The European Commission has announced unprecedented funding to help developing areas affected by emergencies develop resilient education systems. €164 million will be allocated under the hat of “Education in Emergency”. Today’s event #School4All served as platform for Commissionner Stylianides to launch the funding, which will be assisted by a campaign titled #RaiseYourPencil. Read more in the EC’s press release .

Inclusiveness is one of the pillars of education: because of our core values, no education system can be considered successful without being inclusive. This is why efforts shall be made to make education as close to our idea of inclusiveness as possible, thriving to understand cultural and social differences without flattening them in a homogeneous maelstrom. In these efforts to ensure inclusiveness, a great emphasis shall be placed on the role of civil society organisations, non-formal education providers and other non-state actors. Such was the focus of SIRIUS-NEPC Policy Conference “Inclusive education for all: from ideas to practice”, that took place in Zagreb on May 7th. The promise of inclusive education has been with us for a long time, but we do not seem to be quite there yet. However, we keep on making the same promise, and while we fail to keep it for good, we also don’t seem to grasp that inclusiveness is an ongoing process. For it to become a reality, education actors need to build solid bridges: through geography and cultures, but also between different stakeholders (policy-makers, schools, research centres, etc.). This is especially important when addressing the suffering of people who were forcibly displaced, or that migrated in search for better luck. “The biggest power we have is the power of relationships” To be truthful, inclusive education is a concept that originates from the human rights field, rather than from education systems. At the beginning, it focused on poverty reduction and access to education, while now it encompasses much broader concepts. Gradually, it spilled over to reach education policy, of which it is now a crucial feature. We are now at a point where the world has developed a global narrative about inclusive education, whatever the dimension of inclusiveness that we are tackling. International and European organisations have come up with structured programmes to help stakeholders keep their promise; however, for as well-thought and comprehensive as they are, their impact on the local level has wavered through time and flickered away. It is about time we ask ourselves: have SDGs been received and incorporated in Europe? In larger and larger parts of our continent, they are close to invisible. What are policy-makers doing to sparkle information on SDGs, what more can be done? It is common opinion that without the support of the EU, SDGs are not going to make a difference after all. Not only is the EU the main development donor worldwide, but it also represents a rich and stable society. While civil society organisations have at heart the fate of SDGs, they need to be empowered with real implementation structures, other than the complicated systems of reviews for the Agenda 2030 that the EU has imposed on itself in a complete lack of long-term vision. The blatant absence of accountability for Member States remains the highest political issue, snowballing until it affects their actual impact. And with this in mind how can we still believe we can sell the idea of a truly inclusive education? How can we turn it back into a global value with a local impact? Again, CSOs are filling the gaps left by public institutions. CSOs are bringing back to the local level the global values that were lost in the lobbies of the institutions. Strong, resilient networks are key to address the inequalities that still permeate our education systems, and innovative pedagogical methods are the tools that we need to address our burning issues. And although this does not seem to strike politicians as a priority, our agendas tell us that inclusive education definitely is one. “We need to move from the appreciation of a child’s needs to the guarantee of children’s rights “. The role of non-formal education in inclusiveness for learners with a migrant background and for newcomers remains capital. Recent studies and findings by the OECD suggest that NFE is a factor when it comes to bridging cultures, and engaging migrant children within their new communities. While socio-economically challenged and migrant students are those who benefit the most from NFE, they also seem to be struggling to access NFE programmes. A black spot for our education systems, and a red flag for our society as a whole. Whether it is because of family (or peer) pressure, because of financial burdens, or linguistic barriers, NFE needs to be empowered to best serve its purpose. However, the special role of non-formal and informal education in addressing inequalities has still a long way before being recognized. Resistances are being felt especially by public institutions and state actors, who address them in a mortal dichotomy as opposed to formal education. “Funding for education needs to prioritise formal structures”, they claim. In our opinion, this is an epistemological mistake that fails to see all types of education as belonging to the same core argument: reinforcing the role of education in our societies.

