Towards a Europe of knowledge
"Towards a Europe of knowledge" is the title of a European Commission communication which sets out its plans for Community activities in the fields of education, training and youth in the years from 2000 to 2006. The communication was adopted on 12 November 1997 on the initiative of Commissioner Edith Cresson, responsible for research, innovation, education, training and youth. It aims to put the Commission's plans for activities in the three fields into an overall context, and will be discussed in the next few months prior to the Commission finalizing its proposals for programmes in spring 1998. New Community activities in the fields of education, training and youth must capitalize on all the achievements of current and past Community activities in the fields. The Commission must respond to the demand for the continuation of existing activities while developing the next generation of programmes. The Commission argues that the scale of the challenges to be faced calls for greater integration of the three fields. The next generation of programmes will have to focus on a limited number of objectives, in particular: better access for European citizens to the full range of Europe's educational resources, innovation in resources, and wide dissemination of good practice in education. The Commission envisages six main types of action: - Physical mobility of learners and teachers; - Virtual mobility and other uses of new information and communications technologies; - Development of cooperation networks at European level; - Promotion of language and cultural skills; - Development of innovation through pilot projects based on transnational partnerships; - Continuing improvement of Community reference sources with regard to the education, training and youth systems and policies of the Member States (key figures, databases, good practice). The Commission plans to put forward three proposals for Decisions in spring 1998, in order to have them adopted in time to enter into force on 1 January 2000. These three Decisions will include common articles with the aim of achieving greater consistency and reflecting the will to establish a common, integrated framework. The Commission is also proposing to simplify the administration of the programmes, bringing it closer to the people and organizations involved. Under the Commission's proposals, Community action would become more visible, and coordination between the various Community policies affecting human resources would be enhanced. In broad terms the Commission is aiming to construct an open and dynamic European educational area. This would make the idea of lifelong learning a reality, offering all citizens greater opportunities for access to knowledge, irrespective of their age, of where they live, and of their social circumstances.