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Europe 123, 570 01 Thessaloniki (Pylea), GREECEPO Box 22427, 551 02 Thessaloniki, GREECETel. +30 2310490111, Fax +30 2310490020, E-mail: [email protected]

STUDY VISITS: Tel. +30 2310490154, Fax +30 2310490044E-mail: [email protected], http://studyvisits.cedefop.europa.eu

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training

Better competences through better teaching

and leadingFindings from study visits 2008/09

4093 EN – TI-31-10-416-EN-C

Better competences through better teaching and leadingFindings from study visits 2008/09

This publication presents findings from about 100 study visits in 2008/09 related to improving quality and efficiency, one of the strategic priorities of European cooperation in education and training, and specifically, its important components: acquisition of key competences, challenges to teachers and trainers and new approaches to leadership and management.

Group reports prepared by participants during study visits were the main source of information for this publication. They are a rich source of information about practices in education and training in participating countries. This selection represents only a small sample of initiatives identified and presented during visits and also at Cedefop’s seminar on 1 and 2 February 2010 in Thessaloniki, Greece.

This publication is aimed at building bridges between educational and VET institutions and developing interesting cooperation projects.

The study visits programme for education and vocational training specialists, part of the lifelong learning programme (2007-13), is an initiative of the European Directorate-General for Education and Culture. Cedefop coordinates the programme at the European level, whereas the national agencies implement the programme in the Member States.

ISBN 978-92-896-0644-8

9 789289 606448

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2010


A great deal of additional information on the European Union is available on the Internet.It can be accessed through the Europa server (http://europa.eu).

Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication.

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2010

ISBN 978-92-896-0644-8

© European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, 2010All rights reserved.

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The European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) is the European Union's

reference centre for vocational education and training. We provide information on and analyses of vocational

education and training systems, policies, research and practice.Cedefop was established in 1975

by Council Regulation (EEC) No 337/75.

Europe 123, 570 01 Thessaloniki (Pylea), GREECE

PO Box 22427, 551 02 Thessaloniki, GREECE

Tel. +30 2310490111, Fax +30 2310490020E-mail: [email protected]

www.cedefop.europa.eu

Cedefop – Study VisitsTel. +30 2310490154, Fax +30 2310490044

E-mail: [email protected]://studyvisits.cedefop.europa.eu

Aviana Bulgarelli, Director Christian Lettmayr, Deputy Director

Peter Kreiml, Chair of the Governing Board

Since 2008, Cedefop has coordinated the study visits programme foreducation and vocational training specialists and decision-makers, one of thekey actions of the European lifelong learning programme (2007-13).Cedefopʼs success in managing study visits for vocational education andtraining (VET) specialists for more than 20 years has been acknowledgedand it is a stimulating challenge to embark on coordinating a transversalprogramme that includes all fields of education and training. It has workedout well and as we expected, brought new opportunities for developing theprogramme in bringing together VET, general, higher and adult educationinto a lifelong learning perspective.

The study visits programme is an effective platform for education andtraining policy development and cooperation in Europe. The programmeprovides excellent opportunities for discussion and knowledge-sharing,exchanging ideas and practices, networking and future cooperation for awide spectrum of education and vocational training specialists and policy-makers, including social partners.

This publication presents findings of about 100 study visits 2008/09related to improving quality and efficiency, which is one of the priorities of thestrategic framework for European cooperation in education and training (ʻET2020ʼ), and more specifically, its three thematic components: acquisition ofkey competences, challenges for teachers and trainers and new approachesto leadership and management. Outcomes of exchanges that take placeduring study visits are recorded in group reports and bring a lot of interestingand relevant information to policy-makers and experts working in the field,especially practical examples of implementation of policies at national,regional and local levels.

Cedefop has set a priority to capture, assess and disseminate theoutcomes of study visits to wider audiences. This publication shows thatoutcomes of study visits have strong potential for informing policycooperation and development. In cooperation with key actors at Europeanand national levels, Cedefop is committed to stimulate further reflection anddebate through analysis of practices and common learning on issues atEuropean level and to disseminate this knowledge. We hope this publicationwill also contribute to building bridges among educational and VETinstitutions and developing interesting cooperation projects.

Aviana BulgarelliDirector of Cedefop

Foreword

Acknowledgements

This publication is based on the contributions of manyactors involved in preparing and carrying out studyvisits. Thanks are due to participants and, especially,to group reporters of study visits that took place in2008/09 who brought to light the initiatives andprojects presented here in their group reports; toorganisers of study visits and representatives ofhosting institutions who built the content of the visits;to national agencies who coordinate study visits atnational level and who helped to get in touch with hostinstitutions and collect information. Thanks are alsodue to those who enthusiastically presentedexamples of good practice during study visits and at aseminar organised by Cedefop on 1 and 2 February2010 in Thessaloniki, and who provided thedescriptions used in this publication. Thanks to allCedefop colleagues who contributed to andparticipated in the seminar.

Cedefop would like to thank Irina Jemeljanova andAngela Musca of the study visits team who collectedand analysed the outcomes of study visits, organisedthe synthesis seminar, drafted the text and preparedmaterials for this publication. Finally, thanks toChristine Nychas from Cedefop for her technicalsupport in preparing this publication.

Foreword 1Acknowledgements 2Introduction 4Key data 2008/09 6

Learning to learn – Challenges for learners (acquiring key competences, becoming open-minded and socially aware) 8A Comenius project ʻFriendship and universal peaceʼ (2005-07), Italy 13Rural centres for innovation in education (CRIET) and the work of cultural mediators, Spain 14Early language teaching in Poland 15European dimension through teaching and learning English in Cyprus 16Teaching science in English, Poland 17CLIL for cultural, social and environmental awareness, Poland 18Hobby education in Latvia 19Language experience through out-of-class activities in Turkey 20School Environmental and Civic Council in Portugal 21Multiculturalism in and through education in Romania 22

Learning to teach – Challenges for teachers 23Student-run schools as part of teacher training in Norway 27The induction year for newly qualified teachers in Wales 29The chartered teacher programme in Scotland 30Dialogue between university and municipality in Sweden 31Benefits of team teaching in Norway 32In-service teacher training in the Basque country 33A dual qualification in subject and language in Poland 34CLIL teachers training for schools with a special foreign language project in Spain 35Support to CLIL and bilingual education in Asturias, Spain 36

Learning to lead – Challenges for education leaders 37School management in Tromso, Norway 41Manager development in Järfälla commune, Sweden 42Quality assurance and degree for educational leadership in Malta 43Work of an association of small schools in Finland 44The work of school clusters in Belgium 46A research project, ʻIs small beautifulʼ, in Austria 47School self-evaluation system in Finland 48How to change a bad school into a good one – Story of a school principal in Sweden 49e-school administration in Turkey 50

Sharing knowledge, taking findings further: experience of the synthesis seminar 51SISSI – Strategic initiative for small schools international 52

References – Further reading – Sources 53

Table of contents

The study visits programme for education and vocational training specialists and decision-makers is part of the transversal programme of the lifelong learning programme (LLP). Assuch, it aims to support policy development and cooperation at European level in lifelonglearning (1). Cedefop, at the request of the European Commission, has coordinated theprogramme at European level since 2008. The programme has made significant progresstowards becoming a genuinely transversal action with a lifelong learning perspective,bringing together all levels of education and training, in terms of both thematic coverage andparticipation.

A model of peer learning by nature, the programme reaches a wide spectrum ofeducation and vocational training decision-makers and practitioners. It also gives anopportunity to those who do not participate in European-level working groups and clustersto learn from one another and explore new trends and developments in education andtraining and become involved in European cooperation on lifelong learning. In the academicyear 2008/09, the largest groups of participants were head teachers and teacher trainers(25 %), directors of educational and training institutions, guidance and validation centres(15.6 %) and representatives of local, regional and national authorities (11.5 %) (2). Thus,study visits provide educational leaders and those responsible for educational andvocational training policies with a real opportunity for exchange, mobility andnetworking. This is quoted as one of the ways to improve teachersʼ and school leadersʼprofessional development in the Council conclusions of 26 November 2009 (3). Theprogramme brings educational leaders and decision-makers into contact and provides aplatform for exchanging views with representatives from the world of work (the socialpartners make up 6.3 % of participants).

Study visits cover a broad variety of themes that are in line with the priorities of theEuropean policy agenda in education and training. In 2008/09, about one third of visits weredevoted to improving quality and efficiency of education and training. The Council of theEuropean Union in its conclusions of 12 May 2009 maintains that one of the majorchallenges is to ensure everyone acquires key competences. To achieve this, it is necessaryto ensure high quality teaching by providing teachers and trainers with adequate initialteacher education and continuous professional development, to improve leadership in

Introduction

(1) European Parliament; Council of the European Union (2006). Decision 1720/2006/EC of the European Parliamentand of the Council of 15 November 2006 establishing an action programme in the field of lifelong learning. OfficialJournal of the European Union, L 327, 24.11.2006, p. 45-68. Available from Internet: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2006:327:0045: 0068:en:PDF [cited 16.4.2010].

(2) Other target groups include the social partners, educational and vocational training inspectors, heads ofdepartments, pedagogical or guidance advisers, representatives of education and training networks andassociations, of educational services, labour offices or guidance centres, researchers (see also Figure 1).

(3) Council of the European Union (2009). Council conclusions of 26 November 2009 on the professional developmentof teachers and school leaders. Official Journal of the European Union, C 302, 12.12.2009, p. 6-9. Available fromInternet: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri= OJ:C:2009:302:0006:0009:EN:PDF [cited 16.4.2010].

education and training and develop effective quality assurance systems (4). The findings ofstudy visits summarised in this publication are grouped under three thematic headings:learning to learn, learning to teach and learning to lead, which reflect the essential elementsthat contribute to improving quality and efficiency in education and training.

According to group reports, participants are very satisfied with the quality ofdiscussions and networking opportunities that study visits provide. They value theopportunities to learn from colleagues from other countries that are provided throughEuropean education programmes for educational specialists and decision-makers. Suchlearning brings the European dimension into education and training. Cooperation isestablished between education and training institutions throughout Europe. For example, asa result of the study visit ʻThe professional development of teachers in Scotlandʼ (Group290, February 2009), a close relationship was established between teacher educationinstitutions and education partners in Germany and Scotland to help both future and currentteachers/trainers rethink their mission with regard to current educational priorities.

Group reports prepared by participants during study visits were the main source ofinformation for this publication. They are a rich source of information about practices ineducation and training in participating countries. Cedefop study visits team collected theinformation from study visits that took place in 2008/09. More than 100 policies, initiativesand projects were described by participants as examples of good practice on specific topics.This selection represents only a small sample of the initiatives identified and presented atthe synthesis seminar that took place on 1 and 2 February 2010 in Thessaloniki, Greece.Many more can be found in the group reports available from the study visits website:

http://studyvisits.cefefop.europa.eu.

Initiatives presented in this publication are placed in specific national, regional and localcontexts in order to understand why they were chosen and which issues they intended toaddress. This helps to reflect on their transferability to other contexts. Descriptions werecontributed by those who presented them during study visits and during a Cedefop seminar(for more information see page 51) where these findings were discussed and validated.They also contain contact information of host institutions and details of a contact personshould anyone wish to learn more or establish contact.

Introduction 5

(4) Council of the European Union (2009). Council conclusions on a strategic framework for European cooperationin education and training (ʻET2020ʼ). Official Journal of the European Union, C 119, 28.5.2009, p. 2-10. Availablefrom Internet: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri= OJ:C:2009:119:0002:0010:EN:PDF [cited16.4.2010].

Table 1. Study visits 2008/09 by type

Study visits Number of visits

on general education 128

on vocational education and training 41

with a lifelong learning approach 77

Total 246

Table 2. Study visits 2008/09 on selected themes

Theme Number of visits

Early language learning 3

Language teaching and learning 7

Vocationally-oriented language learning 1

Content and language integrated learning (CLIL) 4

Equal opportunities for disadvantaged students in education and vocational training systems 13

2008 European year of intercultural dialogue 10

2009 European year of creativity and innovation 3

European dimension in education 11

Gender equity in education and training systems 3

Active citizenship through education and training 3

Developing entrepreneurship among young people and adults 9

Making science education more attractive 5

ICT in education and training 16

The teaching profession, challenges for teachers and trainers 13

New pedagogical methods to improve literacy skills 2

School management 13

Quality assurance in education and vocational training 10

Monitoring and evaluation of education and training 4

Measures to prevent school failure and early school leaving 8

The role of parents and their participation in school life 2

Presentation of national systems of education and vocational training 32

Key data 2008/09

Figure 1. Participants 2008/09 by category (total number of participants: 2 532)

Key data 2008/09 7

Head teachers,teacher trainers Directors of education and

vocational training institutions, centres or providers, guidance centres, validation or accreditation centres

Representatives of local, regional and national authorities

Pedagogical or guidance advisers

Social partners’ representatives

Heads of departments

Educational andvocational traininginspectors

Representativesof education

and training networks and associations

Representativesof educational services,

labour offices orguidance centres

Researchers

Other

25 %

18 %

11 %

3 %

4 %

10 %

5 %

5 %

7 %

10 %2 %

Learning to learn – Challenges for learners(acquiring key competences, becoming open-minded and socially aware)

One study visit participant pointed out that schools of today need to prepare students for theʻworld that we do not know yetʼ. One of the first questions that educators seek to answer iswhat students should learn. What should they be able to do after school? Will schoolgraduates be able to use what they learned at school easily when they enter world of workand life? Will they be ready and motivated to learn throughout their lives?