Around 90 key European and national stakeholders and social partners representing leading EU and national institutions will be gathered in Brussels during the Cedefop-LLLPlatform Policy Forum to explore the potential of Community lifelong learning centres (CLLC) as one-stop shops for preventing young people at risk and early-school leavers from disconnecting . The event will be hosted by the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in its permanent representation to the EU in Brussels. During the event, Cedefop will launch the new edition, currently under development, of its web platform VET toolkit for tackling early leaving assisting policy makers and VET providers in taking action towards a comprehensive approach to tackling early leaving from education and training. The Lifelong Learning Platform and the Educational Disadvantage Centre, Institute of Education, Dublin City University will present their joint briefing paper on “ Implementing a holistic approach to lifelong learning: Community Lifelong Learning Centres as a gateway to multidisciplinary support teams ”. Representatives from good practices in using integrated service delivery (one-stop shops, case management and multi-skilled teams) in different settings will present their approach and benefits for establishing CLLCs in disadvantaged areas across Europe. Viewing community lifelong learning centres as a gateway to multidisciplinary teams based services for those with complex needs, envisages a colocation between these centres and the teams, as part of a one stop shop. A high-level panel with key national and EU stakeholders is invited to reflect on thepost-2020 EU and national agendas on tackling early leaving from education and training and their contribution to raising citizens’ skills and improving youth social inclusion and labour market integration. The forum will address some key issues: What is the stocktaking of current strategies and programmes to tackle early leaving from education and training? Is early leaving from education and training still a challenge in Europe? Why? What challenges are currently faced by Member States in the implementation of their policies to tackle early leaving from education and training? What new challenges lie ahead? What are the ongoing discussions on the post-2020 strategies and programmes to tackle early leaving from education and training at EU and national levels to raise citizens’ low skills, tackle youth unemployment and increase social inclusion? What role can community lifelong learning centres have in EU and national strategies to support the social inclusion and labour market integration of youth at risk? For the answers to these – and many more – questions, stay tuned on Cedefop and LLLP social media. No streaming, but live tweeting of the event is assured! Please visit the event website for further information.

The Lifelong Learning Platform, the Croatian Ministry of Science and Education and the European Commission joined forces to deliver a unique peer-learning activity on “Promoting Common Values and Inclusive Education through Cooperation between Education Institutions and Civil Society”. The event, which took place on 4-5 April in Zagreb, Croatia, was organised under the umbrella of the Education & Training 2020 Thematic Working Group on Promoting Common Values and Inclusive Education. The whole event was a great opportunity for European member States to learn on each other’s best practices on the role of civil society and non-formal education providers in the topic, with a special focus on history teaching and cyber-bullying. In an informal setting, workshops and roundtables took the participants into the topic, highlighting the efforts that MS should be carrying out to empower civil society organisations and non-formal education providers. In fact, a few local academics admitted that the role of civil society is crucial and certainly underestimated; nevertheless, often they are seen as counter-power and measures are put in place to reduce their capacities to act or use only them that provide services. This is especially true in recent years. All countries participating agreed and recognised that an empowered civil society helps countries achieve their individual and common education goals. The funding schemes for such stakeholders were also addressed in the discussion with Member States.

DIGIT is a European project (2017-2019) coordinated by the Polish company INnCREASE. LLLP is one of the 7 partners based in 7 EU countries. The project addresses the topical and timely issue of digital identity and footprint under the perspective of adult education . On April, 16-17th 2019 , DIGIT partners met in the city of Katerini, Greece to discuss the final stretch of the project and the remaining activities to be implemented until the end of the project (October 2019). It is the 4th meeting of the partnership (see article on the previous meeting in Reus here ) and the conclusions are that the next months will be busy for everyone, with the implementation of pilots, the organisation of events in partner countries, the writing of policy recommendations and the preparation of the project final conference taking place in October 2019 in Brussels. One of the main coming activities is the launch of the training programme , set for May-June, available on the online platform (Moodle). Every partner will pilot the training programme with 5 educators involving at least 25 adult learners in their countries. The pilots are meant to assess the quality and relevance of the training programme and its thematic modules for adult learners with the aim of raising their awareness on digital footprint topics. Each partner – except LLLP – will organise an event in its country, i.e Poland, Slovenia, Greece, Italy, United Kingdom and Spain to promote the pilots and project results between May and June. During summer, LLLP will be preparing policy recommendations on how can stakeholders, especially in adult education, better raise awareness about digital footprint-related issues. The recommendations will be presented at the final conference. The last point of discussion was the final event of the project that LLLP is co-organising with Dlearn and with the support of DIGIT partners. The “ European conference on digital footprint ” will take place on October 24th , in Brussels. Not only will it be the occasion to present the final outcomes of the project to a large audience, but will include high-level policy talks on the topic, the presentation of Dlearn’s survey , and workshops to showcase inspiring practices in the digital and educational fields while encouraging networking and partnerships between different stakeholders. The “Save the date” and more information will follow in the next weeks. For more information, contact us at projects@lllplatform.eu .

