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STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING : 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING May, 2003 Ireland, Sweden, France, Germany, England

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Four Government policy orientations The policy’s Action Plan—to be implemented over a five-year period—identifies more than 100 recommendations, which are guided by four main orientations: Provision of basic education for Québec adults Maintenance and continual upgrading of competencies Acknowledgement and recognition of prior learning and competencies Removal of obstacles to access and retention

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Three paradigm shifts The Québec policy on lifelong learning is moving us in new directions that represent three paradigm shifts in how we perceive and value learning, and in particular, adult learning. Firstly, it establishes that learning does not end with compulsory education, but continues and evolves as both a lifelong and life-wide process, in that it takes place at different stages of life and in many different settings and circumstances; Secondly, it moves us from a supply-driven model of education and learning to one that is learner-centred and demand-driven; Thirdly, it recognizes that the provision of lifelong and life-wide learning opportunities cannot be accomplished by educational institutions alone, but requires new partnerships within government and with industry, communities and learners themselves.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING The Study Mission to Europe on Lifelong Learning is one part of an overall strategy to implement a culture of lifelong learning, to increase the expression of the demand for adult learning and to increase the level of the basic education of the English-speaking population of Quebec.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING GLOBAL OBJECTIVE: The members of the Study Mission on Adult Learning will: collect information on policy initiatives in Europe related to adult learning, continuing education and manpower training and retraining as developed by the member states of the OECD, and in particular, by Ireland, England, Germany and Sweden; will develop a network of contacts with adult educators and policy developers in various European countries; will analyse the European policy initiatives from the perspective of the needs of the English-speaking population of Quebec; will contribute to the long-term promotion of adult learning in Quebec; and, - will contribute to the development of Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec actions plans and policy initiatives for English-speaking adult learners in Quebec.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING DELEGATES Ahern, Ruth (Western Quebec School Board) Boskey, Sam (Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec) Burke, Noel C. (Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec) Croubalian, Viviane (Lester B. Pearson School Board) Della Rocca, Cosmo (English Montreal School Board) Duszara, Walter (Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec) Goldthorp, Wayne (New Frontiers School Board) Goode, Barbara (Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec) Heft, Riva (Community member/Concordia University) Howarth, Kelly (Quebec Association for Adult Learning) Jordan, Steven (McGill University) Keenan, Gloria (Lester B. Pearson School Board) Michielli, Marzia (English Montreal School Board) Roberts, Marion Annie (Quebec English School Boards Association) Shohet, Linda (Centre for Literacy/Dawson College)

