ET 2020 Working Groups commence activities, Brussels

The new Education and Training 2020 Working Groups, assembled for the first time on 22-23 February in Brussels, with the mission to commence activities and exchanges towards advancing priorities identified in the ET 2020 strategy.

The groups make up over 400 members, comprising experts of member states, civil society, European agencies and partners and international organisations. The six groups will respectively focus on the thematic areas: Schools, Vocational Education and Training, Adult Learning, Digital skills, Promotion of citizenship and common values through education (follow-up to the Paris Declaration) and the Modernisation of Higher Education. The kick off meeting gave space for education Commissioner Tilbor Navracsics, to emphasize to stakeholders, working groups as key to progressing and developing cooperation in education at EU level.

During the meeting each working group discussed the strategy to be adopted for the achievement of groups specific outputs appointed in the mandates.

For the working group Modernisation in Higher education key commitments include:

Strengthening societal and labour market relevance at all levels of higher education
Promoting innovation in a broad sense by building partnerships through interdisciplinary and inter-sectorial approaches enhancing regional development
shaping closer links between higher education, research and innovation, and strengthening quality through mobility and cross border cooperation.

The meeting enabled groups to take first organisational steps towards realization of their key commitments and begin to identify themes for peer learning up to 2018.

European Commission - Working Group mandates