RPL (Validation of Non-Formal and Informal Learning) is one of the most challenging issues in European Education. Indeed this topic is mentioned in many documents published by the European Commission and other organisations, but mainly with a focus on the lower levels of the EQF, on VET and qualifications for the labour market. Because of the challenges that Europe is facing, there is a strong need of flexibility in higher education, in lifelong learning and in professional programmes. An improvement of the RPL-procedures with the purpose to make them first of all payable and effective is key at this stage.
In the Netherlands and in other European countries, issues like: ‘RPL linked to the use of Learning Outcomes’ and ‘RPL and the implementation of a NQF including a National Coordination Point’ are very important. But the basis of them for using in a transnational setting is a set of European Common Guidelines and Principles for RPL-procedures.
The seminar which will take place on 11-12 October 2012 in Amsterdam, aims at tackling those three issues and at sharing new developments, proposals and solutions. It will be organised by EURASHE in collaboration with the European Network on RPL.
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The Seminar “Embedding Professional Short‐Cycle Higher Education in the (Higher) Education System” took place on the 20th and 21st January 2011 at the Budapest Business School. It was organised by EURASHE, the Ministry of National Resources of Hungary (MNR) and the Budapest Business School (BBS) and it has been attended by more than 100 participants from the Bologna Follow‐Up Group members, representatives of higher education institutions and colleges, employers’ organisations, quality assurance agencies, etc. The purpose of this Bologna seminar on SCHE was to allow to participants to learn about a complex situation of SCHE throughout Europe.
Read the programme of the Seminar.
Go to the dedicated page of the Seminar.
The Bologna-related seminar aimed at illustrating the impact of the Bologna Reform on Russian Higher Education Institutions & Universities. The focus was on the ‘real implementation’ in the institutions, public and private universities. The programme included a state of affairs from the point of view of those who are in charge of monitoring the Process; the country situation from the point of view of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation; a point of view from the part of stakeholders in the HE reform process; a keynote speech on the links between Learning Outcomes, Quality Assurance and the Qualifications Frameworks and case studies with the ‘Bologna tools’. In the concluding session, the chair presided as a follow-up, a dialogue of the Western contributors with the RF institutions, on the basis of an input from the Council of Europe delegate in the BFUG.
Read the programme of the seminar.
Go to the dedicated page of the Seminar.
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The EURASHE Central European Forum for Professional Higher Education brought together experts on the PHE sector from Central Europe in order to establish a dialogue on relevant developments and challenges in the region. The key areas of the half-day Forum were the Mission & Role of PHE, Employability and Qualifications. Representatives from the Baltic States and from some East European countries had been invited as experts, but also joined in the discussions.
The Forum’s objective was to set up a platform for discussion on the highlights and problems of the PHE sectors and institutions in the region of Central Europe of establishing a EHEA as brought about by recent developments, mainly by the Bologna process. Attendance was over 45 participants. Primary attention was paid to issues related to PHE, yet the scope of discussion was at times much broader, covering the entire landscape of HE and its links to society.
As a follow up to this Forum, the basic data on PHE sectors in relevant countries submitted by some participants before the Forum, along with the summary on the findings regarding the implementation of the Bologna reform in Central Europe, will be gathered in a publication. Also, participants had the chance to further discuss and exchange their ideas through a new EURASHE online forum to be launched in April 2010.
On 10th March 2010 EURASHE held its (first ever) Convention prior to a Ministerial Conference of the Bologna countries. The ‘Bologna’ Ministers were meeting in Budapest and Vienna to ‘celebrate the tenth anniversary of the start of the Bologna reform process, and also to launch the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), which will take another ten year to fully implement the reform in the growing number of countries, and especially in the higher education institutions.
The Convention of EURASHE, organised in cooperation with ACA (European Cooperation Association), had the theme of “Implementation of the Bologna Process in Professional Higher Education”, and the event was hosted by Budapest Business School, the largest University College of Hungary. A enriching and educational discourse took place throughout the day, with 10 keynote speakers coming to present from diverse european organisations in the morning, and thematic and effective discussion sessions were held in the afternoon.
