16/07/2010
New Council of Europe publication on competences and values
Volume 15 in the Council of Europe Higher Education Series has just been published. Edited by Sjur Bergan and Radu Damian, Higher education for modern societies: competences and values brings together contributions from authors from both Europe and North America exploring the roles and purposes of higher education in modern, complex societies and the importance of competences in this respect. Developing learners' competence is an important part of the mission of higher education. The kind of competences that higher education should develop depend on what we see as the purposes of higher education. The term "converging competences" points to the need not only to train individuals for specific tasks, but to educate the whole person. Education is about acquiring skills, but also about acquiring values and attitudes and learning outcomes have come to be seen as an essential feature of education policies.
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01/07/2010
Romania takes over the Bologna Secretariat
On 1 July, Romania took over responsibility for the Bologna Secretariat from Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, which together have provided the Secretariat over the past three years. Romania will provide the secretariat for the Europe Higher Education Area until July 2012 and will host the next ministerial meeting of the EHEA in Bucharest on 28 – 29 April 2012. Ligia Deca, until recently the Chair of the Europe Students Union, will lead the new Bologna Secretariat.
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29/06/2010
Council of Europe speaks on ethics and values at IAU conference
“Ethics and values in Higher Education in the Era of Globalization” was the topic of the annual conference of the International Association of Universities (IAU), held in Vilnius on 24 – 26 June. The Council of Europe contributed one of the plenary presentations at the conference, focusing on “Safeguarding Values and Ethics in Higher Education: a Shared Responsibility”. All presentations will be uploaded on the conference website.
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07/06/2010
Report on qualifications frameworks
The Irish authorities organized a conference on “National Qualifications Frameworks and the European Overarching Frameworks: Supporting Lifelong Learning in European Education and Training” in Dublin on 15 April, to which the Council of Europe contributed. The full conference report is now available at the web site of the conference.
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04/06/2010
New publication on the added value of qualifications frameworks
In the context of the European Qualifications Framework for lifelong learning (EQF), the European Commission and CEDEFOP have issued a publication on the added value of national qualifications frameworks, written by Jens Bjørnavold and Mike Coles. The publication addresses the role of national frameworks in relation to the EQF but the considerations are equally valid for the relationship between national frameworks and the overarching framework of qualifications of the European Higher Education Area.
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31/05/2010
International seminar on ‘Academic mobility in the context of the Bologna Process’ (Taldykorgan, 13-15 May 2010)
The international seminar on ‘Academic mobility in the context of the Bologna Process’ took place in the Zhetysu State University, Taldykorgan and brought together 80 higher education institutions of Kazakhstan. It was the first large-scale event since Kazakhstan became a signatory to the European Cultural Convention and a member of a European Higher Education Area. The seminar, opened by Mr Zhanseit Tuimebayev, Minister of Education and Science of Kazakhstan provided an overview of the challenges faced by the higher education sector of Kazakhstan and discussed issues related to internationalisation of higher education in the context of globalisation. Several round tables focussed on such issues as quality assurance of higher education, development of a national qualifications framework, students’ academic mobility.
The Council of Europe contributed to the plenary session and chaired the round-table discussion on qualifications frameworks.
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31/05/2010
Bert Vandenkendelaere new ESU Chair
Bert Vandenkendelaere (Belgium) has been elected new Chair of the European Students’ Union (ESU) for a term that will run from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011. He succeeds Ligia Deca (Romania), who served two consecutive terms (2008 – 2010), and he is currently a member of the ESU Executive Committee. Read an interview with Bert Vandenkendelaere, published in the ESU newsletter The Student Voice, here.
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06/04/2010
Council of Europe writes on public responsibility in GUNI newsletter
In the latest issue of the GUNI (Global University Network for Innovation) Newsletter, Sjur Bergan, Head of the Council of Europe’s Department for Higher Education and History Teaching, writes about the public responsibility for higher education and research. The article is available in English and Spanish.
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30/03/2010
Kazakhstan takes part in the 9th Plenary session of the Council of Europe Steering Committee for Higher Education and Research
The CDESR welcomed representatives of Kazakhstan as new Committee members following the accession of Kazakhstan to the European Cultural Convention on 5 March 2010. At the meeting the Vice-Minister of Education and Science of Kazakhstan Dr Aidar Zhakupov presented the higher education system of Kazakhstan, main challenges in its reform to the CDESR delegates.
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15/03/2010
European Higher Education Area launched
On 11 – 12 March, European ministers responsible for higher education met in Budapest and Vienna to officially launch the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). Ministers took stock of the achievements of the Bologna Process. In the Declaration adopted, ministers recognize that while much has been achieved, there are shortcomings that need to be addressed in the coming years. Ministers also welcomed Kazakhstan as the 47th member of the EHEA.
In Vienna on 12 March, ministers met with high level delegations from almost 30 countries outside of the EHEA for the second Bologna Policy Forum to discuss cooperation and joint issues. Participants adopted a statement that outlines further cooperation at political as well as technical level.