Recent research shows that there is a trend across the EU towards competence-basedteaching and learning and a learning outcomes (what a learner knows, understandsand is able to do) approach (5) that forms part of an innovative approach to teaching andlearning (6). European countries have made good progress in developing school curriculawith more emphasis on cross-curricular approaches and ʻreal-lifeʼ applications that supportdevelopment of studentsʼ key competences necessary for personal fulfilment, activecitizenship and employability. Although improving literacy and basic skills still requires effort,the transversal competences (digital competence, social skills, cooperation skills andlearning skills) are gaining more and more attention. There is also growing demand fromemployers for these competences (7).

The two competences examined in this publication, namely, communication in foreignlanguages and social and civic competences play an important role in widening individualsʼhorizons, increasing awareness and understanding of diversity of cultures and perspectivesand developing personal, interpersonal and intercultural competence, thus, allowingindividuals to participate in social and working life.

During study visits, participants observed a wide variety of interesting and effectivepedagogical approaches, methods and materials that prove to support better thedevelopment of communication in foreign languages and social and civic competences.Early start brings advantages for acquiring competences, both basic and transversal,through increased self-confidence and open-mindedness, improved communication skills,learning through play. In Poland, for example, the entire system of primary education waschanged to ensure early language learning.

(5) European Commission (2009). Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council,the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. Key competences for achanging world. Draft joint progress report of the Council and the Commission on the implementation of theʻEducation and training 2010 work programmeʼ. Brussels, 25.11.2009, COM(2009)640 final. Available fromInternet: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc/joint10/com640_en.pdf [cited 16.4.2010].

(6) Cedefop (2009). The shift to learning outcomes. Policies and practices in Europe. Luxembourg: PublicationsOffice. Available from Internet: www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/Files/3054_en.pdf [cited 20.4.2010].

(7) Council of the European Union (2009). Council conclusions on new skills for new jobs. Anticipating and matchinglabour market and skills needs. In 2930th Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Councilmeeting. 6479/09, Brussels, 9.3.2009. Available from Internet: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/en/lsa/106549.pdf [cited 16.4.2010].Cedefop (2010). Skills supply and demand in Europe: medium-term forecast up to 2020. Luxembourg: PublicationsOffice. Available from Internet: http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/Files/ 3052_en.pdf [cited 20.4.2010].

Equipping students with basic skills in active citizenship and intercultural education is aconcern of most education and training systems in Europe. It is important to support andmotivate, at school level, young people (including from early years) to become involved indemocratic processes. Findings of study visits suggest that citizenship education mostlyconcerns students enrolled in secondary education.

Development of these competences is integrated into the curricula and/or takes placeduring extracurricular and out-of-class activities that are an integral part of schoolsʼphilosophy (work plans). Applying acquired skills in ʻreal life ̓ situations is extremelyimportant and effective for studentsʼ motivation and meaningful learning. Involving parents

Learning to learn – Challenges for learners 9

(8) European Parliament; Council of the European Union (2006). Recommendation of the European Parliament andof the Council of 18 December 2006 on key competences for lifelong learning. Official Journal of the EuropeanUnion, L 394, 30.12.2006, p. 10-18. Available from Internet: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2006:394:0010: 0018:en:PDF [cited 16.4.2010].

Figure 2. Key competences for lifelong learning

Source: European Parliament; Council of the European Union, 2006 (8).

communication in the mother tongue

digital competence

learning to learn

cultural awareness and expression

communication c mmu c t oin the mother tonguein the mother tonguei t e m t e t n u learnlearne r

communication in foreign languages

social and civic competences

mathematical competence and basic competences in science and technology

sense of initiative and entrepreneurship

pp

key competenceskey competences

in language, intercultural and social activities, in mediation and translation tasks is effectivein valuing mother tongue, encouraging speaking and building learning-supportivecommunities.

In Turkey, a hotel and tourism school (page 20) provides students with the opportunity toapply their English language skills and vocational skills in reception, room service, sportscentre and kitchen and feel the benefits of knowing a foreign language for employability. InPortugal, students improve and apply their social skills in a truly democratic assembly of aschool environmental and civic council and contribute significantly to improving their schooland community (page 21). In Spain, regional centres for innovation in education (CRIET) bringtogether students and teachers from schools in rural areas for valuable experiences ofcommunication and social integration; intercultural mediators work with students and parentsto help them understand the mission and values of the schools and solve the difficulties theyface (page 14). In Romania, children from various cultural backgrounds meet in after-schoolactivities to learn languages and Romanian culture (page 22). In Latvia, students develop theirtalents and key competences through hobby education which is a State-supported system(page 19).

Most effective approaches of language teaching are based on communicativemethodologies, cross-curricular learning and active learning, such as the total physicalresponse. Content and language integrated learning (CLIL) receives positive feedback frompractitioners and has support from educational authorities and leaders. CLIL practices andoptions vary from country to country, depending on local language policies, number of hoursallocated, content taught through CLIL, support to teachers, etc. CLIL curricula inmainstream schools and pilot projects in primary education target creative or play activities,while science and social sciences (geography, history) are the subjects most commonlycovered by CLIL in general secondary education. English is the most common first foreignlanguage taught. A project on use of CLIL for cultural, social and environmental awarenessin European countries presented in Poland uses history, biology, sport and ICT to improvelearning English (page 18).

Providing information about different cultures needs to be supported, whenever possible,by real communication, exchange and common activities. Students ̓exchanges, real andvirtual, develop understanding of and respect for different cultures and lifestyles andcontribute to studentsʼ development as responsible European citizens. EU programmesaimed at mobility and cooperation of education and training institutions help to makeinteresting ideas developed in study visits become a reality, for example, friendship anduniversal peace in Italy (page 13) or teaching science in English in Poland (page 17).

ICT is widely used for promoting learning languages, providing real life experiencefor students to use the languages they learn, sharing resources and virtual collaboration, forexample, Internet-based platforms, blogs, and live journals. In Cyprus, language rooms insecondary schools allow teachers and students to carry out research, organise material and


make presentations on issues of common relevance to EU members such as environmentalquestions, immigration, unemployment and intercultural relations (page 16).

Participants of study visits observed that use of new approaches brings about changesin teacher training and improved cooperation between teachers of both the samesubject and of different subjects, and teachers in the same countries and across borders.The European framework of languages (9) is considered a useful common reference toolby foreign language teachers who use it for setting clear target levels. In Poland, teachertraining institutions provide a possibility to acquire dual qualification in language andsubjects on a systematic basis (page 34). In Asturias, Spain, the Educational Authoritysupports CLIL teachers who work together to create and design new materials, shareresources (online and published) and receive tailored training (page 36).

In its communication ʻKey competences for a changing worldʼ (10), the EuropeanCommission also pointed out that teachersʼ competences should be further developed;assessment methods should be updated and aligned with curricula as well as be availablefor examining key competences at various levels of education and training. Cedefopʼscomparative study on the relationship between learning outcomes and VET curricula andlearning programmes (11) shows that aligning teachers training and studentsʼ assessmentwith competence-based curriculum development constitutes a major challenge in MemberStates.

Further, the European Commission (2009) suggests that stronger focus on keycompetences is needed in vocational training and adult learning, with adults having realopportunities to develop and update their competences throughout life (such as learn aforeign language or become familiar with new technologies).

Findings of study visits show that developing key competences of learners, an EU policypriority, has become the focus of educational systems in participating countries whereschools and training institutions are looking for innovative and effective methods andapproaches. The examples brought to light by study visits are not only relevant to the workof Cedefop and the European Commission on examining curricular and assessment reformsbut also identify challenges. The findings also reveal a close link between changes incurricula and methodologies and a need for improving the quality of teaching. The latter willbe discussed in the next chapter.


(9) See: http://www.coe.int/T/DG4/Linguistic/ CADRE_EN.asp [cited 15.4.2010].(10) European Commission (2009). Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council,

the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. Key competences for achanging world. Draft joint progress report of the Council and the Commission on the implementation of theʻEducation and training 2010 work programmeʼ. Brussels, 25.11.2009, COM(2009)640 final. Available fromInternet: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/ doc/joint10/com640_en.pdf [cited 16.4.2010].

(11) Cedefop (forthcoming). Leraning outcomes: approaches in VET curricula. Luxembourg: Publications Office.


Figure 3. Why does one need key competences?

Source: Outcomes of a workshop at the synthesis seminar, 1-2 February 2010, Thessaloniki.

learning a foreign languagelearning a foreign language

civic and social competencescivic and social competences

promotes coexistenceis a key to social

and democratic processes

builds new approaches

to lifesupports mobility

supports holistic development

improves soft/social skills

opens minds

are essential for learnersto become part of society

improve effective

contribution to society

promote active citizenship

help learners to be

better members of society

improve

social integration

promote peace

help inclusion

and reduce disaffection

The Liceo Classico Stabili Trebbiani hasbeen involved for many years in promotingand disseminating European culture. AComenius project ʻFriendship and universalpeaceʼ ran between 2005 and 2007 andinvolved schools from Turkey, Belgium andItaly. The project promoted non-violentsolutions to conflicts and respect to allcultures, languages and religions. A website(www.comeniusforpeace.eu) was created, acollection of poems published, and a studyvisit ʻLes couleurs de la paix ̓ organised in2008. The website won the prestigious e-learning award by Schoolnet in 2007. TheLiceo Stabili Trebbiani produced a largeamount of teaching material that is alsoavailable on the website.

As a result of participating in the project,we observed a general improvement instudentsʼ progress at school, especially inforeign languages and ICT use. Theybecame profoundly aware of beingEuropean citizens and ambassadors ofpeace. Teachers, in turn, learned how towork in teams and how to use technologyfor communication and became moreoriented to new teaching methods andtechniques. They also benefited frommobility embedded in the project. Headteachers learned about other educationsystems and brought new ideas for schoolimprovement and motivating teachers andstudents in their schools.

During the study visit, participants fromBelgium, France, Norway, Romania,Spain, and Turkey agreed that it isnecessary to integrate peace and humanrights into the curriculum in all subjects andpartners from Belgium and Germanydeveloped another Comenius project forcreating an international school of peace(Lʼécole de la paix ) where students willbecome aware of the European Union, ofmultilingualism and the advantages oflearning foreign languages. As a result ofthe project, a cross-curricular teachingtextbook in four languages (German,English, French and Italian) is plannedsummarising good practices andapproaches.


A Comenius project ‘Friendship and universalpeace’ (2005-07), Italy

Ms Giuliana [email protected]

Liceo Classico Stabili TrebbianiViale Vellei 1063100 Ascoli Piceno, ItalyTel. and Fax +39 736259154

Three rural centres for innovation ineducation (CRIET) were created in 1983 toimprove compulsory education bycompensating for serious social andgeographical disadvantages of schools insmall and isolated villages in the rural areasof the province of Teruel. Students in theseschools often lack social exchange withstudents of their own age, which hindersdevelopment of their social and civiccompetences. This happens not onlybecause schools lack access to resourcesbut rather because of their isolation.

These CRIETS are distributedstrategically in depressed areas wherepupils are rarely of the same age andconsequently lack proper social exchangewith peers. They offer pupils and teachers inseveral small schools the opportunity ofsharing educational and life experiences atthe centre during a week in each term (totalof three weeks per year) through certaincurricular activities (labs, drama, sports,trips, mass media, etc.). Same school-agestudents live together doing activitiesdesigned by mixed staff composed of CRIETand local school teachers. This coordinatedwork ensures that learning objectives ofthese weeks absolutely fit schoolsʼ curricula.CRIETs give students educational contextsto develop social and civic competences;support primary teachers in specialisedsubjects, promote innovative approaches.