As COMANITY reaches its second year of activity, its nine partners gathered in Perugia (Italy) on April 8-9 to discuss in detail the final stages of this ambitious project. The COMANITY project , an Erasmus+ KA3 started in December 2017, aims to create a new role in youth work: the “ Community Animateur ”. Community Animateurs will be recruited among young people from marginalised communities and will be trained to become a crucial point of mediation and integration between youth workers and hard-to-reach young people . COMANITY partners met in Perugia to wrap up the extensive work of the past few months and plan the launch of the “Community Animateur” training programme and pilots . The pilot phase will be conducted in four countries (Greece, Italy, Spain and the UK), where at least 40 trainees will test the three modules of the “Community Animateur” training programme via online and face-to-face activities. After their learning experience, they will have the opportunity to test their newly acquired skills by conducting an “ action research experiment ”, i.e. a personal project aimed to solve a problem in their local community. After the piloting stage, which is planned to end in autumn 2019, the training programme will be available online as a free resource , open to anyone interested in enhancing their skills or developing new ones. It will comprise 3 macro areas for a total of 12 learning modules , according to the following structure: Do you think you have what it takes to be a Community Animateur? Take the self-assessment quiz and learn more about your skills! The Community Animateur training programme might be exactly what you were looking for to make the next step in your personal or professional development path. The training programme will soon be available online , stay tuned to learn how to sign up or join one of the pilots!

The Lifelong Learning Platform had convened an extraordinary General Assembly to gather its members on March 25th. The extraordinary GA was intended for all members to decide on important amendments, both on the Statutes (the founding documents of the organisation) and the Internal Rules (the rules that govern the internal functioning of the LLLPlatform). Members approved all the modifications proposed by the Steering Committee that will now enter into force thanks to notary ratification. This will not only smoothen the internal mechanisms of decision-making, but they will also make the LLLPlatform compliant to the recent changes in Belgian law for aisbl . The GA was also a joyful occasion for member to engage with each other, find and build on synergies, and fill in the LLLP with their policy priorities. The regular LLLP general Assembly will take place on 21 June 2019 in Brussels. Here members will approuve strategic documents, budgetary plans, and proceed to the election of three Steering Committee members.

