/ Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης

Education Ministers welcome recommendation on mobility for students and teachers

Date: 28/05/2001
Policy area: Education and youth affairs
News item: Press release

The EU Education Ministers have today approved a recommendation on mobility for students and teachers.
The Education Ministers welcome the important progress that is made to facilitate free movement for these groups. The recommendation invites Member States to take specific measures such as remove legal and administrative obstacles for mobility, to encourage to learn languages and to develop arrangements for financial support etcetera.

"It is good news indeed that we during the Swedish Presidency have succeeded to approved a recommendation on mobility for students and teachers. It represents an important step for the EU, but is even more important for the students and the teachers in Europe", says Mr. Thomas Φstros, Chairman of the Education Council.

The Education Council has moreover discussed the implications of the conclusions of the Stockholm European Council on 23/24 March 2001 for the education and training sector and how the work is to progress to the Barcelona European Council in March 2002. At the Stockholm Summit a top priority was seen in improving basic skills, information and communication technology, ICT, recruitment to education within the fields of natural and technical sciences. The discussion in the Council proceeded from the report on future goals for the education and training systems that was adopted by the Education Ministers in February this year and submitted to the heads of state and government in Stockholm on 23-24 March. In Stockholm the heads of state and government again emphasized that the Education Ministers through measures within education and training, have a certain responsibility in the EU's strategy towards full employment in Europe.

The Education Ministers also adopted a resolution on eLearning based on a presentation of the Commission?s ?eLearning Action Plan?. Among others the resolution has been influenced by the Swedish initiative on IT in schools, the "ITiS-project".

The Swedish Presidency informed on the forthcoming European Conference of Education Ministers in Riga 28-30 June 2001. The theme of the conference will be "elearn for life".

The Presidency finally informed on the outcome of the meeting of 30 European ministers of higher education in Prague on the ?Bologna process?. One essential aim of the Bologna process is to increase compatibility and by that promote student mobility between the European education systems. The Bologna process and the EU Member State?s further work with the goals and measures for the process was also the theme for the Education Ministers informal lunch.

The Bologna process took several important steps forward at the minister's meeting in Prague last weekend. There are good reasons to discuss how the EU Member States more successful can reach the goals of the Bologna declaration. The lunch discussion shows clearly that there is an intention to take the process forward also in a EU-perspective, says Thomas Φstros.