REgional NetWorking for Adult Learning in Europe (RENEWAL)
Description
The RENEWAL project brought together the representatives and providers of the two less developed adult education regions (Southern Europe and Central Eastern Europe) to give them the opportunity to exchange their experiences, challenges and developments on the Renewed European Agenda for adult learning.
They discussed the development of adult learning through and of the European Agenda in their countries and regions and identified the challenges and necessary steps for the further developments. These recommendations will be discussed with and presented to the national coordinators of the relevant countries and the European Commission.
Aims
The aims of the project are:
– Strengthening the European Agenda in these two regions
– Strengthening the European Agenda overall
– Promoting the transfer of innovation in the two regions
– Strengthening civil society and its cooperation in the two regions
– Contribute to a European area of lifelong learning
– Contribute to quality and efficiency in adult education in Europe
Target group
Practitioners and adult education professionals and policy makers in Europe, with a particular focus on the two involved regions
Outcomes
- State-of-the-art report on the implementation of the Adult Learning Agenda in the two regions. The report contains information about each of the concerned countries and a first analysis of main challenges, developments and issues.
- Two regional meetings which raised awareness within the regions for the European Agenda, strengthened the networking in the regions and collected feedback and recommendations from the civil society
- Two meetings reports which summarises the main results of both reports and meetings and concentrates on the messages and recommendations to the European Commission.
Meetings
Kick off Meeting- Brussels, 27-28 January 2014
Central Eastern Europe regional meeting – Bratislava, 15-16/10/2014
Southern Europe regional meeting – Lisbon, 23-24/10/2014
Final meeting – Brussels, 10-11 December 2014
Partnership
EAEA (Coordinator) – BE
is a European NGO with 126 member organisations from 42 countries working in the fields of adult learning.
The main roles of EAEA include the promotion of lifelong learning at a European level, the development of development of practice through projects, publications and training as well as the provision of information and services on adult learning. EAEA promotes adult learning and the widening of access and participation in formal, non-formal and informal adult education for all, particularly for groups currently under-represented.
KERIGMA – PT
is an institution for innovation and social development in Barcelos, Portugal. It is a not for profit organisation whose mission is to promote innovation, training and social development of the region and its people through social and training activities. Kerigma involves the following sectors: a centre of accreditation of knowledge and competence acquired outside formal education (in non formal or informal contexts). It works like an “open door” for any training process for all adults in Portugal.
AIVD – SK
Association of Adult Education Institutions in the Slovak Republic (AIVD) is a non-governmental, apolitical, non-profit, voluntary organisation. AIVD has currently more than 50 members which include institutions of adult education and devoted individuals. The mission of the Association is to enhance the exchange among its members and to promote their common interests in accordance with the needs of Slovakia. AIVD is the publisher of the journal Adult Education (Vzdelávanie dospelých).
State of the Art Report
RENEWAL Survey
The RENEWAL survey was launched by the project consortium in May 2014 and closed in June 2014. It had the purpose to understand the respondents’ awareness of the Adult Learning Agenda’s and their opinions about its impact on the Adult Education sector in their countries.
Furthermore, it aimed to discover the respondents’ views on the existing civil society structures at the national level and the stakeholders’ willingness to foster the cooperation within the country ad in the two regions. More than 120 adult education representatives and providers from Southern Europe and Central-Eastern Europe.
RENEWAL State of art report
Survey responses, together with in-depth interviews, served as basis to produce a state-of-the-art report on the implementation of the Adult Learning Agenda in the two regions.
The report aims to propose a first analysis of main challenges, developments and issues on the implementation of the agenda in Southern Europe and Central Eastern Europe. It contains an insight about the activities undertaken in each of the concerned countries ad how those were perceived by the civil society and the adult education providers; underlines challenges and needs of the AE providers and civil society in the two regions; and provides a list of suggestions as well as some interesting good practice that could be used for the next mandates of the Agenda’s implementation.
To download the RENEWAL state of the art report, click on the language version of your choice: EN, DE, FR, PT, SK. To receive a printed copy of the guidelines in EN, please contact the EAEA project officer at francesca.operti [at] eaea.org.
ANNEXES to the RENEWAL state of the art report (I, II)
The content of the report served as basis of discussion and exchange on how this European Commission’s initiative could be further developed to strengthen adult education in the two regions. The recommendations drawn from this discussion were debated with and presented to the national coordinators of the relevant countries and the European Commission.
Regional meetings
RENEWAL regional meetings and reports
Two regional meetings were organized by the RENEWAL consortium in Bratislava on 15-16 October, 2014 and in Lisbon on 23-24 October, 2014. Meetings were targeted at adult education providers, representatives from the civil society and from the European Commission as well as national coordinators.
The main aims of the regional meetings were to encourage exchanges and debates on the European Agenda in Southern Europe and Central Eastern Europe and promote the cooperation between governmental and civil society actors in the two regions.
At these meetings, the RENEWAL state of the art report on the implementation of the Adult Learning Agenda was presented. This document provided the participants with food for thoughts on the challenges and potentialities of the European Commission’s initiative and be the basis of a national and international exchange and reflection.
Two meetings reports containing the outcomes of the events were drafted by the project partners. In particular, they include:
- A list of suggestions on the next Agenda’s mandates from adult education providers and civil society of the two regions
- Proposals for strenghtening the cooperation within the two regions
- A good practice collection
Central-Eastern Europe – Regional Meeting
Bratislava 15-16.10.2014
Southern Europe – Regional Meeting
Lisbon 23-24.10.2014
Resources
On the Renewed Agenda for Adult Learning:
European Council resolution on a Renewed Agenda for Adult Learning (2011/C 372/01)
National coordinators list
Grundtvig Implementation of the European Agenda for Adult Learning – Compendium 2012 – Work plans of EU Member States on implementation of the European Agenda for Adult Learning
Progress reports on the agenda implementation issued by the countries involved in the RENEWAL project
Background:
Council conclusions of 22 May 2008 on adult learning
Council Conclusions of 12 May 2009 on a strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training (ET 2020)
Europe 2020 strategy
Other resources:
PIAAC survey
Education and training Monitor 2013
Enhanced cooperation in adult education policy