Traditional timetables in these weeks arecompletely replaced with topic-basedactivities and learner-centred approaches.There is focus on cross-curricular issues aswell as social learning contexts. There arespecialised teachers and staff to supportpupils and develop innovative programmes.They all have full accommodation at thecentre. To make the process more effective,schools and CRIET have periodicalevaluation meetings to ensure achievementof statutory curriculum expectations. At theend of the school year, all students who haveshared the three-week stay have a greatfestival with their families and teachers.

The intercultural mediator service ineducation was created by the Department ofEducation, Culture and Sports of thegovernment of Aragon. The main goal is tohelp the educational community receive andintegrate immigrants into educationalcontexts.

There are 10 cultural mediators in theentire region coordinated by CAREI (CentroAragonés de Recursos para la EducaciónIntercultural – Resource Centre forIntercultural Education in Aragon); they arepart of a network of public support servicesfor schools to strengthen intercultural,interpersonal and social competences.Mediators are from the main cultural areaswhere immigrants come from (SouthAmerica, eastern European countries,Maghreb, China). They intercede in solvingconflicts caused by cultural differences,support educational centres schoolingimmigrants and help improve relationsbetween families and school, etc. Thisservice is well perceived by the educationalcommunity and has increased from threepart-time mediators to 10 during the past fiveyears.


Rural centres for innovation in education (CRIET)and the work of cultural mediators, Spain

Mr Luis Ángel Torres LópezPedagogical [email protected]

Servicio Provincial de EducaciónC/ San Vicente de Paul, 344002-Teruel, SpainTel. +34 978641257, Fax +34 978641602

Since September 2008, children havestarted learning foreign languages at theage of six to seven (prior to this it was atage 10). In 2009, a new national corecurriculum was introduced. To prepare forthe new scheme, general teachers of earlyeducation and language teachers havegone through in-service training andreceived support.

During initial training at NKJO Zabrze,future teachers acquire a 30-hour moduleon teaching young learners and undertake20 hours of teaching practice in earlyeducation classes.

Generalist teachers received languagetraining with the aim of reaching B2 level ofthe common European framework ofreference for languages and received anadditional qualification in early languageeducation for children aged six to ninethrough a 270-hour programme approvedby the Ministry of Education. Teachertraining colleges (such as NKJO Zabrze)offer part-time programmes in languageteaching to general early yearsʼ teachers toenable them to continue working at schoolwhile studying.

Simultaneously, language teachersattend in-service courses, workshops andconference on early language education(such as using storytelling, drama activities,content and language integrated learning(CLIL)). Post-graduate programmes on

early language education are available bothto generalist and language teachers.

A young learner project was cofunded bythe National Centre for In-service TeacherEducation in Warsaw, the British Counciland the Goethe Institute in 1999-2002 toprepare cascade trainers for early languageeducation of English and German and toproduce support materials for teachers,including video lessons and accompanyingtraining materials.

Foreign language learning at an earlyage is perceived as part of the holisticeducation of children that supports theirintellectual, emotional, social, physical,aesthetic and ethical development. Throughan early start and creation of a supportiveand stimulating atmosphere, educators aimto create a positive attitude towardslanguage learning and encourage childrentowards the next stages of learning. Withoutdoubt, early language learning programmesshould be adapted to each individual childʼsneeds, stage and rate of development.


Early language teaching in Poland

Ms Melanie EllisTeacher/teacher [email protected]

Nauczycielskie Kolegium Jezykow Obcych (NKJO)Plac Warszawski 641-800 Zabrze, PolandTel. and Fax +48 322785836

The Ministry of Education and Culture ofCyprus organised a study visit in 2009 toemphasise the importance of the Europeandimension in the educational system and,especially, in teaching languages, morespecifically English. It is important to knownot only our history and culture but also toget in touch with the history and culture ofothers. The study visit made everybodyenthusiastic about the whole adventure, ʻajourney to Ithacaʼ.

One innovation recognised by the groupwas language rooms established in 2000. Alanguage room is a multifunctionalclassroom with equipment and resourcesthat accommodate diverse studentsʼ needs,interests and learning styles. There are fourcorners in the language room: viewing,listening, multimedia and reading. Studentsare divided into groups of five to six andwork on the same topic but through differentactivities. Students have time limits to finishtheir work; they choose spokespersons whopresent the final products to the rest of theclass. The teacher, a facilitator of learning,gives instructions, sets tasks, helpsstudents to form groups and monitors thestudents. Language rooms encourageautonomous learning, active participation,student initiative, negotiating ability,cooperation, creative and critical thinking.

Materials (presentations, lesson plans,etc.) prepared before and during the studyvisits were shared with languageinspectors, educators, students and pupilsthrough formal and informal meetings,seminars, workshops and lessons.Teachers seemed willing to implement theEuropean dimension in their lessons. Thiseffort was supported by the ministry andcontinues from pre-primary to universitylevel.

Within the scope of my duties, I noticethat schools collaborate and exchangematerials produced by teachers based oncourse books and materials they find on theInternet, model lessons presented duringthe study visit. Teachers come to realisethat inclusion of the European dimension intheir teaching is not obligatory but anecessity for everybody.


European dimension through teaching and learning English in Cyprus

Ms Stella Conti - TheocharousInspector of [email protected]

Cyprus Ministry of Education and CultureKimonos & Thoukidides str. 1434 Nicosia, CyprusTel. +357 22800773/609 , Fax +357 22800862

Inspired by experience and learning duringa study visit in Mallorca in 2008, I startedteaching science classes in English at myschool from September 2009. This is still anexperimental practice: students of 15 to 16years of age voluntarily signed up for theseclasses. It is expected that studentsʼachievements in English and in the subjectwill increase; they will see the benefit offoreign language competence for theirstudies and work; using technology forlearning, including independent learning,will improve.

To organise this, I cooperate with scienceteachers, as often in Poland subjectteachers are not fluent in foreignlanguages. First, we prepare the matter wewant the students to learn; then I translate itinto English and prepare my own materialsfor the students, such as Power Pointpresentations, handouts, crosswords,descriptions of experiments, etc. I created aweb blog where students are also theauthors and can upload the tasks,homework and experiments they perform:http://www.spiekarczyk.blogspot.com/[cited 16.3.2010].

So far, students eagerly take part in theclasses and their semester grades inEnglish were much better than in theprevious year. Further, the headmaster ofmy school realised the importance of suchclasses and decided to include them in theschoolʼs curriculum for the next school yearfor two carefully selected classes. Theteacher will be paid for this work, which iscurrently done voluntarily.


Teaching science in English, Poland

Ms Sylwia PiekarczykEnglish teacher, Comenius [email protected]

Gimnazjum im. Ojca Ludwika Wrodarczykaul. Krzywa 18, 41-922 Radzionków, PolandTel. and Fax +48 323898727

A Comenius project ʻCLIL for social, culturaland environmental awarenessʼ was carriedout by teachers of different subjects fromthe Czech Republic, Finland, Italy, Polandand Spain for almost two years (finished in2010). Partners developed and sharedmaterials for both students and teachersand visited countries to learn about theculture and habits of people around Europe.

Involving new teaching-learning practices(for example, conceptual maps), we aim atdeveloping studentsʼ communication andself-learning skills and integrating studentswith social, cultural and linguistic problems.We use content to make students aware ofenvironmental issues and/or social andcultural diversity.

In Gimnazjum in Radzionkow, studentsin the middle grades (aged between 13 and16) participate in project activities withstudents from partner countries throughmulticultural dialogue using the informationthey learn at school. So far, students havedeveloped the Moodle platform forinternational communication. Moreover,students have prepared an internationalhistorical guide on partner countriesʼ townsand cities in their national languages andEnglish, and with their teachers visited theCzech Republic, Finland, Italy and Polandand prepared concept maps describingtheir experience. Another interesting activitywas an orientation trial during the visit to

Poland where students in internationalgroups had to unravel mysteries encoded indifferent places with a map and hints left inthe forest. Last but not least, studentsstaged and recorded a school play inEnglish and presented the results duringthe visit to the Czech Republic. The mostprecious outcome apart from languagefluency was studentsʼ awareness ofdifferent interpretations of the play inpartner countries.

All the results, materials and photo -graphs are available on the projectʼswebsite http://www.comeniusclil.com/.


CLIL for cultural, social and environmentalawareness, Poland

Ms Sylwia PiekarczykEnglish teacher, Comenius coordinator [email protected]

Gimnazjum im. Ojca Ludwika Wrodarczykaul. Krzywa 18, 41-922 Radzionków, PolandFax +48 323898727

Hobby education in Latvia is aimed atrealising individual needs and desires, withrespect to oneʼs age and previouseducation (Law on Education, Art. 1).

Hobby education is coordinated by theState Education Content Centre (under thesupervision of the Ministry of Education andScience) and is funded both by the Stateand by municipalities. The centre alsoprovides support and in-service training tohobby education teachers.

Hobby education contributes to inclusiveeducation by involving particularly talentedchildren, children from disadvantagedfamilies and ʻstreetʼ children, children fromlow income families and families with manychildren, children with special needs,children registered at the juvenileinspectorate and probation services oryouths in juvenile custody, and children ofethnic minorities.

Various activities in music, arts,research, technical creativity are provided,such as competitions and concerts ofschool choirs, school brass bands andschool theatres; folk song and dancefestivals for children and youth; creativeactivities for children and youth with specialneeds; environmental games; a camp ʻAlfaʼfor the winners of Olympiads in schoolsubjects and laureates of pupilsʼ researchcompetitions; research conference ofLatvian pupils; competitions in

auto/plane/ship modelling, photography; asummer camp for leaders of school self-governments ʻacademy of democracyʼ.

Most choirs, brass bands, folk and dancegroups from hobby education take part inthe Latvian school youth song and dancefestival which takes place every five yearsin Riga since 1960. This tradition wasproclaimed a masterpiece of oral andintangible heritage of humanity by Unescoin 2003 and belongs to the representativelist of the intangible cultural heritage ofhumanity since 2008.

Almost 80 % of pupils are involved inhobby education provided at general andvocational schools, institutions of hobbyeducation (children and youth centres,centres for technical creative work, centresfor environmental education), pre-schooland professional institutions (music, artsand sport schools). Apart from makingappropriate and thoughtful use of leisuretime, students in hobby education developtheir self-expression and talents, learn tosocialise, build on their knowledge andskills acquired in formal education andprepare for future careers.


Hobby education in Latvia

Ms Valda LiekneEducation [email protected]

Iecava Community CouncilSkolas iela 4, Iecava, LatviaTel. +371 63941601, Fax +371 63941991www.iecava.lv

The hotel and tourism school in Giresun isa vocational State school where studentsaged 14 to 18 are trained for the tourismindustry. There are about 200 students.Every year 60 new students enter theschool. The idea of providing students withreal-life environment and experiences tomake them more engaged and motivatedwith the subjects they learned was bornabout two years ago. However, we onlystarted putting it into practice three monthsago after moving to a new building. Thenew building has hotel rooms, a kitchen anda garden.

We agreed that 25 % of classes will takeplace outside the classroom. In the hoteland restaurant, students learn to presentthe hotel, welcome guests and respond tocomplaints. At the reception they practisecheck-in and check-out procedures, answerthe phones both from the rooms andoutside. In the sports centre, students learnabout indoor and outdoor leisure activities,discuss the rules and equipment for varioussports available at the centre. In thekitchen, they learn to use kitchenware andutensils, describe food and drinks, discussresponsibilities of the staff and, of course,learn cooking recipes. The new approachgives an opportunity to our students ofusing English in a job environment similar towhere they will work and earn their living.

Teachers observe that students are moremotivated than before and that they learnthe target language better outside theclassroom. Teachers are also more inspiredand willing to do their job.


Language experience through out-of-classactivities in Turkey

Mr Kasim ToramanHead [email protected]

Giresun Anadolu Otelcilik ve Turizm MeslekLisesi(Hotel and Tourism School )Aksu Seka Mah. Fizik Tedavi Yanı28100 Giresun, TurkeyTel. and Fax +90 4542258797, +90 5058248303

The ʻenvironmental and civic councilʼ(Conselho Cívico Ambiental ) is probablythe oldest and most consistent projectdeveloped at Abrigada Schools Group. Thisinitiative started in 2002 as anenvironmental council with its mainobjective to reduce the amount of garbageat school. In 2005, the new team in theschool board decided to remodel the projectand change the way students, teachers,employees and parents looked at theirschool.

The project involves 900 students fromthe age of six to 15 and even older studentsfrom vocational courses. During the firstweek of every month, a group of teacherson a rotation basis discuss with each classstudent leader (21 students in the school)good things, problems and opportunities atour school. Student leaders then go back totheir classes and inform the other studentsabout what the council proposed to theschool head office to improve schoolquality. The office is composed of theheadmaster, the deputy headmaster andtwo head assistants. The class discussesthe proposals and prepares ideas for thenext meeting. The headmaster and histeam reply every month to studentsʼfeedback.

