Introduction

• Author: Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (European Commission), TNS Political & Social
• Pages: 2-3

2

The European Education Area

April 2018

Report

Flash Eurobarometer 466

INTRODUCTION

The primary responsibility for education, training and culture policies lies with the Member States,

at national, regional and local levels. Yet, the European Union plays an increasingly important and

complementary role in these area, particularly in the case of cross-border initiatives such as the

Erasmus programme, (Erasmus+ since 2014), which has enabled 9 million people to study, train,

teach, or volunteer in another country.

In recent years, the EU has developed a range of 'soft policy' tools to support Member States in the

reforms of national education and training policies. The Strategic Framework for European

cooperation in education and training, in operation since 2000, has set common objectives and

benchmarks, allowing the Member States to assess the development of their education systems.

Furthermore, in 2010 the EU set itself two education targets under the Europe 2020 Strategy

resulting in real progress. Early school leaving has been reduced from 14.7% in 2010 to 10.7% in

2016, targeting 10% by 2020, while tertiary educational attainment is up to 39.1% in 2016 from

31.1% in 2008, targeting 40% by 20201.

In the meantime, education, training and culture have been placed high on the Union's political

agenda. In the Rome Declaration of March 2017, EU leaders pledged to work towards a Union

where young people receive the best education and training and can study and find jobs across the

continent; a Union which preserves our cultural heritage and promotes cultural diversity. The

European Pillar of Social Rights was jointly proclaimed by the European Parliament, the Council and

the Commission in November 2017 and establishes the right to quality education, training and

lifelong learning as its first principle.

At the November 2017 Gothenburg Summit, education and culture became the first topics for

debate under the new Leaders' Agenda, which focuses on key issues for Europe's future. As input

for this discussion, the Commission set out its vision for a European Education Area by 2025, for "a

Europe in which learning, studying and doing research would not be hampered by borders. A

continent, where spending time in another Member State – to study, to learn, or to work – has

become the standard and where, in addition to one's mother tongue, speaking two other languages

has become the norm. A continent in which people have a strong sense of their identity as

Europeans, of Europe's cultural heritage and its diversity."

As the Commission has clarified in its Communication of 22 May 2018 on Building a stronger

Europe: the role of youth, education and culture policies, the European Education Area has three

main components:

 promoting cross-border mobility and cooperation in education and training;

 helping to overcome unjustified obstacles that make it more difficult to learn, train or work

in another country with the aim of realising the "free movement of learners" and creating a

genuine European learning space;

 supporting Member States in improving the inclusive, lifelong-learning based a nd

innovation-driven nature of their education and training systems.

The Area will be underpinned by the lifelong learning continuum, and concern all education sectors

from early childhood education and care, through school and vocational education and training to

higher education and adult learning.

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1 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/3217494/8113874/KS-EZ-17-001-EN-N.pdf/