On 26 March, the Lifelong Learning Platform and ALL DIGITAL gathered European stakeholders to tackle the burning issue of digital skills and media literacy. Striking data lays before our eyes: 43% of European citizens lack digital skills to be able to fully participate in and benefit from the digital society. How do we work together to support them? This was the key question that representatives of EU institutions, civil society organisations, education institutions and practitioners came together to discuss as part of the ALL DIGITAL Week . Looking at the complex picture behind the figure of 43% as an EU average was a recurring theme of the day. Big cleavages are evident between countries (especially on the North-South and West-East divides) as well as within countries between rural and urban areas. Adapting efforts to address this diversity was a message shared by several speakers. Considering digital skills within the broader view of social inclusion was also a pivotal point of the debate. Ilona Kish from Public Libraries 2030 recalled that it is not just a question of digital skills themselves but about “how we live and work together in the digital shift”. Rodrigo Ballester, from the Cabinet of Commissioner Navracsics, stressed that beyond skills mismatches we need to think about inclusion and “digital citizenship”: this includes the promotion of critical thinking and media literacy skills in all sectors of education. He underlined that in many cases young people may perceive themselves as digitally “confident” but are not digitally “competent”, and this strikes an important difference. The Digital Competence Framework can indeed be a starting point, as Yves Punie, from the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, pointed out: it identifies the main components of digital competencies and break them down to deliver the framework of what is needed in European societies. Lara Orlandi, from DG CONNECT, further built on this statement to explain that the concept of media literacy has now entered the common discourse in Europe and is indeed at the centre of institutional concerns. Other panellists like Andras Szucs, from the European Distance and E-learning Network , and Fiona Fanning, Certiport , stressed the need to improve our system of digital learning by starting to promote policy and practice across the whole of Europe and beyond. Young people may perceive themselves as digitally “confident” but are not digitally “competent”, and this strikes an important difference. To this extent, participants also had the chance to learn about a diverse collection of inspiring practices in supporting citizens to acquire digital skills and media literacy, including: LLLP’s project DIGIT on digital footprint for adults; UpSkill Digital UK , a service of digital trainers; the ALL DIGITAL project Smart Women on training women to bring their own businesses online; the Erasmus+ Virtual Exchange , a project that facilitates intercultural learning through online exchanges; and the DLEARN project Elithe on innovative methodologies for STEM teachers. These projects showcased the important work being done by stakeholders on the ground. The internal WG of the LLLPlatform on Digital Learning took place right after the event to reflect upon its outcomes. LLLP members discussed the ways to integrate such inputs into the internal work plan of the WG, and a few pillars were underlined; among these: a renewed focus on accessibility and inclusiveness, mobility learning schemes on digital skills (including KA1 projects), a deeper focus on employment and employers, a horizontal cooperation in EU projects, and stronger links – and actions – with formal education systems. The WG meeting was followed by a Focus Group on the preliminary results of the DIMELI4AC project , of which the LLLPlatform is a partner. The project intends to accompany students in the development of their digital media literacy (DML) and critical thinking skills with the support of their teachers and parents. Participants of the Focus Group were presented with the results of three targeted surveys on DML and offered precious insights that will feed into the next steps of the project. What’s next for media literacy and digital skills? The LLLPlatform will keep on working to ensure they remain as inclusive as possible and that digital tools contribute to closing the gap, rather than widen it. More on the principles that guide our actions here .

The Lifelong Learning Platform (LLLP) is an umbrella organisation that gathers 42 European civil society organisations active in the field of education, training and youth, based all over Europe and beyond. Currently, these networks represent more than 50 000 educational institutions and associations covering all sectors of formal, non-formal and informal learning. Their members reach out to several millions of beneficiaries across Europe. Are you looking for a job in the field of lifelong learning and education at the European level and an opportunity to work in the area of European programme and projects, fundraising and partnerships ? LLLP is recruiting a team player, able to work within a multicultural environment and willing to be flexible but also able to stick to tight deadlines and work under time pressure. A passion for lifelong learning is a big plus. About the role (what we need) You will be part of a multicultural team working for a membership-based organisation and in charge of providing coordination and management services to ensure projects meet the organisation’s needs and donors’ expectations. You will be working closely with members and partners to build their capacity and create project synergies. The Programme Coordinator’s responsibilities include: Planning and coordinating programme and project activities Ensuring the implementation of policies and practices within the programme Explore new funding opportunities and designing new project proposals Maintaining budget and tracking expenditure/transactions Build members project development capacity Requirements A post-secondary degree in the field of European studies, project management, educational sciences, political science or related discipline and/or relevant work or volunteer experience in education and/or advocacy-oriented NGOs; At least 5 years of working experience ideally in similar positions and keen interest to work on European projects, partnerships and fundraising; A sense of initiative and ability to champion projects from conception through to implementation; Proven ability to build training and capacity building activities for a membership-based organisation; An excellent command of the English language (spoken and written); Proven ability to build and manage partnerships; Strong creative, analytical and organisational skills; Very good computer skills and digital literacy; Very good financial literacy; Strong writing skills. The following knowledge and/or skills would be an advantage Knowledge of the European institutions and other target audiences related to education; Knowledge of EU funding programmes (especially Erasmus+, H2020, ESF); Good command of financial management; Knowledge of other European language is an asset; Experience with project and processes tools. Terms and conditions Full-time position: 1-year fixed-term contract with extension possibility Working hours: 38 hours a week Salary: 2400+ (benefits; transport & meal vouchers) + monthly allowance Holidays: 20 legal + 5 extra-legal (first year of employment) and a further 5 after 2 years Starting date: May 13, 2019 Procedures to apply Apply by 7th of April at vacancy@lllplatform.eu with your CV and your cover letter responding to the following question: What would you expect from such a position at LLLP? The test is foreseen the week of 12th of April . Interviews are scheduled for the week starting 22th of April . Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. For more details of the terms of the contract, including financial support, please contact at vacancy@lllplatform.eu .