This practice developed a school culturebased on self-responsibility and a sense ofbelonging to the school. Students organisedʻgreen brigadesʼ that supervise ecologicalbehaviour of others during breaks;ʻvolunteer work bankʼ that brings parents toschool to help restoring and improvingworking conditions; ʻwaste selectivecollectionʼ that involves the community inbringing old paper, used oils, plastic toschool and management sells it to recyclingindustries – helping the environment andcreating wealth. Students take charge ofthe school; they decide what is best for theschool; what is best for the students.Parents also appreciate this projectbecause they participate and help schoolmanagement to achieve goals andaccomplish tasks.

In these past few years, the school area,building and materials have beencompletely restored and renewed with helpfrom all members of the community. Someother projects arose from studentsʼ ideasand interests. For example, in anentrepreneurship project students decidedto create local touristic products solving aregional problem. They found high-qualityproducts (honey, wine, biological jellies,biological aromatic herbs, etc.), developeda ʻbrandʼ in a special subject at school andstarted selling them with the help of thelocal parents association. This projectinvolved the town hall, parentsassociations, agricultural association, localproducers, and students.


School environmental and civic council in Portugal

Mr Rui [email protected]

Agrupamento de Escolas de AbrigadaRua General Humberto Delgado, PortugalTel. +351 2637698180Fax +351 2637698186

Linguistic and cultural diversity is a featureof everyday life in the county of Sibiu thathas at least four linguistic and nationalcommunities (Romanians, Rroma,Hungarians, Germans) and at least sevenChristian persuasions (Orthodox Church,Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics,Lutherans, Calvinists, Armenian Church,New-Protestants) and Jews.

The school inspectorate of the county ofSibiu organised a study visit in 2009 to showhow schools manage to keep Romanianand minoritiesʼ traditions alive and how theywork together to achieve this aim.

The constitutional right to education inthe language of their community (ornationality) for children belonging tominorities is respected through variousoptions: monolingual schools that acceptpupils from all communities; multinationalschools with Hungarian, Romanian andGerman sections; playgroup activitiesallowing for all languages to be present, etc.Although the number of students issometimes very low, schools implement thisright. For example, one school organises aminibus to collect Hungarian pupils from allaround the town so that they can attendclasses in Hungarian. School places areavailable for the Rroma minority, whetherthey are taken up or not.

There are also other activities that thestudy visit group considered good practice,for example:

• afterschool activities that allow childrenfrom all backgrounds to participate in freecultural activities, including languagelearning and Romanian traditionalculture;

• work with pre-school children from fourcommunities and their parents;

• courses on interculturalism and humanrights in English;

• competitions to improve self-esteem andEuropean exchanges.

Study visit participants discovered thatRomanian schools are engaged in manyEuropean projects as teachers are willing tocollaborate with colleagues from othercountries. As an outcome of the visit, aComenius project was prepared by a schoolin January 2010.

Participants noted that ʻin terms ofdealing with multiculturalism, Europeancountries could learn a lot from theRomanian exampleʼ.


Multiculturalism in and through education in Romania

Ms Christine Manta-ClemensDeputy Chief [email protected], [email protected]

Inspectoratul Scolar Judetean Sibiu(School Inspectorate of the Sibiu County )Berariei 2, Sibiu 550173, RomaniaTel. +40 269210466 , Fax +40 269210817

Motivation, skills and competences of teachers and the quality of school leadership are keyfactors in achieving high quality learning outcomes (12). Ensuring a better quality of teachingand training requires that teacher and trainers embrace a broader range of duties andacquire more skills than in the past.

The perception of the role of the teacher (trainer) has changed in recent years with moreexpectation from teachers as well as from schools in general. Key players in supporting thelearning experience of learners, teachers and trainers need to take greater responsibility forupdating and developing their own knowledge and skills (13) and adapt their skills andworking practices to a changing context. Teachers need to work with more heterogeneousgroups of students and improve integration of disadvantaged students into mainstreameducation and training. Teachers and trainers need to master, develop and apply newteaching and training approaches and reflective thinking. This also implies moreindividualised approaches to teaching and learning, good communication skills, methods ofteamwork, democratic schooling management and supportive mechanisms for pupilassessment and school evaluation. Teachers should be more involved and active in schoolimprovement processes.

Well-trained teachers with up-to-date methodological approaches and tools play a keyrole in promoting learning and bringing good learning outcomes for students. To ensure this,all stages of teacher training from initial training through induction to continuous professionaldevelopment should be interconnected to create a more coherent learning and developmentsystem for teachers (14). Teaching should be a well-qualified profession, with teachers andVET trainers being highly qualified in their professional areas with the necessarypedagogical competences. Some countries set higher qualification requirements forentering the profession. Some countries have already introduced a masterʼs programme aspart of initial teacher training (Bulgaria, Germany, Portugal, and Romania).

Findings of study visits indicate that there is a need for teachers with integratedknowledge and competences and for teachers with multiple qualifications. For example,in some countries, it is a challenge to hire teachers both with subject knowledge andlanguage teaching capacity to provide CLIL-based learning. In Poland, dual qualifications insubject area and language are provided by initial teachersʼ training to enable students toteach their subjects in a foreign language (page 34). In Catalonia (Spain), CLIL training for

Learning to teach – Challenges for teachers

(12) Swedish Presidency of the European Union (2009). Informal meeting for Ministers for Education. Presidencysummary. 24.9.2009. Available from Internet: http://www.se2009.eu/polopoly_fs/1.16329!menu/standard/file/Conclusions%20med%20logg%20eng.pdf [cited 16.4.2010].

(13) Council of the European Union (2009). Council conclusions of 26 November 2009 on the professional developmentof teachers and school leaders. Official Journal of the European Union, C 302, 12.12.2009, p. 6-9. Available fromInternet: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri= OJ:C:2009:302:0006:0009:EN:PDF [cited 16.4.2010].

(14) OECD (2005). Teachers matter: attracting, developing and retaining effective teachers. Paris, OECD.

primary and secondary school teachers offers foreign language training for subject teachersand an opportunity for schools to apply for a foreign language project (page 35).

Initial training should become more practice-oriented, shifting from content-centred tomethodology-centred so that student-teachers get more practical tools for varied teachingand classroom management. Teacher trainers should demonstrate varied and up-to-dateteaching methods to their students. In Norway, teacher education institutions workcollaboratively with schools, build partnerships and develop bridges between theory andpractice. Student-teachers run the entire school for a short period of time and canexperience real situations of school life and acquire relevant working experience, whileschool teachers participate in service training (pages 27-28).

A good start in the teaching profession is seen as very important, especially inductionand probation programmes that introduce new teachers to new working environments. Forexample, in Wales during the induction year newly-qualified teachers are involved increating a personalised programme with their tutor (page 29), while in Scotland duringinduction a new teacherʼs working week is divided into class contact time (70 %) andcurriculum reflection and pedagogical reflection and dialogue (30 %). It should be notedthat currently the European Commission is working on a handbook for policy-makers ondeveloping coherent induction programmes for new teachers.

To prepare students as self-directed learners and motivated to learn over a lifetime,teachers and trainers should become role models of lifelong learners. To achieve this,it is important that their learning is recognised and valued; in fact, it should be part ofteachersʼ careers. The low status of teachers in many countries is a significant barrier tochanges in educational and training systems. One interesting solution is combiningteachersʼ professional development with career advancement that leads to more teachersʼself-reflection, identification of their learning needs and increases their ownership of andresponsibility for their lifelong learning. For example, the chartered teacher programme inScotland (page 30) requires a contractual commitment for in-service training betweenindividual teachers and a professional body, the General Teaching Council (GTC). GTC isan organisation where teachers, of their own will and at their own expense, activelycelebrate their professional standing, set quality indicators for members, manage andmaintain professional standards and govern the conduct of its members. Charteredteachers are expected to exemplify high quality teaching skills in schools.

Study visit reports indicate that in-service teacher training is provided for teachers in allcountries through a range of methods to include short courses focusing on both policies andpriorities, courses focusing on improving pedagogy and longer courses enabling teachers toimprove their qualifications. Continuous professional development should be based onteachersʼ individual needs and consider initial training and the stage of a teaching career.Findings show that traditional in-service training methods are complemented by new forms,such as distance learning and peer learning.


In-service teacher training in the Basque country has been a showcase of study visits formore than 10 years (page 33). Pedagogic centres provide schools and teachers with a widerange of information, resource materials, training, courses, seminars, possibility of sharingexperiences, fostering learning among peers, free-of-charge activities linked to dailyclassroom tasks supervised by advisers (former teachers).

Peer observation and peer learning are seen as exciting and motivating for maintaininghigh teaching quality. Team teaching in Norway (page 32) enables flexible approaches tothe curriculum, pupil grouping and organisation of learning and teaching when teachersconsult one another. Students have several adults to relate to in a safer learningenvironment. Teachers working together to produce teaching materials were regarded as akey ingredient to the success of educational programmes. Cooperation between subject andlanguage teachers in providing CLIL has proved effective. In Spain, for example, suchcooperation is supported with special provisions such as paid leave to teachers fordeveloping teaching and learning materials (page 35). Sharing resources on the Internet isbecoming a common practice. In Sweden, school management representatives, thoseresponsible for teacher education at university and coordinators of studentsʼ practice reflecttogether to improve teaching teams (page 31).

Teachers and trainers should be encouraged to benefit from mobility experience in otherEuropean countries. Participants in study visits point to the need for teachers to learnforeign languages to participate in mobility and lifelong learning and in European andinternational cooperation. Creating opportunities for teachers ̓mobility to host countries ofthe languages taught constitutes an important concern in most countries. It is important thatexchange programmes are incorporated into initial teacher training so student teachers canhave part of their practice in another country, especially, in the country of the languagewhich they are going to teach.

Findings from study visits help to understand better which policies and practices areeffective for improving the quality of teaching and, consequently, learning in participatingcountries in light of competence-based curricula. The latter requires advanced high-qualityinitial teacher training and customised and up-to-date continuous professional developmentthat also keeps teachers in the profession. Through learning and exchange of ideas duringstudy visits, school heads and decision-makers can significantly contribute to improvingteachersʼ education and training and aligning it to todayʼs demand.

Learning to teach – Challenges for teachers 25


Figure 4. What makes a good teacher?

Source: Outcomes of a workshop at the synthesis seminar, 1-2 February 2010, Thessaloniki.

good teachersgood teachers

know the subject and possess

pedagogical methodsare dedicated, passionate

and enthusiastic

care for every child

are learning facilitators and create

a good learning environment

are lifelong learners

and able to motivate students

to learn all their lives

are able to improve and develop themselves

are creative and encourage creativity and innovation

are open to the world

are reflective about their everyday practices

are confident

in their capacity

are ‘realistic dreamers’

are team workers

All students in post-graduate certificateteacher education (PGCE) at the Universityof Agder have six weeks practice when intheir fifth week they run the school more orless by themselves. While experiencedteachers leave the school grounds forconferences, in-service training andteambuilding, student-teachers acquire amuch more realistic experience of being afull-time teacher. Moreover, universityteachers move some of their lectures andseminars out to the school, thus, bridgingtheory and practice. The programmeinvolves 70 PGCE student-teachers, facultyand administration of practice schools,university teachers and the teachereducation unit.

In the weeks preceding running theschool, student-teachers take part in allschool activities: teaching (around 10 hoursper week), faculty meetings, parentmeetings, monitoring pupilsʼ play areas,etc., and simultaneously, receivingguidance from mentor teachers. During thefifth week, student-teachers teach full time(around 20 hours) and learn to manageother aspects of school life.

To support student-teachers whennecessary, three to four experiencedteachers from other schools are brought inand one or two university teachers arepresent. When the regular teachers return,students share their experiences. Studentsare assessed pass or fail based on theirreport to their guidance teachers and theteachersʼ final assessment report in sixpredefined areas. In cases where theschool is too big for student-teachers to run,it is possible to run a grade or even asubject (for example, English languageclasses).

To prepare students, student-teachersʼmeetings with administration and faculty atthe practice school and university teachersin the teacher education programme takeplace to explain expectations andprocedures. The teacher education unit is incharge of organising these meetings,distributing student-teachers to schools,offering schools a course in guidance ofstudents in practice, and of making aʻstudent-run schoolʼ guidebook given toeverybody involved.

As a result, student-teachers see a betterlink between practice and theory and gain astronger feeling of responsibility. Theinterest of schools in this kind of practicehas grown. University teachers get achance to meet school teachers and sharelatest developments in education.