The results of the Convention proceedings provided an input for EURASHE’s contributions to the Ministerial conference in Budapest and Vienna the days that followed, where EURASHE also presented its Bologna 2010 Publication.
Against all the volcanic ashed odds that clowded their journey from Moscow to Brussels, the delegation of Presidents, Rectors and Academics from State and Non-State Universities of the Russian Federation finally arrived in Brussels Monday morning by bus, tired but motivated to finally begin the two day seminar that stood before them.
Over the two days that followed, this delegation of Russian academics received a complete introduction to the European Higher Education Reform Process; an overview of Bologna, the areas of the 3-cycle system, quality assurance and lifelong learning. A nice welcome note was given by Marc Vandewalle (Secretary General of the Flemish Council of University Colleges) to kick off the seminar. Then the day was enriched by presentations made by Carlos Machado (Flemish University of Brussels) over the CANQA (Quality Assurance in Central Asia) Tempus project of the European Commission, researcher Magda Kirsch on the Level 5 Project, Colin Tuck (Director) over his European Quality Assurance Registar (EQAR) and Steven Van Luchene (Quality Assurance Unit of the Flemish Council of University Colleges) who discussed accreditation on programme and institutional levels.
After this volcanic whirlwind of 24 hours charged with energetic discussion and exchange over Higher Education systems and the newest movements in the Bologna domain, the Russian Federation delegation departed around noon April 20th to continue their educational journey onto Ghent, where they would learn further about joint degrees at the University College of Ghent.
The topic at the EAIE Conference 2010 in Nantes was Implementing Lifelong Learning. Indeed, Lifelong Learning is a key element in the goal to turn Europe’s economy into the world’s most competitive and creative economy. The educational sector has experienced the huge impact of the Lifelong Learning (LLL) Programme and more is yet to come. This workshop started with two presentations. The first dealt with national legislations in which LLL has been incorporated. What are the similarities, the differences, the types of definitions and possible hurdles for implementation on the national level? The second presentation focused on the initial results of a major survey, targeted at both learners and businesses. The workshop continued with three parallel discussion groups, focusing on the exchange of practices for the implementation of LLL in higher education institutions.
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5th Lifelong Learning seminar, organised by EURASHE and hosted by the Association of Slovene Vocational Colleges, took place in Bled (Slovenia) on the 15-16th October 2009. The event was titled “Life-long learning at PHE Institutions: New Learners, New Approaches” focused on the ‘new learner’, after dealing with the HEIs as providers, the employers and the more traditional learners in our previous seminars. The seminar hosted by our Slovenian member association also wanted to outline the position of professional HE on lifelong learning, and provide LLL strategies, based on an exchange of experience in different countries.
Read the programme of the seminar
Go to the dedicated page of the Seminar
As a member of the Bologna process EURASHE had an official delegation of five persons present at the latest Ministerial Bologna Conference in Leuven-Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium) on 28-29 April last. The delegation was led by President L.L Nielsen, and further consisted of Vice-President Andreas Orphanides (in charge of the Bologna Process follow-up in EURASHE), Vice-President Michal Karpisek, Secretary General Stefan Delplace and Ann Verreth, Secretary General of the Flemish Council of University Colleges, as a representative of the national member associations of EURASHE. Apart from the above delegation, there was a strong representation of EURASHE members in the national delegations, among others Gintautas Braziunas (Lithuania), James Calleja (Malta), Mati Lukas (Estonia), and Razis Panos (Cyprus).
During the plenary debates and the scheduled 10 minutes intervention reserved for the three consultative members representing institutions and students (EUA, ESU, EURASHE), the President of EURASHE gave voice to the priorities from the part of EURASHE and the entire professional higher education, especially with the prospect of ‘post-Bologna 2010’.
Download the documents:
Presentation on Lifelong Learning by President Lars Lynge Nielsen
Statement of EURASHE for the Ministerial Conference of Leuven-Louvain-la-Neuve:
Moving Professional Higher Education into ‘Bologna post 2010′
Communiqué of the Conference of Ministers Responsible for Higher education, Leuven and Louvain-la-Neuve, 28-29 April 2009
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In the past few years EURASHE has set up annual seminars specifically devoted to Lifelong Learning, in which we focused on the different ‘stakeholders’.
