EDUCATION : COMMISSION WANTS UNIVERSAL PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION.

The European Commission called, on 17 February, for universal access to pre-school education with stable funding and good governance. Additionally, member states should adopt an integrated approach to education and care, taking account of children's needs in a holistic way. Other proposals made are age-appropriate curricula with the right balance of hard and soft skills as well as greater focus on staff professionalisation, salaries and working conditions. Finally, there should be quality assurance systems and standards to monitor progress.

The Commission's proposals should be on the ministers' table at the May 2011 Education Council. The Commission promises to prioritise investment in early education and care through the European Social Fund and the European Regional Development Fund. There should also be support in the Lifelong Learning Programme and the Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Development (FP7). Justifying its approach, the Commission stressed that it will contribute to two of the headline targets in its Europe 2020' strategy, notably reducing the share of early school leavers to below 10% as well as helping lift at least 20 million people out of the risk of poverty and social exclusion.

Education Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou stressed that investing in early education and care is one of the best investments Europe can make. "Investing in quality pre-school education is much more effective than intervening later," said Vassiliou. She noted that it gives young people a better...