Student-run schools as part of teacher training in Norway

Mr Tim HopeDirector of Teacher education [email protected], [email protected]

Teacher education unit University of AgderService box 422N-4604 Kristiansand, NorwayTel. +47 38141000, Fax +47 38141191www.uia.no/lu

Student-run school as part of practice for students in teacher-training(example from post-graduate program with 6-week practice period each autumn,

where 4 groups of 15-20 student-teachers are at 4 different schools simultaneously)

Contract gives student-teachers 10 lessons to teach each week + 4 hours of guidance by experienced teacher. In week 5 student-teacher double classes to teach (= approx. full position)


Figure 5. Students-run school in Norway (see page 27)

Today’s topic may be raised/addressedby student-teachers, Univercity teachers or

faculty at the practice school

Administration and teacher at practice schools go off schoolgrounds while teacher-studentstay behind and run the school.

About 3 experienced teachers from other schoolsare hired infor the week by the university to guide,support and help

student-teachers when necessary.

Pre-meet-ings withall involved

Booklethanded out

Schoolsare taughtin “how toguide stu-dent-teach-ers inpractice”

Someteaching

Observa-tion

Guidance

Quick-course inrelevanttopic from dailyschool life

Teaching

Someobserva-tion

GuidanceQuick-course inrelevanttopic from dailyschool life

Teaching

Someobserva-tion

Guidance

Quick-course inrelevanttopic fromdailyschool life

Teaching

Guidance


Teaching

Guidanceoffered byexperi-encedteachersfrom otherschools

Teaching

Guidance


Evaluations

Reports on eachstudent-teachergiven bypracticeschool

Studenthand in logfrom theirpracticeexperience

BEFORE WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3 WEEK 4STUDENT-

RUNSCHOOL

WEEK 6 AFTER

The induction year for newly-qualifiedteachers (NQTs), a statutory one-yearprogramme, serves as a bridge from initialteacher training to effective professionalpractice. In the postgraduate certificate ofeducation course (PGCE), trainee teachersare assessed on professional character -istics, knowledge and skills and at the endof the PGCE, they are awarded thequalified teacher status (QTS). In Wales, allNQTs who gained QTS after April 2003 arerequired to complete the period of inductionand meet the end of induction standard inorder to teach in government-fundedschools.

At the start of the induction period, thenewly-qualified teacher will be directed tothe team of people involved in induction:head teacher, induction tutor, curriculumleaders and heads of year responsible forthe pastoral needs of pupils. Members ofthe school team are carefully selectedbased on their ability and expertise to leadthe training; they are highly motivated, wellinformed, usually senior staff, whoseorganisational and coordinating skills areparamount. Representatives from the LocalEducation Authority (LEA) and the GeneralTeaching Council for Wales contribute tothe induction process.

The NQT are actively involved inplanning their induction programme. Onentry to a school, the NQT will work closelywith the induction tutor to create apersonalised induction programme tailoredto the individual strengths and needs of theNQT identified with college/university tutorat the conclusion of the initial teachertraining course and presented in the careerentry profile. With the Induction Tutor, theNQT will set short-, medium- and long-termobjectives that emerge from individual,department and school priorities. Regularlesson observations, professional reviewsand discussions, attendance at trainingcourses, observation of experiencedteaching staff and monitoring all work areundertaken in the highly-structuredprogramme.

After induction, teachers can engage inearly professional development (EPD) andin continuing professional development(CPD).

Entry into the teaching profession can befrightening and formidable. The inductionprogramme serves to reduce fear, improvepractice and ensure success, prior toproceeding to further professionaldevelopment.


The induction year for newly-qualified teachers in Wales

Mrs Pauline MorganDeputy [email protected]

St Teilo’s High SchoolLlanedeyrn Road, PenylanCF23 9DT, Cardiff, UKTel. +44 2920434700www.stteilos.sch.uk

The chartered teacher was introduced inScotland in 2003 as a result of a nationalagreement of the Scottish Government,unions and employers to reform the careerstructure, conditions of service and salariesof the teaching profession. The programmerepresents the commitment of Scotland toinvest seriously in the quality of teachersʼlearning and development to ensure highquality learning experiences for learners.

As stated in the standard for charteredteacher (15), chartered teachers areaccomplished, innovative and reflectivepractition ers, they actively promote equalityand social justice in all areas of work. Theysystematically evaluate the impact forlearners and learning and play ʻa leadingrole in the professional development ofcolleaguesʼ and make ʻa recognisedcontribution to the educationaleffectiveness of the school and the widerprofessional community.ʼ To date there are

979 chartered teachers in Scotland (thetotal teaching population in Scotland is55 000).

Teachers who have reached the top ofthe main salary scale (typically after sixyears of practice) are eligible for charteredteacher status, an alternative careerpathway for those who wish to remain inclassroom with an improved pay structureof around GBP 7 000 annual increase.Since 2008, teachers can become achartered teacher through a postgraduatemasterʼs level programme at one of the nineproviders accredited by the GeneralTeaching Council for Scotland (GTCS).

Apart from the attractive salary raise, themotivation for teachers to participate in theprogramme is strong as the certification bya professional body, GTCS, provides aninvaluable recognition and qualification.Teachers also get a stronger sense ofprofessional autonomy and control overtheir learning development and careerchoices. Chartered teacher statusencourages expert teachers to remain inthe classroom as leaders of learning andpedagogy and be financially rewarded forthis leadership and improved practice.

Teachers who achieve the status arevery positive about their professionaldevelopment and enthusiastic to take onnew challenges and share their learningand practice with others. As one of theteachers put it, they ʻhave rediscovered thejoy of teachingʼ.


The chartered teacher programme in Scotland

Ms Rosa MurrayProfessional Officer (Professional Learning Development)[email protected]

The General Teaching Council for Scotland96 Clermiston RoadEH12 6UT, Edinburgh, UKTel. +44 131314 6082www.gtcs.org.ukwww.scotland.gov.uk

(15) The Scottish Government (2009). Standard for chartered teacher. Available from Internet:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/285174/0086635.pdf [cited 15.4.2010].

With the introduction of new teachereducation in 2001, dialogue meetings wereintroduced to improve contacts betweenteacher education at Dalarna University andmunicipalities in the county of Dalarna.Meetings take place at different levels:school management and the responsible forteacher education at the university; studentplacement coordinators in the municipalitiesand university staff responsible for teacher-students; practice teachers in themunicipalities and university teachers ofdifferent subjects; teacher-students andcoordinators and managers in themunicipalities.

The basis for collecting information fordialogue meetings is self-evaluation. Self-evaluation questions prepared by a partnerschool developer and answered bymanagement teams and practice teachersare then analysed and presented at thedialogue meeting between managementand the university that takes place once ayear. Analysis reveals strengths andweaknesses in the organisation andindicates where attention is needed, forexample, better focus on examinationpapers or improved engagement ofteaching teams in the municipality aroundthe student.

This activity provides management withmore knowledge about their organisationsand reveals problems before they grow(examples of questions and outcomes areavailable at: http://users.du.se/~jnr).Principals, managers and coordinators alsocontribute to the agenda with questions oftheir own.

In the latest report of the nationalauthority (Högskoleverket) that checks alluniversity partnership models for studentpractice, Dalarna and Malmö universitiesare mentioned as examples of goodpractice.


Dialogue between university and municipality in Sweden

Mr Jan NordinPartner school developerDalarna University

PUD – Pedagogical development centre(Pedagogiskt Utvecklingscentrum )Högskolegatan, 2 Falun, SwedenManager: Mr Gunnar OlssonTel. +46 23778295, Fax +46 [email protected]

Opened in 2009, Moster school is acombined primary and lower secondaryschool with 330 pupils and a staff of 50 fromtwo former schools and a reception centrefor asylum-seekers.

Having been a headmistress for the pastfive years and taking up a new job, Ifocused on planning and building a schoolfor the future. It was extremely interestingand motivating as my staff and I hadinfluence in the planning process. Some ofus travelled around Norway and visitedother newly-built schools getting valuableideas on form, architecture and pedagogy.We chose flexibility, areas with a lot ofpossibilities, enough space for pupils tolearn, grow and develop. As a result, theschool has an open layout with many break-out rooms that permit various forms ofteaching. One of the reasons for this choicewas our strong team teaching experience.

At lower secondary schools in Norway,teachers are mainly generalists. When youpractise team teaching you can teach bytalent and interest using one anotherʼsstrengths. Teachers see the advantages ofteam teaching in complementarity, in havinga discussion partner at all times, betterexchange of experience on subjects,increased pedagogical reflection. Theyshare planning, workload, responsibility for

pupils and can easily replace one another.Combined with the school layout, itincreases possibilities to tailor teaching andlearning to pupilsʼ individual needs. Teamteaching allows more flexible approaches tocurriculum, pupilsʼ grouping andorganisation of teaching and learning.

Of course, there are challenges too.Large groups of pupils put greater demandson communication and cooperationtechniques and require more time. It isnecessary to inform parents of the benefitsand practice of team teaching to get theirsupport and goodwill.

All pupils are of equal worth, but noneare alike. Moster school is an inclusiveschool: children with special needs areincluded in their respective grade, witheducation in classroom or various break-outrooms. We strive for the ideal of giving allour pupils adapted and differentiatededucation based on their own abilities andneeds. Team teaching allows us to developpupilsʼ key competences to enable them toparticipate positively in our society.


Benefits of team teaching in Norway

Ms Anne [email protected],[email protected]

Moster school5440 Mosterhamn, NorwayTel. +47 53423602, +47 53423601www.bomloskulen.no

Ortuella Berritzegune has been hostingstudy visits on in-service training forteachers since 2001 after one of theorganisers had taken part in an Arion studyvisit in 1998 and realised we could alwayslearn from other educational systems andshare our good practices with them.

Pedagogic centres (Berritzegune) arepublic institutions that provide schools andteachers with a wide range of free-of-charge information, resource materials,training, courses, seminars, and possibilityof sharing experiences. They foster peerlearning among teachers through activitieslinked to their daily tasks and supervised byadvisers (former teachers) rather than byexperts from universities. Teachersʼevaluation and feedback is a keystone inthose institutions.

While hosting study visits, we exchangedlots of materials, findings and resourcesbetween teacher trainers from differentcountries. As a result, many schools in ourarea take part in Comenius, eTwinning,study visits programme, etc. But above all,visitors and organisers learn that problemsand solutions in education are very similaracross Europe, for example, how to dealwith special educational needs, how toimplement second/third language

instruction, how to use ICT in theclassroom, problems with coexistence orliving together, intercultural dialogue. And atthe same time they have learned that mostare solved by inclusive approaches,adaptation of methodologies, cooperationof schools with community by involvingteachers, students, parents andcommunities in school projects,competence-based teaching and learningand solid leadership at schools.


In-service teacher training in the Basque country

Mr Martin CasadoHead of Teachers [email protected],[email protected]

Ortuella Berritzegune (Teachers Centre)Urioste s/n48530, Bizkaia, SpainTel. +34 946640027, Fax +34 946641684www.studyvisitbilbao.tk

The Foreign Language Teacher TrainingCollege in Toruń is a three-year school foradults who want to qualify as teachers ofEnglish, German or French and who haveat least secondary education and a goodcommand of a foreign language (B2 levelfor English, B1 level for French andGerman). The programme consists of 1 080hours of practical language, 510 hours ofliterature/ linguistics/history classes, 480hours of methodology and 150 hours ofteaching practice. After writing a diplomaproject and taking final exams, studentsreceive a diploma from the teacher trainingcollege that qualifies them to teach alanguage at primary and secondaryschools.

Recently, we observed that morestudents choose combined subject studiesat university with a language course atteacher training college. Thus, three yearsago we decided to support such students byproviding for individual organisation ofstudies, counselling and continuous supportto students and Moodle-based courses (stillin development). Another aim was to takeadvantage of studentsʼ subject knowledgecombined with their language skills leadingto interesting CLIL classes and/or possibilityto teach subjects in foreign languages.

We introduced more CLIL into ourcourses. Our teacher trainers have modifiedtheir teaching techniques to provide amodel for teacher trainees. We encouragestudents to teach elements of their subjectsin a foreign language during their teachingpractice and write their diploma projects onCLIL or on teaching subjects in foreignlanguages. We developed teaching andlearning materials and use other projects,for example, students of history acting asguides during study visits in Toruń.

Each year about 90 % of studentsgraduate with dual qualifications. Somestudents take a year off to write theirmasterʼs thesis and then resume theirlanguage studies. It is easier for thesestudents to find a job in schools. Obtainingdual qualifications does not mean, however,that these teachers are required to teachCLIL. There are still not too many schools inPoland that follow CLIL-based teaching.Nevertheless, our graduates try to introduceCLIL elements into general English classes,or prepare special CLIL projects at schoolsto promote the idea.