The Council of Europe is one of the main contributors to the EHEA and played an active role in the ministerial conference as well as the Policy Forum with presentations on qualifications and quality assurance as well as on recognition and mobility. The Council of Europe delegation also participated strongly in the debates at both conferences, in particular to underline the importance of putting structural reform into its proper context, which should be to meet all major purposes of higher education: preparation for the labour market but equally preparation for life as active citizens in democratic society, personal development and the development and maintenance of a broad and advanced knowledge base.
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15/03/2010
Council of Europe speaks at EURASHE conference
EURASHE – the European Association of Institutions in Higher Education – held its convention on “What has been the impact of the Bologna Process on professional higher education and its institutions?” in Budapest on 9 – 10 March. The convention allowed members to take stock of developments in the Europe Higher Education Area with particular reference to professional higher education. The Council of Europe was the main presenter at a forum aimed particularly at representatives of Central and Eastern Europe countries.
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12/07/2010
Round table on European trends in teaching and learning: experiences and practice
This event was organised within the framework of a set of confidence-building measures in the field of education for the Transnistrian region, which was approved by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 20 January 2010. This round table took place on 25 June in Strasbourg and gathered academic representatives from higher education institutions from both sides of the river Dniestr, who exchanged their experiences and provide examples of good practices. [More]
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31/05/2010
Seminar on ‘Universities as Promoters of Intercultural Dialogue in Multicultural Societies’ (Sochi, 20-21 May 2010)
Within the framework of the CoE project on ‘Promoting Intercultural Dialogue and Democratic Culture through Higher Education’, the Council of Europe together with the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia organised a seminar entitled ‘Universities as Promoters of Intercultural Dialogue in Multicultural Societies’. The presentations and the conclusions of the seminar are available. [More]
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30/03/2010
9th Plenary session of the Council of Europe Steering Committee for Higher Education and Research: topics discussed
The CDESR held its 9th plenary session in Strasbourg on 24 and 25 March 2010. Among the main topics discussed were: contribution of the Council of Europe to the European Higher Education Area; academic freedom and institutional autonomy: the role of public authorities, draft feasibility study and a project proposal; reform of the Council of Europe and rationalisation of Committee structures; preparation of the 23rd session of the Council of Europe Standing Conference of Ministers of Education, Brdo, Slovenia, 4-5 June 2010.
The Committee elected Mr Virgílio Meira Soares (academic member, Portugal) as its Chair and Mr Germain Dondelinger (government member, Luxembourg) as its Vice-Chair for a period of one year.
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15/03/2010
Kazakhstan accedes to the European Higher Education Area
At the outset of the ministerial conference of the European Higher Education Area, held in Budapest and Vienna on 11 – 12 March, Kazakhstan acceded to the EHEA as its 47th member. Kazakhstan’s accession was made possible by its accession to the European Cultural Convention on 5 March as well as its commitment to the goals and policies of the EHEA.
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26/02/2010
Council of Europe contributes to ENQA publication on quality assurance in transnational higher education
ENQA – the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education – has just published a report on Quality Assurance in Transnational Education. The report is available in printed form as well as online and gathers contributions from a number of authors, among them Sjur Bergan of the Council of Europe, who contributed a chapter on “The UNESCO/OECD Guidelines: A Governmental perspective”.
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08/12/2009
Denmark certifies its qualifications framework
Denmark has now self certified its national qualifications framework. The Danish self certification report is available on line, and Denmark becomes the seventh country to self certify its national qualifications framework for higher education against the overarching framework of qualifications of the European Higher Education Area. For more information on qualifications frameworks, see the dedicated web site of the Bologna Process.
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5/03/2010
New book on attitudes to recognition in the age of globalisation
Volume 13 in the Council of Europe Higher Education Series has just been published. Edited by E. Stephen Hunt and Sjur Bergan, Developing attitudes to recognition: substantial differences in an age of globalisation explores the concept of “substantial differences”, which is the key concept of the Council of Europe/UNESCO Recognition Convention and goes to the heart of how we view qualifications and education: What do learners know and understand and what are they able to do on the basis of their qualifications? How can this be expressed and described, and how can learners carry their qualifications across borders without leaving part of their real value behind? The book addresses philosophical as well as practical aspects of the issue and includes a number of case studies.
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26/02/2010
New publication on national action plans for recognition
Volume 12 of the Council of Europe Higher Education Series is now available. Written by Andrejs Rauhvargers and Agnese Rusakova, Improving recognition in the European Higher Education Area: an analysis of national action plans analyzes the national action plans for recognition submitted by the countries of the Bologna Process. The analysis demonstrates that there is great variety in practice among European countries. While some national action plans provide a clear agenda for further improvement, others merely describe the current state of affairs, offering little indication for further action. This book will be of interest to policy makers and practitioners, and it is hoped that the analysis it provides will encourage further discussion and, above all, improved practice.
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