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GOALS AND PURPOSES OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN MODERN AND COMPLEX SOCIETIES

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)

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GOALS AND PURPOSES OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN MODERN AND COMPLEX SOCIETIES

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  1. 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

  2. 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

  3. 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

  4. 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

  5. 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

  6. 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

  7. STRUCTURES - FOR WHAT PURPOSE?

  8. 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

  9. 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

  10. 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)

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