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Three paradigm shifts The first shift involves building a broader understanding and acceptance within Québec society that learning continues through every stage of life. Formal schooling is but a part of a continuum that also recognizes and values learning in all its diverse forms. The second shift requires moving from a supply-driven to a learner-centred model of service delivery. The third shift entails acknowledging that lifelong learning is a shared responsibility that demands the active involvement of many partners in different areas of society.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING OECD’s six areas of focus for improving adult learning Attractiveness: Every effort should be made to make learning more attractive to all. This would imply that the service offering is useful to the learner and that it recognizes and validates what the learner already knows. Accessibility: Learning is accessible when it is affordable and scheduling is convenient. Travel time and the availability of transportation services are other important considerations. Information, counselling and guidance services are key to making learning accessible. Financing: Existing financial incentives should be enhanced to ensure that costs (and decision-making) are being shared equitably by individual learners and their employers or sponsors. Innovative incentive schemes could include tax breaks, subsidies, Individual Learning Accounts, grants, loans, etc. Quality: Quality assurance is essential in every area of learning, from programming and facilities, to evaluation and the provision of statistical information. Efficiency: Efficient service delivery takes into account local and national priorities. It also recognizes, monitors and proactively responds to demand, and is carried out through active partnerships. Policy coherence and coordination of effort: A holistic approach makes the needs of learners the focal point from which all services and activities radiate. Coherence of policy, coordination of effort, active partnerships, and both top-down and bottom-up approaches are all needed.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 1 Building a broader understanding and acceptance of learning as a continuum through every stage of life 1. Enshrine in law a right to basic education for all Quebeckers. 2. Undertake a broad-based consultation on lifelong learning—for example, an Estates General—with the English-speaking community to determine how well existing services are meeting its learning needs. Such a formal and comprehensive consultation would also encourage and enable citizens to participate in the definition and development of new services and novel approaches to promote and sustain a culture of lifelong learning. 3. Establish and maintain an up-to-date, region-by-region inventory of the various organizations and resources within the English-speaking community that are involved in advancing learning and providing learning services.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 1 4. As a matter of policy, ensure that all government ministries and agencies collect, process and report demographic and other pertinent data related to lifelong learning along linguistic lines. This would provide the English-speaking community with essential information required for both short- and long-term planning. 5. Create an Institute of Lifelong Learning for the English-speaking community. Inspired by European models, this institute would serve as a centre for research, policy development, experimentation, training and the promotion of lifelong learning within the English-speaking community. 6. Develop integrated information, guidance, counselling and support services that would serve English-speaking learners of all ages throughout Québec. These services would not only provide information about available learning opportunities and career development, they would also advise individuals on the best route to meet their needs. These services could be provided within existing English-language institutions or within independent “walk-in”, “dial-in” or “storefront” services and would serve both registered students and the general English-speaking population.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 1 7. Ensure the provision of appropriate support services for English-speaking adults with learning difficulties. In addition to making such professional services available within English-language institutions and community organizations, itinerant services for the regions should be considered. 8. Ensure that any province-wide initiatives to assess and recognize prior learning through an official certification process are made accessible to all Québec residents at the same time, regardless of language. Such certification should allow for portability of qualifications and permit greater mobility of individuals. 9. Develop a comprehensive record of an individual’s academic and work-related certifications and competencies, acquired in both formal and non-formal settings. This should be recognized by educational institutions at all levels as well as by industry and would be linked to the process of Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 1 10. Encourage all government agencies and publicly-funded institutions to use positive and affirming language that favours the pursuit of lifelong learning. “Level of literacy” (not “illiteracy”) and “taking time out” (not “dropping out”) are examples of language that encourage, rather than discourage, learning. 11. Examine how European grassroots outreach programs and networks of community education facilitators could be adapted to recruit hard-to-reach learners in both urban and rural settings. Disseminate this information in both languages. Provide the necessary resources to support experimentation by different institutions, community groups or non-profit organizations throughout the province. 12. Finance the development and implementation of ongoing information, promotion and advertising campaigns designed for the English-speaking population that focus on the value of lifelong learning. This could best be done through partnerships between government and the media, community groups and educational institutions.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 2 Moving from a supply-driven to a learner-centred model of service delivery 13. Define a baseline for all services provided to adult learners within Québec. To ensure equity and quality, re-examine and adjust current funding formulas used to finance both formal and non-formal adult education programs and services. Ensure equal access to these services for both French- and English-speaking adult learners in every region of Québec. 14. English-speaking adults require a minimal level of competency in the French language to study, work and participate as active citizens in Québec. Adjust existing regulations to allow all English-speaking adults to access free French-language instruction to a level equivalent to basic education. Moreover, adults enrolled in vocational training programs should receive French-language instruction appropriate to their trade to a level that would allow them to succeed in the workplace.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 2 15. To improve publicly funded lifelong services to adult learners, conduct a comprehensive review and revision of current collective agreements, regulations and policies in the education and training sectors. At present, these tend to reflect the needs of the youth sector, whereas the needs and realities of adult learners are quite different from those of children. 16. Introduce greater flexibility and variety to how learning is accessed. Make existing programs and services more attractive and accessible through such initiatives as expanded use of e-learning, distance education, workplace learning, adult-friendly scheduling, program delivery through the media and the creation or promotion of community learning centres throughout the province. 17. Support the development of regional pilot projects to test the effectiveness of different delivery models in response to various learner needs. Support those models that prove to be most effective.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 2 18. Provide enhanced financial support to adult learners through a variety of programs that could include loans, bursaries, scholarships, tax credits, transportation, daycare and elder-care allowances, training incentives for employers, etc. 19. Establish standards for initial training and certification of teachers, trainers and facilitators engaged in the fields of adult education and training. Such accreditation would require the holder to acquire and demonstrate an accepted standard of proficiency in terms of subject content, learning theory and methodology appropriate for adult learners. 20. Develop conditions to require and facilitate ongoing professional development and continuing education activities for teachers, trainers and facilitators who work with adult learners.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 2 21. Ensure that adult learning facilities are attractive, accessible, close to public transportation and integrated with other community services. They should contain adult-appropriate furnishings and provide on-site services such as cafeterias, day care and ample parking. Existing facilities should be adapted to respect these criteria. 22. Develop protocols that encourage partnerships among various organizations within government, industry, education and communities, with a view to pooling and sharing resources, both human and material, in support of adult learning.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Paradigm shift 3 Acknowledging that lifelong learning is a shared responsibility that demands the active involvement of partners in different areas of society 23. Create opportunities and conditions for dialogue and cooperation among educational institutions, community organizations, professional associations, service clubs, industry, labour, government, the media and other potential partners who could share in the development, promotion and delivery of lifelong learning within the English-speaking community.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING 24. Improve communication among various government departments and agencies to ensure greater policy coherence in support of lifelong learning and to eliminate barriers to access caused by contradictory elements of existing policies. Establish provincial consultation mechanisms that bring together educational institutions, community groups and government ministries and agencies to better support English-speaking learners. 25. Expand and improve links among educational institutions and providers at all levels to encourage greater recognition of the outcomes of learning, thereby facilitating the movement of learners between institutions and between the formal and non-formal sectors.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING Comprehensive recommendation 26. Create a committee of partners to monitor the progress being made in implementing the Government Policy on Adult Education and Continuing Education and Training, and specifically its effectiveness in achieving the stated policy objectives within the English-speaking population.

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING: 

STUDY MISSION TO EUROPE ON LIFELONG LEARNING What happens next?