A dual qualification in subject and language in Poland

Ms Beata TomaszewskaHead of English [email protected],[email protected]

Foreign Language Teacher Training CollegeUl. Sienkiewicza 3887100 Toruń, PolandTel. +48 566617585, Fax +48 566617555www.nkjo.torun.pl

Since 2006/07, the Ministry of Education ofCatalonia has implemented a plan (until2015) to improve the level of foreignlanguages competence (especially English)of pupils at primary and secondary schools.Hence, there is a huge offer of foreignlanguage training for teachers. Schools canalso apply for a three-year foreign languageproject. The number of participating schoolshas been growing as well as the number ofteachers who improve their skills in foreignlanguages.

During the first year of the project,teachers follow a 30-hour training (includingonline) on theoretical foundations of CLILand start developing materials, lesson plansand activities that they put into practiceduring the second and third years of theproject. The first training was provided byexperts from the University of Nottingham,but since 2008/09 by local teacher trainerswho have gone through special training.

During the second and third years of theproject, teachers are entitled to a paid studyleave of 10 weeks to spend at NorwichInstitute for Language Education (NILE),University of Nottingham or University ofAberdeen in the UK to learn aboutmethodological principles of CLIL and theirapplication in the classroom and to developteaching and learning materials and lesson

plans that are then published online by theMinistry of Education. A bank of ʻready touseʼ CLIL materials is available at:http://www.xtec.cat/cirel.

Teachers who have not taken paid studyleave participate in decentralised trainingcourses in different regions of Catalonia toexchange experiences, evaluate their ownand other teachersʼ CLIL experiences,develop new CLIL materials or adaptmaterials from other sources. Or they canpursue individual training in otherprogrammes.

Teachers using the CLIL approachconclude that pupils enjoy learning aforeign language more as they find it moreuseful through learning to use the foreignlanguage and use the foreign language tolearn.


CLIL teachers training for schools with a special foreign language project in Spain

Ms Núria Carrillo MonsóTeacher [email protected]

Ministry of Education of CataloniaVia Augusta 20208019, Barcelona, SpainTel. +34 935516900 Ext. 3376Fax +34 932415343www.xtec.cat/formacio/index.htm#llengues

Asturias has a long tradition of supportinglearning of foreign languages. After a pilotproject on early language learning in the1990s, all pupils in our region start learningEnglish before entering primary school. Insecondary schools students learn languagesin small groups of maximum 15 pupils.

We started bilingual and CLIL educationin our region in 2004 in four pilot secondaryschools. Today, more than half our primaryand secondary schools are bilingualschools with English and seven secondaryschools with French. Within the frameworkof the regional support programme forbilingual education, these schools havelanguage assistants and all participatingteachers have two free teaching periods toprepare lessons and one hour per week formeetings.

PALE (Programa nacional de apoyo alaprendizaje de lenguas extranjeras) is anational support programme for primaryand secondary CLIL teachers. It consists ofa 200-hour course of three stages: a three-week training course in Asturias, a two-week course in England that includesstudies of methodology and language andschool visits and a 40-hour workshop toproduce materials for each subject(available at: www.educastur.es).

As a result of these efforts, pupils andteachers have improved their commandand fluency of English and have developedtheir key competences to understand a 21stcentury world.

The teachers centre in Oviedo hasorganised six study visits since 2004 toshare their experience and learn from otherEuropean colleagues.


Support to CLIL and bilingual education in Asturias, Spain

Mr Gilberto Terente FernándezForeign Language adviser and teacher [email protected]

Centro de Profesores de OviedoC/El Monticu s/n33008, Oviedo, SpainTel. +34 985240794www.educastur.es

Economic globalisation, rapid technological change, demographic developments andincreased migration and mobility as well the political pressure caused by international tests(for example, PISA (16)) challenge schools and training institutions to equip learners withknowledge, skills and attitudes, to become learning communities and to create effectivepartnerships with stakeholders in their governance. New demands have made policy-makers and leaders of educational and training institutions look much more forward thanbefore and changed the role of school leaders across Europe. School leaders nowadays areat the forefront and central actors of school improvement efforts. In this new context, schoolleaders are supposed to be able to cope with a wider range of competences andresponsibilities than in the past. Heads of schools are now to become ʻhead learnersʼ, as astudy visitʼs participants put it, leading learners and learning leaders.

Participants of study visits observed that governance and management of schools variesextremely among European countries. One of the main factors that accounts for thevariation is the distribution of power between national and local levels, from very centralisedapproaches (Romania, Turkey) to highly decentralised systems (Denmark, Finland).Greater decentralisation of school systems, more autonomy and demand for more equity,efficiency and quality of education and training have led to reconsidering traditional ways oforganising and managing education and training and looking for new approaches andeffective and dynamic leadership.

Managing change is not easy. There is a need for effective leadership skills andcompetences (including financial management, ICT skills, staff motivation, qualityassurance, communication, etc.) that would embrace change and new roles. Most groupreports highlight that professional school management demands special training andindicate that more countries are looking for ways to provide it through targeted induction andin-service training, through improved quality and more variety of training content andmethods for school leaders. Qualifications and specialised programmes for schoolleaders are seen as valuable, for example, a fast track masterʼs programme for schoolleaders developed at the University of Malta (page 43) where participants are engaged indesigning learning organisations.

Study visit reports indicate that there is a need for competitive recruitment of schoolleaders. The way of becoming a headmaster has a huge influence on the way leadershipis realised. Headmasters are recruited differently in each country. In most countries amanager can spend his/her career at the same school, while in other countries there arelimits on the number of terms for school heads, for example, four years in Sweden or twoterms in Spain. This limit is seen as a useful tool to ensure motivation and quality in the

Learning to lead – Challenges for education leaders

(16) The programme for international student assessment (PISA) is an internationally standardised assessment that wasjointly developed by participating economies and administered to 15 year-olds in schools: http://www.pisa.oecd.org[cited 29.3.2010].

leading position and as a way of making a decision to become a school leader more easy.In more countries aspiring schools leaders have to present a project for school developmentand improvement (Spain, Sweden).

Developing key competences and focus on learning outcomes is a very demanding taskfor school leaders: they have to make their teachers accept that task and come up witheffective ways of teaching and they have to realise that sometimes students already arebetter prepared for the new world than teachers (this refers, for example, to ICT skills).Transition to a competence-based approach can be strengthened through improvedpartnerships between education and training institutions and the wider world, especially theworld of work.

Moving from centralised systems of control towards more decentralised systems is amajor challenge reported in all group reports. School autonomy has also coincided withgreater pressures from the public and from national governments for schools to beaccountable through external and internal evaluation systems (involving nationalstandards, outcome-based curricula, pupil assessment and more interaction between alleducational stakeholders). The main issue is to establish the right balance between Statecontrol and internal quality evaluation (self-evaluation).

Reflection and self-evaluation for continuous improvement are seen as integral partof leadership and of school functioning in many countries. In Finland, evaluation of schoolactivities and school improvement efforts are based entirely on self-evaluation performed byschool management and staff, including feedback from parents and pupils (page 48).

Schools are at the heart of their communities, particularly small schools which are bynature different and face specific needs and which often are significant for the overallwelfare of the local population. For example, in Austria municipalities are prepared to investin their schools over a long period of time and a campaign to raise awareness of policy-makers and public of the value of small schools is undertaken (page 47). In Finland,secondary schools are founded by local communities to meet their educational needs andmost secondary schools are relatively small. The work of an association of small schools(pages 44-45) helps them to share experiences and solutions, learn from one another,optimise learning opportunities through distance courses, etc. Tailoring school headsʼcompetences to the size of school and training institutions is crucial.

Opening schools to their communities and the wider world, involving allstakeholders in running a school makes leadership more distributed and based oncooperation and teamwork. Education and training institutions become learningorganisations, learning communities. A characteristic of managing education and trainingnowadays is looking for solutions together, through cooperation with all involved: parents,industry, social partners, and local communities, and through international cooperation andexchange. Effective school leaders establish a culture of trust and dialogue between all


parties involved, not only between teachers and parents, but also between national level(such as ministry), local level (city council) and the individual school. Supportingestablishment of management teams and shared leadership enables school heads tobenefit from common learning. Increased involvement of parents in school life is challengingbut it is nowadays part of the game, part of the quality assurance process.

In Tromso (Norway), heads of five schools put their experience together when building anew school and involved all teachers in managing change and creating a new leadershipculture where all work together and learn from one another (page 41). Sometimes seriousproblems in the daily work of schools are a good stimulus to start school development andʻreloadʼ school leadership. A young school head in Sweden used a participatory approachand involved students from disadvantaged backgrounds to start reshaping and improving aschool in critical condition (page 49).

Teamwork proves effective not only within schools. Cooperation networks and clusteringof schools is becoming a regular and valued practice. School clusters in the Flemishcommunity of Belgium (page 46) constitute an interesting illustration of innovativearrangements involving teamwork of school leaders. Results show that such cooperationfosters solidarity and interaction between schools, increases the general level of knowledgeand support for managers and tends to optimise school resources. In Järfälla commune inSweden alongside in-service training (leadership academy, manager academy), schoolheads, head teachers and deputy heads meet once or twice a month to discuss commonmatters, offer common support aiming to establish a high quality school system (page 42).

Using technology to increase efficiency and accountability of education and trainingallows more time to be spent on quality assurance efforts. In Turkey, a comprehensivee-school administration system that contains records on all students, teachers andschools helped to diminish the administrative burden and focus efforts on educationquality (page 50).

Findings of study visits make us believe that the concept of lifelong learning has becomewell-established; however, there is still a lot to be accomplished to make it a reality for all.During the informal meeting for Ministers for Education in Göteborg in September 2009, itwas stressed that together with students and teachers, school leaders should benefit fromʻopportunities to share good practice and professional development across nationalboundariesʼ (17). Study visits is the programme that, among others, addresses school headsand those responsible for education and training at local, regional and national levels andprovides them with a forum for sharing examples of good practice and finding effective andinnovative solutions to todayʼs challenges.

Learning to lead – Challenges for education leaders 39

(17) Swedish Presidency of the European Union (2009). Professional teachers - The key to successful schools:memorandum. 27.8.2009. Available from Internet: www.se2009.eu/polopoly_fs/1.13697!menu/standard/file/Diskussionsunderlag.pdf [cited 16.4.2010].

Figure 6. What is a good school?


a good schoola good schoolis where teachers, staff and

parents follow a common idea: to prepare young people

for life by giving them knowledge, motivation and competences

for lifelong learning

encourages students to achieve

greater outcomesthan expected

is a pleasant place to be

for students and parents

acts as a learning community and a

community of learners

supports innovation and creativity at work

aims at promoting personal fulfilment, social inclusion

and learning by doing

is aware of its important role

for society

cooperates with parents, boards, representatives

(stakeholders)

combines freedom and responsibility on all levels

teaches studentsto think

has good conditionsof learning

has an open-minded atmosphere

and is full of discussion

takes care of pupils’ and students’ individual needs

and personalities

Five primary and secondary schools shareda project. The aim was to find out howleadership could improve students learningoutcomes. Each school chose differentapproaches for implementation of change.Some started with a group of dedicatedteachers, some with changes for onesubject. We learned that leadership forchange gives the best outcome where allteachers in a school are included.

We wanted to share the experiences wehad in schools where we had special focuson leadership for change, developingculture for on-the-job training for teachersand for adjusted learning for students. Thepurpose was to build capacity and to raiseteachersʼ awareness of their role in theclassroom. A good school leader shouldhave a moral purpose to improve studentachievement. This means understandingchange, being able to create relationshipsand inspire knowledge-sharing.

Our development project has lastedthree years and is still going. The mainoutcome has been improved ways ofmaking students aware of their learninggoals. To do this, teachers have to makelesson plans and focus on goals for eachlesson, we are looking at better ways toinvolve students in self-evaluation and weencourage teachers to plan together andparticipate in one anotherʼs classes andlearn from one another.

Leadership strategies we have used canbe summed up as:

• set a stage – leadership group pulltogether;

• decide what to do – create vision andstrategy;

• make it happen – communicate,empower others, set short-term goals;

• make it stick – create a new culture.

As a result, our teachers have a sense ofbeing part of a bigger professional groupand principals get support from a leadershipgroup and certainty of knowing whatparents can expect from the school.


School management in Tromso, Norway

Ms Astrid [email protected]

Grønnåsen schoolDramsveien 197NO-9010 Tromsø, NorwayTel. +47 77665700, Fax +47 77665701

Järfälla Kommun lies about 25 km outsideStockholm and has about 65 000inhabitants, the population being quiteyoung. Schools range from pre-schools toadult education.

