Paper shaping competence

Dr. Alan Bruce. ULS, Ireland Katerina Riviou, Ellinogermaniki Agogi, Greece LINQ/EFQUEL: Crete, 8 May 2014

Future of European educational systems rests on skills, knowledge and attitudes of teachers

Move from largely curriculum centered process to competence is not easy

Standards, outcomes and measures drive curricula Do these alone meet labor market needs or needs in

a transformed socio-political universe?

Students learn more effectively in technologically enhanced environments

Technology is a tool not simply a solution Technology supports quality – it informs and

is informed by best practice Move towards designing courses as

interdisciplinary explorations Learners learn within a community

Education informed by critical and reflective perspectives

Competence building upon standards Role of quality – conceptual issues Alternative to curriculum driven systems Move from time based system to learning

based system All age groups included

Technological resources and access Engaging families and communities Moving from teacher to student focus Relationship to labor market Designing for difference: inclusion and UDL The role of adult education and lifelong

learning Addressing the impact of change

End of permanent jobs for life Casualization and degraded conditions Part-time and fragmented work Developing careers not jobs Adaptability Flexibility High entry level requirements Market focus Ethics and social responsibility Customer service quality and planning

Decreasing workers’ share in national income in all countries

Labor productivity (up 85% since 1980) not reflected in wages (up 35%)

Declining social mobility Rising income inequality reflected in

declining equality of opportunity Urbanization and rural decline Mass unemployment and crisis

Patterns of constant change Permanent migration mobility Outsourcing Flexible structures and modalities Obsolescence of job norms Knowledge economy Ecological pressures End of certainty

Innovation supporting learning Innovation supporting work Re-evaluation of traditional methods and structures Changing needs Analyzing and responding to impact of globalization Change without changing – innovation with

precedents Facing new realities – using evidence

Persistence and increase in inequality Permanent hopelessness of excluded Embedded violence Internal underclass Social polarization Stripping away rights Invisibility, ethnic difference and the retreat

to denial

Commodification of knowledge Impact on education systems (Freire, Illich,

Field) Impact on work (Braverman, Haraszti, Davis) Impact on community - alienation and

anomie From community to networking Knowledge and learning now centrally linked

as product and process dimensions

Conservative

Strict

Hierarchic

Inflexible

Memorization and recall focus

Examination-driven

Resistant to application of new technologies

Pupil/learner centered Competence driven Community focused Technologically enhanced International engagement focus Learning process (application modes) Individual value (humanistic approach)

Disruptive classroom behaviors Absenteeism Early school-leaving Teacher burnout Migration, integration and sustainability Literacy, numeracy, basic skills Languages Quality and governance DG EAC (2008) European Education and Training Systems in the Second Decennium of the Lisbon Strategy, NESSE and ENEE.

“Competence means the proven ability to use knowledge, skills and personal, social and/or methodological abilities, in work or study situations and in professional and personal development.”

European Commission, 2008

They are multifunctional They are transversal across all fields They refer to a higher order of mental complexity,

including active, reflective and responsible approaches to life

They are multidimensional, incorporating know-how, analytical, critical, creative and communication skills – as well as common sense

Meaningful contexts Multidisciplinary approach Constructive learning Cooperative, interactive learning Discovery learning Reflective learning Personal learning

The Competency Framework for Teachers articulates the complex nature of teaching by describing three professional elements of teachers’ work:

Skills

Knowledge

Attitudes/values

These elements work in an interrelated way as they are put into practice in classrooms.

The European Reference Framework of Key Competences was defined in the Recommendation on key competences for lifelong learning adopted by the Council and the European Parliament in December 2006 as a result of five years of work by experts and government representation collaborating within the Open Method of Coordination.

• Communication in the mother tongue • Communication in foreign languages • Mathematical competence and basic

competences in science and technology • Digital competence • Learning to learn • Social and civic competences • Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship • Cultural awareness and expression

Digital competence Learning to learn Social and civic competences Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship Cultural awareness and expression.

The five competences mentioned here are transversal. They are cross curricular and pervasive. They also support acquisition of all key competencies

To help teachers acquire and reinforce such skills and knowledge so that they can design cross-curricular activities that support the key competencies acquisition (KCA) of their students.

To support teachers in the process of assessing competences with the use of e-portfolios.

To raise the awareness of the administrative staff of schools in order to support teachers in bridging the gap between policy and practice (e.g. curricular reforms in order to support cross-curricular competence driven activities).

Also aimed at teachers’ collaboration with colleagues, in order ultimately to become innovation leaders in their institutions.

TRANSIt

Schooling and education at a crossroads: both structure and process

Labor market and education increasingly connected

Planetary focus is on mobility, skills and innovation

Huge impact of increasing inequality of access and of resources

Crisis as the norm Addressing assessment Performance, standards, quality, reproducibility

and added value at the heart of competence

Dr. Alan Bruce abruce@ulsystems.com Katerina Riviou kriviou@ea.gr TRANSIt Project www.transit-project.eu