proposal is accompanied by a Commission StaV Working Paper (document 11587/04ADD1, SEC (2004) 971), published on 19 July 2004, consisting of an assessment of the likely impact of the programme on education and training systems and practice in Europe and an ex ante evaluation, based on national implementation reports and external evaluations of the current Socrates and Leonardo programmes, and on the Commission’s public consultation on the future of the programmes which it undertook early last year. It examines a range of issues including programme objectives and indicators, risks and assumptions, value added, subsidiarity, proportionality and cost implications. 2 life-long learning: evidence 19 January 2005 Background 4. The current Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci programmes are financed to the end of the current EU Financial Perspective on 31 December 2006. To replace them, the draft Decision proposes four specific programmes, integrated within an overall lifelong learning framework: Comenius for general education activities concerning schools up to and including upper secondary level; Erasmus, for higher education and advanced vocational education and training activities; Leonardo da Vinci for all other aspects of vocational education and training; and Grundtvig for adult education. Common activities across these four sectoral programmes would include: mobility of individuals such as exchanges and placements for pupils, students, trainees, adult learners, teachers, employers and representatives of institutions and organisations involved in education and training; partnerships and thematic networks for exchange of best practice between, respectively, schools, higher education institutions and vocational education and training institutions and enterprises; and multilateral projects for the development and transfer of innovation and good practice. The proposal also incorporates a new “transversal” programme to allow for horizontal activities that cut across the sectoral programmes, including: support for policy development in lifelong learning at European level in the context of the Lisbon, Bologna and Copenhagen processes; provision of comparable data, statistics, research and analysis; promoting language learning; supporting development of innovative ICT-based approaches for lifelong learning; and a more substantial dissemination of results than previously. It would also support activities within the Europass initiative as part of action to support transparency and recognition of qualifications and competences. Finally, a Jean Monnet programme would be incorporated to support action related to European integration in the academic field and European institutions and associations active in education and training. 5. The Commission indicates that the mobility of participants in the current programmes has a clear positive impact, not only on them, but also on the institutions with which they are involved. This helps to contribute