During the past two years all managersin education belong to the same unit.Managers are employed for a fixed periodof four years and, if everything goes well,they may continue. The municipalityʼsrecruitment policy is to seek candidatesboth externally and internally and to hire theperson most qualified for the job for a fixedterm.

Heads have sometimes got a deputyhead or a colleague in charge ofdevelopment. A school has a managementteam with shared duties. Municipalmanagers face challenges associated withpolitical influences, the public and complexoperations.

Managers should be visible andconsistent leaders capable of motivatingand inspiring employees. Managers shouldapply situational leadership by choosing astrategy and approach based on individualemployeesʼ skills and experience in thecurrent situation, as well as on adevelopmental level of the group.

The municipality provides trainingprogrammes for managers that includeorientation programmes for managers;supervisor training programme; leadershipacademy and manager academy; a bigmanagement meeting at the end of theterm; breakfast meetings; mentoring withinand between municipalities andnetwork/guide for leadership roles.


Manager development in Järfälla commune,Sweden

Ms Christina ErenvidhInternational [email protected]

Järfälla GymnasieskolorMälarvägen 2, SE-177 42, Järfälla, SwedenTel. +46 704808589www.jarfalla.se

Quality control systems in Malta

The quality assurance department (QAD) ismainly responsible for implementing anumber of particular functions of theDirectorate for quality and standards ineducation as stipulated by the Education Act(2006). While respecting and seeing toimplementation of functions particularlyrelated to the Directorate, the QAD willprovide: ʻ… a professional service ofsupport, guidance, monitoring, inspection,evaluation and reporting on the process ofteaching in schools, on the application of thecurriculum, syllabi, pedagogy, assessmentand examinations, and on the administrationand on the assurance and auditing of qualityin colleges and schoolsʼ (18).

A strategy has been developed to ensureQAD engages with colleges and schoolsdifferently with two main aims of providingsupport and evaluating practices to see thatstandards and quality education areprovided. Support will be provided throughcontinuous professional development/training sessions for school leaders in theState and non-State sectors; preparation ofdocuments to support schools in school

development planning and school self-evaluation; and preparation of documents tohelp schools adequately prepare forexternal audits. While still in an initial stage,it is critical to the change process to focuson empowering staff at all levels, bestowingresponsibility on all and creating differentlevels of accountability.

Master degree in educational leadership

The programme is currently being reviewedto be in line with developments ofpostgraduate courses offered by theUniversity of Malta. The degree is targetedat educational leaders seeking to developtheir organisations to meet the challenges ofan increasingly complex and independentworld. The course investigates leading-edgeresearch and critical thinking abouteducational leadership and management,learning and creating effective learningenvironments needed to meet the demandsof the information age. Participants will beengaged in the design, maintenance anddevelopment of learning organisationsthrough a mixture of taught modules, openlearning materials and reflective learning.

The course attracts candidates with atleast five years teaching experience. Overthe years we have made it a point to take onstudents with varied backgrounds, ofdifferent ages and respecting a genderbalance. This has proved successful as oneaim is to allow participants (no more than 20candidates at a time) to learn from oneanother. This diversity encouragesinteresting dynamics and learning.


Quality assurance and degree for educationalleadership in Malta

Dr Christopher BezzinaPermanent [email protected]

Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and SportCasa Leoni, 476, St. Joseph High RoadSt. Venera, MaltaTel. +356 21485100www.education.gov.mt

(18) Education Act (2006), Part II, para. 18.1. Available from Internet: http://www.education.gov.mt/ministry/doc/pdf/acts/edu_laws/amendment_to_2003/Ac_XIIIE.pdf [cited 15.4.2010].

Historically, most Finnish secondary schoolswere founded by private local associations,not by the State or municipalities. The size ofFinnish upper secondary schools (studentsaged 16 to 18 in three grades) is generallysmall in international terms. Of almost 400Finnish secondary schools more than 30 %are small, with less than 120 students.

The Finnish Association of SmallSecondary Schools (FASSS) was founded in2002. Currently, FASSS comprises 130schools with a maximum of 120 studentslocated in rural and scattered areas allaround Finland. FASSS member schools aregenerally well equipped with modern ITlearning facilities for video conferencing anddistance education. English is the mainlanguage for foreign cooperation but a widevariety of other languages is also available.Member schools are outward oriented andhave a lot of contacts with foreign schools.

The following are some examples ofFASSS activities:

• publishing the annual yellow pages of good practices (see Figure 7).Each member school presents their owngood practices to share with other schoolsfor benchmarking purposes and thepractices they would like to learn aboutand adopt from other schools, such aspedagogy of distance education, school

networking, cooperation with vocationaltraining, etc. In 2010, the 10th issue of thisannual 60-page booklet will be published;

• quality management chart (QMC).Originating from international excellencecompetitions, the QMC is aimed atproviding schools with a 360 degreesevaluation tool to find out areas forimprovement and set targets for improvedwork and performance. The chart suitsequally all levels of general education. Thechart is divided into eight sectors(leadership; strategic planning; studentfocus and marketing the school;information and analysis; staffempowerment; process management;results of activity; environmental impact)that further fan into examples of goodpractice on those topics. The QMCprovides a basis for quality in-servicetraining of teaching staff. As a result, aschool identifies better practices and mayadopt new approaches for itsdevelopment. The QMC also spreads outinto a self-evaluation questionnaire thatallows direct comparison of different levelsof schools (such as elementary and uppersecondary) with one another;

• distance learning among small schools.For small schools, it is often a problemwhen few students want to follow acourse. In such a case, schools cancooperate with a school providing theteaching and students from other schoolscan attend lessons at a distance. FASSSschools have created about 100 distanceeducation courses that are freely availableamong member schools. As distance isnot a problem for IT, it is also possible tospread this know-how globally.


Work of an association of small schools in Finland

Mr Jukka O. [email protected]

The Finnish Association of Small SecondarySchools (FASSS)Torpankuja 6FIN-13880 Hattula, FinlandTel. +358 509101596

Figure 7. Yellow pages of good practice (Finland)


A schools cluster is a group of schoolshaving a contract for cooperation for sixyears. Schools in the cluster are of thesame level of education (nursery, primaryand secondary) located in the same regionand belonging to the same educationalnetwork throughout Flanders (for example,municipal schools, public schools, privatecatholic schools, etc.) though the schoolsmay belong to the same or differentgoverning bodies or school boards. Schoolclusters were created by the government (insecondary education since 1999 and inprimary schools – since 2003) to ensure atransparent landscape of study possibilitiesin the region for pupils and their parentswith a view to have a better orientation ofpupils and to use resources more efficiently.

School clusters must work together inseveral areas, such as, introducing newcurricula; rational selection of courses;objective orientation of pupils; staff policies;synchronising administration; andimplementing common activities, such as aday against senseless violence, a politicaldebate, etc. School boards are able to worktogether on other aspects and provide acreative network for sharing expertise.Cooperation implies meetings with heads,staff members, parents, pupils, town hall

officials and other stakeholders to inform,advise, consult and decide.

In many countries, the government tendsto decentralise management of schools.Local networks of schools help to improvethe success of decentralisation.Participation in school clusters enablesschool leaders to address the followingpitfalls and challenges:

• setting clear and explicit objectives forspecific schools and the entire network;

• balancing individual and commoninterests;

• balancing all partnersʼ expectations;• maintaining specificity of schools;• each member contributing to the effort;• effectiveness of working together.

In a network, schools build capacity incollective learning. Compared to atraditional vertical hierarchy, in a cluster,collaboration, providing feedback andreflection are essential. Most school headsare very attached to their own schools.School boards are able to distancethemselves more and have a broader view.In the network it is more necessary anddifficult than in the school to separatepolicy-making from policy implementation.


The work of school clusters in Belgium

Mr. Lieven ViaeneCoordinating head of the schools [email protected],[email protected]

Scholengemeenschap OLV van GroeningeDiksmuidekaai 6, bus 30B-8500, Kortrijk, BelgiumTel. +32 56444778 Fax +32 56444779www.olvgroeninge.be

Primary schools with one, two or threeclasses with students of mixed ages arecalled small in Austria. Due to decreasingnumbers of population in Europe, thenumber of small schools is increasingraising issues of growing expenses, smallnumber of pupils and, consequently,efficiency. Since OECD (19) published theideal number of students to be taught in aschool is 200, discussions on quality arise.

Small schools in Austria are very strongbecause of the commitment of localcommunities to have and maintain theirschools. Schools are the centre of culturaland educational activities for adults as wellas pupils. Schools are centres for music,ICT for adults and buildings are also usedfor public events. Through the activities theyoffer, they bring life to villages. There is astrong belief that when pupils are able tostay in a village for their education it is morelikely they will remain in that village asadults.

The two-year research project on the roleof small schools in their communities andthe effect on their local environment wasdesigned in collaboration with the Universityof Education in Graz and started in October2009. The project was developed as a

result of six study visits in Salzburg focusedon quality improvement of small schools inEurope. Results of the survey will inform onthe advantages and problems of smallschools.

Looking to answer the main researchquestion, ʻhow are schools able to generatesocial capital for a small society?ʼ,researchers will survey teachers and headteachers from about 250 small schools inSalzburg and Styria and interview mayorsof communities. The main themes of thequestionnaire and interviews are thepartnership between schools, parents andthe wider community and the impact ofschools on their communities. The study willreflect the quality of small schools andcompare results between the federalcounties of Salzburg and Styria.

During the study visit ʻSmall primaryschools in Europe, schools ingeographically disadvantaged areasʼ(Salzburg, March 2009), participantsdiscussed challenges and problems smallschools face. The findings weresummarised in the group report as follows:

ʻAustria has a broader understanding ofquality – not just academic results. Itregards quality of life, the relationshipsbetween children, relationship betweenschool and communities as important andstresses collaboration rather thancompetition in the small schools. [...] in thegroupʼs view, there is an opportunity formore research to be carried out to achievethis outcome.ʼ


A research project, ‘Is small beautiful’, in Austria

Prof. Marina Grogger, Mag. Dipl. PädInternational [email protected]

Pädagogische Hochschule Salzburg(University of Education Salzburg )Akademiestraße 235020 Salzburg, AustriaTel. +43 6644249416, Fax +43 66263881010www.phsalzburg.at

(19) OECD (2009). OECD economic surveys: Austria 2009. Paris: OECD.

Before 1987, school inspectors in Finlandthrough regular visits supervised thecompliance of schools with laws and ordersand the quality of their work. Since 1987,the government has passed laws oneducation in schools and has provided thecore curricula that should be respected byall schools. Local school authorities havedeveloped their own education strategiesthat specify the vision and objectives foreducation in communes while teachershave developed local and more accurateversions of the curricula based on the corecurricula provided by the State. Evaluationof school activities is now based on self-evaluation.

At our school, the head teacher who isan operational leader of the school and theteaching staff are responsible for carryingout self-evaluation. The role of qualified andmotivated teaching staff is crucial incarrying out the evaluation. In Finland, ithas been important to invest in augmentingteachersʼ professional skills, and nowadaysteachers of all levels have universitydegrees. A head teacher has a strongposition in school with wide powers ofaction defined in the comprehensive schoolcode.

The main task of school is teaching andlearning and self-evaluation seeks toanswer how well the school has succeeded.

The first step of self-evaluation isassessment of pupilsʼ learning outcomes.School activities are evaluated regularly bythe teaching and other staff in staffmeetings which are the core of self-evaluation. Besides, schools regularlycollect information about their activities,analyse it and provide it to schoolauthorities. This information is collectedwith the help of the balanced score cardthat divides school activities into four fields:clients (pupils and parents or otherguardians); processes (teaching, pupilsʼwelfare and other aspects of activitiesinside the school); staff and leadership; andefficiency.

After analysis of the fields and the wholeschool, areas for improvement are identifiedand improvement activities can usually startimmediately. The system might be seen ascomplicated at times, but it gives anopportunity to develop school activities,solve arising problems, and besides, it isequal to all acting in a school. Results ofself-evaluation are reported to pupilsʼparents, though there is some need forimproving the communication system.Results are not used for any ranking as thewhole system is based on trust for validity ofaction and on high moral commitment ofschool leaders to do their jobs.


School self-evaluation system in Finland

Mr Atso VilokkinenHead [email protected]

Kaatros schoolKoulukatu 1977600, Suonenjoki, FinlandTel. +358 047071344http://www.peda.net/veraja/suonenjoki/kaatro

In autumn 2005, Fuxernaskolan in themunicipality of Lilla Edet was mentioned asthe worst school in Sweden by the media.There were serious problems with violenceand vandalism, poorest study results with onequarter of students leaving for other schools.Annual costs of building repairs were morethan EUR 100 000. The school changed eightschool heads in three years.