The Lifelong Learning Platform (LLLP) is an umbrella organisation that gathers 42 European civil society organisations active in the field of education, training and youth, based all over Europe and beyond. Currently, these networks represent more than 50 000 educational institutions and associations covering all sectors of formal, non-formal and informal learning. Their members reach out to several millions of beneficiaries across Europe. Are you a student or young graduate looking for a placement (traineeship) in the field of lifelong learning and education at European level and an opportunity to enter the “world of work” in the area of European project management and policy ? LLLP is recruiting a team player, able to work within a multicultural environment and willing to be flexible but also able to stick to tight deadlines. A passion for lifelong learning is a big plus. Requirements A post-secondary degree in the field of European studies, project management, educational sciences, political science or related discipline and/or relevant work or volunteer experience in education and/or advocacy-oriented NGO; An excellent command of the English language (spoken and written); A keen interest to work on European projects; Very good computer skills and digital literacy; Strong writing skills. The following knowledge and/or skills would be an advantage Knowledge of the European institutions and other target audiences related to education; Knowledge of EU funding programmes (especially Erasmus+); Basic experience of project management is welcomed; Knowledge of another European language is an asset; Experience with communication tools, such as CMSs, Mailchimp, and Social Media is a plus. Terms and conditions Internship for a duration of 6 to 12 months ; The applicant should be eligible for a Contrat d’immersion professionnelle (CIP); The applicant must be eligible to live and work in Belgium; Remuneration depends on age and previous experience, starting from 750€ per month; Monthly local transport costs in Brussels are covered with the possibility of an allowance replacing meal vouchers, in addition to CIP contribution; The successful applicant should ideally start as soon as possible in March 2019. Apply by 8th of March by sending your CV, motivation letter, and portfolio (if applicable) to vacancy@lllplatform.eu . Interviews will be scheduled with selected candidates on the week starting 11th of March. For more details of the terms of the contract, including financial support, please contact at vacancy@lllplatform.eu .

Eager to know what beneficiaries of Erasmus+ think of the programme? The LLLPlatform runs an annual review of the Erasmus+ programme implementation and shares its results with policy-makers to enhance the application process and the content of the programme. This survey is conducted by the LLLPlatform to evaluate how EU networks have experienced the past round of applications of the Erasmus+ programme: what do you think of Erasmus+? Are you satisfied with its new features? What problems did you encounter? What suggestions for improvement would you make? This publication explores the results of the Survey 2018! Results are mostly in line with the major issues of the programme, and there is room for improvement… Read the report with the results

What do young people think of the EU ? How much do they know about its structure and potential? What are their hopes for the future of Europe? These are some of the questions at the basis of the Study “Prejudices in schools. Youngsters and the EU: perceptions, knowledge and expectation” implemented by three partner organisations: the Lifelong Learning Platform, OBESSU and JEF Europe on behalf of the European Economic and Social Committee . The study is taking the form of a survey targeted at school students aged between 14 and 18 in European schools in Brussels and learners in 5 different countries enrolled in different types of schools (general, vocational, technical or artistic schools) in France, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Romania. The survey is available here in French, German, Italian, Swedish and Romanian and will be open for responses until the 13th of March . What can you do? You can help disseminate the survey to different schools, which can act as sounding board, or directly contact interested students. The results will be anonymous, in conformity with current GDPR norms, and will not be used in any way to grade or rank schools. The final results will be shared with the schools and local partners will be able to organise presentations of the outcomes. We hope to reach out to at least 1.000 learners in the selected countries in order to produce a comprehensive report which will be sent to the European Economic and Social Committee.