110 likes | 265 Views
GOALS AND PURPOSES OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN MODERN AND COMPLEX SOCIETIES. 5th International Barcelona Conference on Higher Education November 23 – 25, 2010 Sjur Bergan, Council of Europe. EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA. Launched 1999 with 29 countries (Bologna Process)
E N D
GOALS AND PURPOSES OF HIGHER EDUCATIONIN MODERN AND COMPLEX SOCIETIES 5th International Barcelona Conference on Higher Education November 23 – 25, 2010 Sjur Bergan, Council of Europe
EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA • Launched 1999 with 29 countries (Bologna Process) • Established 2010 with 47 countries • First decade: focus on structural reform • Degree structures/qualifications frameworks • Quality assurance • Recognition of qualifications
WHY THE EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA? • Concern about : • attractiveness of European HE • mobility: numbers and balance • time taken to complete degrees • employment • Brought in later: • social dimension • global dimension • Not explicitly mentioned: • broader purposes of higher education • the contribution of HE to European societies beyond ensuring employability
TWO CHALLENGES TO THE EHEA • Move from designing to implementing reforms • Link higher education reforms to the broader challenges to our societies • locally • nationally • at European level • globally
SOME CHALLENGES TO EUROPE • Disaffection, fear of the future and of others • Public and private spheres • Populism • the search for easy solutions • blame thy neighbor • Improve trust in public authorities • Complex issues requiring sophisticated answers • Environment • Social cohesion
ONE ANSWER: EDUCATION • Fundamental to developing democratic culture as well as employment • Not a “once in a lifetime experience”: lifelong learning • “It’s the economy, stupid” • or • “Man does not live from bread alone”? • Broad range of competences
WHAT ROLES FOR HIGHER EDCUATION IN MODERN SOCIETIES? • Preparation for the labor market • Preparation for active citizenship in democratic societies • Personal development • Developing and maintaining a broad, advanced knowledge base • Council of Europe Recommendation Rec(2007)6 on the public responsibility for higher education and research
WHAT COMPETENCES? • Subject specific and generic • As societies, we need competences in a broad range of disciplines • Need ability to cooperate across discipline boundaries • Need ability to put our own discipline into a broader context • Knowledge, understanding, ability to act – but also attitudes • Subject specialists but also intellectuals
WHAT EDUCATION FOR THE FUTURE? • The answer to the question “What kind of education do we need?” lies in the answer to a different question: “What kind of society do we want?” • Eugenio Tironi: El sueño chileno (2005)