In April 2006, the municipality asked me totake up the job of school head and I agreed,knowing the situation as I had been followingthe media for a few years. Although I had tostart in September, there was a lot to be donein the summer. I stayed at school until late atnight and at weekends, as I still worked in myold job. I noticed a group of teenagers whospent a lot of time in the school yard and soonmade friends with them. They told me abouttheir experiences at school and from theirstories I got far more useful information than Ihad got from former school heads andteachers. I realised that although they foughtagainst school authority, it was a better placefor them to be than at home. They alsorecognised their own problems. Theyappreciated that I showed genuine interest intheir lives. So I decided to involve them in myplans for the schoolʼs future.

The change strategy was aimed atchanging the physical environment; rules andrelations; investing in knowledge and building

up the ʻtrademarkʼ of the school. First, we hadto get rid of the graffiti and, knowing that myallies were mainly responsible for them, Iinvited them to clean the school and preparefor the school year with a little support fromthe responsible service. This was the start ofgreat school development work.

When the school year started, wedeveloped several international cooperationprojects with EU countries, Turkey and evenTanzania. Students could now attendextracurricular activities, such as Turkish,modelling, drama, activities with local sportclubs. Four new study programmes wereintroduced (science, international, soccer andmusic and drama) which attracted newstudents in following years. We started tocooperate with local companies and studentsgot support to create their own companies,some of which became really successful.Social workers replaced police in the schoolʼscorridors. We educated parents on how tosupport their children and improve theirresults. Many parents came to school to helpother students with homework. A team ofstudents took responsibility for the schoolenvironment.

We created new relations with media andbegan inviting them to cover our changes. Inthree years the school managed to appear inmore than 150 positive media features.

One can say that the new attitude is agood result on its own, but for the past threeyears, not only the image but also results ofstudentsʼ learning have improved. The schoolreceives many visitors from other schools,researchers, parliamentarians and even thegeneral director has visited the school withhis entire management group.

Of course, managing a school in an area ofsocial problems is a challenge every day butwe run after the problems and not theproblem after us as before.


How to change a bad school into a good one –Story of a school principal in Sweden

Mr Magnus OlssonSchool [email protected]

Ströms slott ABSkarsjövägen 345932 Ljungskile, SwedenTel. +46 706859710www.lillaedet.se

In 2008, the National Education Directorateof Sanliurfa organised a study visit, ʻLetʼsreshape new schools for the futuretogetherʼ, to discuss with colleagues fromEuropean countries how supervisionactivities can contribute to better educationmanagement and examples of goodpractice in school management.Participants noted the e-school admin -istration system provided by the Ministry ofNational Education as an interestingpractice.

The total number of students attendinggeneral education is more than 14 million.E-school, an electronic data bank, keepsrecords of all students in the school system.It helped to diminish administrative burdenson school managers and reducebureaucracy, thus giving more time tospend on quality of education.

Data on studentsʼ personal information,their parents, health, enrolment andattendance and transfers from one schoolto another are available in the e-schoolsystem. It covers all studentsʼ progress fromenrolment to graduation.

There are different levels of accessrights: parents can only look up informationabout their own children; school managershave access to studentsʼ information in theirschools; inspectors have access to

information about teachers and schools inthe area for which they are responsible,while personnel at the Ministry of NationalEducation can access any informationabout the entire school system.

The e-school system also monitorsattendance, entering the weekly lessonschedule, subjects to be taught and theteachers assigned for each subject andclass, determining exam dates and enteringexam results and filling in schooldevelopment reports.

In a similar system, information aboutinspectors, school managers and teachersis collected and stored.


E-school administration in Turkey

Mr Mehmet Emin [email protected]

Şanlıurfa National Education DirectorateAbdulkadir Karahan Cad.63300 Sanliurfa, TurkeyTel. +90 5053463824http://sanliurfa.meb.gov.tr/https://e-okul.meb.gov.tr/logineOkul.aspx

Study visit reports provide a lot of interesting and useful information about effective policies andpractices in participating countries. As stated above, about one third of all visits 2008/09 wererelated to improving quality and efficiency of education and training and many interesting findingshave been compiled. On 1 and 2 February 2010, Cedefop hosted a seminar to summarise anddiscuss the outcomes of these visits, focusing on development of key competences, namely,communication in foreign languages, social and civic competences; ensuring high quality ofteaching and training; and strengthening educational leadership and management.

The seminar brought together 70 organisers and participants of study visits, representativesof initiatives identified as examples of good practice during visits and presented in the previouschapters, experts on the themes and representatives of national agencies.

During the seminar, participants discussed the importance of these issues for making lifelonglearning a reality and their relevance to the European education and training agenda.Participants also worked together to develop a better understanding of and creative solutions forthe challenges faced by learners in learning foreign languages and acquiring social and civiccompetence, for teachers and trainers in ensuring development of such competences and forschool leaders in creating communities of learning.

Study visitsʼ findings on quality and efficiency of education and training show that the studyvisits programme makes a substantial contribution to cooperation and common learning ineducation and training in Europe; there are also links from the outcomes of study visits to the EUstrategy 2020 for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth that stresses the need to improve thequality and performance of education (20). Discussions during the seminar resonated with theconclusions of the Education, Youth Affairs and Culture Council (November, 2009) (21) on theprofessional development of teachers and school leaders that recognised ʻthe motivation, skillsand competences of teachers as well as the quality of school leadershipʼ as key factors inachieving high quality learning outcomes. Teachers, trainers and school leaders and decision-makers should benefit more from the multiple opportunities for sharing good practice andcooperation that the lifelong learning programme (22) presents.

During the seminar, participants had an opportunity to meet experts and school heads workingon similar problems and they pointed out that further cooperation can develop. One of the spin-offs of the seminar was founding a joint international collaborative activity for small schools in theEU developed by Austrian and Finnish participants (page 52).

Materials of the seminar are available at the Cedefop study visits website at:http://studyvisits.cedefop.europa.eu (look under Documentation).

Sharing knowledge, taking findings further:experience of the synthesis seminar

(20) European Commission (2010). Communication from the Commission. Europe 2020. A strategy for smart, sustainableand inclusive growth. COM(2010) 2020 Brussels, 3.3.2010. Available from Internet: http://europa.eu/press_room/pdf/complet_en_barroso___007_-_europe_2020_-_en_version.pdf [cited 20.4.2010].

(21) Council of the European Union (2009). Council conclusions of 26 November 2009 on the professional development ofteachers and school leaders. Official Journal of the European Union, C 302, 12.12.2009, p. 6-9. Available from Internet:http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2009:302:0006:0009:EN:PDF [cited 16.4.2010].

(22) Lifelong learning programme (2007-13). See: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learningprogramme/doc78_en.htm[cited 14.4.2010].

Strategic initiative for small schoolsinternational (SISSI) aims at empowering smallschools, recognising their social and culturalimpact on their local environments and solvingcommon problems by offering an EU-wideumbrella.

Social, historical and geographicbackgrounds and especially the currenteconomic situation have caused both in Austriaand Finland significant organised activityaround the issue of small schools. One reasonfor current raised awareness is the economicsituation. The rising level of expenses anddiminishing number of pupils has in manycases led to schools either closing or being onthe verge of closing.

The concept of a small school variesaccording to local conditions and regional ornational definitions. In some countries (Austria,Greece, Norway) the extent of multigradeteaching (more than one grade taughtsimultaneously in a classroom) defines a smallprimary school. In Finland senior secondaryschools with less than 120 students areconsidered small.

SISSI considers a school small if itsexistence or working conditions are more orless threatened because of size, which typicallyhappens, if the school is located in a remotemountainous region, on an island, or far awayin the rural countryside.

SISSI activities are based on experience

and good practices already attained by workingwith small schools to improve their overallquality, as well as school management andleadership skills by sharing information,experiences and collaboration.

The following activities are planned:• Comenius – Grundtvig seminar

1 to 7 September 2010 in Salzburg, Austria;• Comenius – Grundtvig seminar in autumn

2011 in Finland;• future Comenius contact seminars: ʻSmall

schools in Europe, schools in rural regionsʼ;• helping small schools get in touch with one

another for collaboration;• joint SISSI web pages.

The project will target teachers andprincipals of small schools; regional authoritiesand decision-makers; scientists of educationaland social studies.

The project will be coordinated by Mr JukkaO. Mattila, President of the Finnish Associationof Small Secondary Schools (FASSS) (see alsopage 44) and Ms Marina Grogger, Professor,International Office, University of EducationSalzburg, Austria (see also page 47).

Small schools and their localcommunities from EU countries areinvited to participate in joint activities.


SISSI – Strategic initiative for small schoolsinternational

Mr Jukka O. MattilaPresident

The Finnish Association of Small SecondarySchools (FASSS)Torpankuja 6FIN-13880 Hattula, FinlandTel. +358 [email protected]

Prof. Marina Grogger, Mag. Dipl. PädInternational Office

Pädagogische Hochschule Salzburg(University of Education Salzburg )Akademiestraße 235020 Salzburg, AustriaTel. +43 6644249416, Fax +43 [email protected]

References – Further reading – Sources

Cedefop study visits website

A dedicated website of the study visitsprogramme. Under documentation menu,one can find information about the themescovered by the programme, materials forfurther reading, links to overviews ofeducational and training systems. Groupreports, publications and materials ofseminars referred to in this publication arealso available there. The website alsoserves as an interactive tool forparticipants, organisers of study visits andnational agencies for managing andimplementing the programme.http://studyvisits.cedefop.europa.eu

European Commission Directorate-General for Education and Culture

Official website of the EuropeanCommission covering policies, develop -ments and programmes related toeducation and training, culture, youth,multilingualism, citizen ship and sports.http://ec.europa.eu/education/index_en.htm[cited 13.3.2010].

Cedefop – European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training

Cedefop is a European agency that helpspromote and develop vocational educationand training in the European Union.Cedefopʼs website provides up-to-dateinformation on and analyses of vocationaleducation and training systems in Europe,policies, research and practice in the field oflifelong learning.http://www.cedefop.europa.eu [cited 13.3.2010].

Eurydice

Eurydice is a European information networkon education and training systems.Eurydice provides a vast source ofinformation, including detailed descriptionsof how European education systems areorganised and how they function.http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/Eurydice/ [cited 13.3.2010].

Knowledge system on lifelong learning

The knowledge system on lifelong learning(KSLLL) website offers up-to-dateinformation on common learning activities ineducation and training for developinglifelong learning in Europe.http://www.kslll.net/ [cited 13.3.2010].

EVE – Electronic platform fordissemination and exploitation ofresults

EVE is a multilingual electronic platformcontaining results of projects financedthrough programmes and initiatives ineducation, training, culture, youth andcitizenship. It is managed by theDirectorate-General for Education andCulture in the framework of disseminationand exploitation of results of the lifelonglearning programme.http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/eve/[cited 13.3.2010].

Better competencesthrough better teachingand leadingFindings from study visits 2008/09

Luxembourg:

Publications Office of the European Union

2010 – VI, 53 pp. – 17 x 24 cm

ISBN 978-92-896-0644-8

Cat. No: TI-31-10-416-EN-C

Free of charge – On request from Cedefop

No of publication: 4093 EN

ENEN

Europe 123, 570 01 Thessaloniki (Pylea), GREECEPO Box 22427, 551 02 Thessaloniki, GREECETel. +30 2310490111, Fax +30 2310490020, E-mail: [email protected]

STUDY VISITS: Tel. +30 2310490154, Fax +30 2310490044E-mail: [email protected], http://studyvisits.cedefop.europa.eu

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training

Better competences through better teaching

and leadingFindings from study visits 2008/09

4093 EN – TI-31-10-416-EN-C


This publication presents findings from about 100 study visits in 2008/09 related to improving quality and efficiency, one of the strategic priorities of European cooperation in education and training, and specifically, its important components: acquisition of key competences, challenges to teachers and trainers and new approaches to leadership and management.

Group reports prepared by participants during study visits were the main source of information for this publication. They are a rich source of information about practices in education and training in participating countries. This selection represents only a small sample of initiatives identified and presented during visits and also at Cedefop’s seminar on 1 and 2 February 2010 in Thessaloniki, Greece.

This publication is aimed at building bridges between educational and VET institutions and developing interesting cooperation projects.

The study visits programme for education and vocational training specialists, part of the lifelong learning programme (2007-13), is an initiative of the European Directorate-General for Education and Culture. Cedefop coordinates the programme at the European level, whereas the national agencies implement the programme in the Member States.

ISBN 978-92-896-0644-8

9 789289 606448

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