Regional
Framework for Action
Europe and North America
Adopted by the Conference on Education for All
in Europe and North America
Warsaw, Poland, 6-8 February 2000
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the invitation of UNESCO, UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA and the World
Bank, government representatives of thirty-nine European and
North American countries, and representatives of intergovernmental
and non-governmental organizations met in Warsaw from 6 to 8
February 2000. The participants read and took note of the preliminary
document concerning the action framework to be adopted at the
World Education Forum (Dakar). Discussion was based on the report
presented by the Consultative Forum on Education for All, a
report based on contributions from thirty-one countries, as
well as on two syntheses: one on Central and Eastern Europe,
and the other produced by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD) on its member countries. |
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| Ten
years ago, the Jomtien Conference asserted the need to implement
the right to education that was provided for in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, and to meet basic educational needs
in each country in the world. Over the past decade all European
countries have ratified the Convention on the Rights of the
Child. |
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number of international conferences have since then repeatedly
insisted on the importance of basic education in social and
economic development. The World Summit for Social Development
(Copenhagen, 1995) fixed 2015 as the ultimate date for Universal
Primary Education and this is now the time reference for the
EFA movement. |
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Learning
and the learner are at the heart of lifelong learning, itself
a cyclical, episodic and continuous concept that involves
both intended and unanticipated episodes of learning of both
informal and formal nature. Basic education is a part of lifelong
learning. The importance of valuing the learners' experiences
in order to create both the curriculum and opportunities for
learning is paramount: education from all as well as for all.
Participation in learning builds self-confidence, citizenship
and autonomy.
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Evolution
over the past ten years.
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| Throughout
the world, the trend is towards the development of free market
economies and globalization; this is accompanied by an awareness
of the importance of education and training. For most of our
countries, common characteristics include declining demographic
trends. This in turn increases the importance of the quality
of education, be it for children, youth or adults of all ages,
and the need for education throughout life. . |
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The
Jomtien assertions have not always been properly taken into
account in Europe and North America: basic education was considered
to have been implemented, since primary and lower secondary
education were practically universal. However, although our
region remains the one in which the outcomes of basic education
are the closest to the Jomtien 'enlarged vision', the past
decade has been marked by regressions and difficulties linked
in particular to an increase in social inequities and violence,
and in some countries to war.
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In
the Eastern part of the European continent, the political
and economic system is being transformed. However, from a
basic education viewpoint, the transition of these countries
towards the free market economy has not been positive:
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in financial terms, in most cases there has been a reduction
in expenditure on education;
in terms of quality and non-discrimination for teachers,
whose salary levels have led them to seek supplementary
resources; for pedagogical equipment, in particular textbooks
and computers; and for teaching conditions related to teaching
premises and their facilities;
in terms of equity, the increased contribution requested
from families and from local communities is leading to inequality
to the detriment of the most underprivileged families and
of the poorest areas, in particular rural areas. In the
context of societies where social inequalities are increasing,
this is especially true with the education of young children,
whether it concerns access to educational institutions or
parents' available resources.
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These difficulties have not significantly reduced the percentage
of children in full-time education, which remains high, despite
a slight decline in a number of cases. However, in the long
term they are certain to have a negative influence on the
results obtained.
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In
West Europe and North America, an already universal schooling
in primary and lower secondary education has provided a basis
for development drives on the other levels. Educational expenditure
has continued to increase, in line with GDP and often more
rapidly. The education of young children has been reinforced
in many countries, even though situations remain quite varied.
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However,
in Central and Eastern European countries, concern has been
expressed with respect to quality and non-discrimination.
Disturbing signs are emerging: increase in numbers of drop-outs;
low motivation of a number of pupils resulting in endemic
truancy; weaker performance of the most disadvantaged pupils
- 10 per cent, 20 per cent, sometimes more - who do not have
access to the level required, in particular, for satisfactory
work integration; and development of social exclusion phenomena,
of disaffiliation, of drug addiction, of violence, at increasingly
young ages. Not only has progress failed significantly to
reduce inequality in education according to social, geographical
and ethnic origin, but the gap is widening between the majority
of young people and a fringe made up by children from the
most underprivileged backgrounds with increasing difficulties.
This gap also exists among adults, in particular those who
have no professional qualification or who are functionally
illiterate.
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European
and North American countries have a responsibility towards
the regions of the world where education is less widespread.
They meet this responsibility by means of co-operation and
development provided in bilateral and multilateral forms.
In the field of education, this assistance appears now to
focus more on basic education. However, despite the commitments
for increases declared by Heads of States at Jomtien and Copenhagen,
the level of the aid has decreased over the last decade.
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| Shaping
the vision |
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| The
World Declaration on Education for All called for an expanded
vision and a renewed commitment, by stating the objective of
basic education in its Article I. It can be summarized as allowing
women and men to develop their personal potential to achieve
intellectual autonomy, integrate into society and take part
in society's development. |
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| Integration
into a society depends on the nature of the society. Education
therefore has a national aspect, and even sometimes a sub-national
aspect. According to the Jomtien Declaration, 'The scope of
basic learning needs and how they should be met varies with
individual countries and cultures, and inevitably, changes with
the passage of time.' |
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| For
the past ten years, we have been increasingly aware of a stronger
and stronger interaction between countries, influenced by technical
evolution and the sharing of ideas: this is the phenomenon known
as globalization. It is characterized, by, among other things,
the fundamental importance of knowledge, so as to allow change,
and education, so as to make the change acceptable. The evolution
mentioned in the Jomtien Declaration should therefore lead to
a convergence in levels of education for the countries in the
world. However, an education system cannot be severed from its
historical, cultural, religious and linguistic roots, which
our fellow citizens consider as essential, no doubt in reaction
to the threat of loss of identity that globalization can represent. |
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| To
ensure sustainable and peaceful development in North American
and European countries, renewed emphasis is required on 'learning
to live together' in the Education for All context. This should
enable individuals to better understand themselves and others,
and to contribute to the world's progress towards a unity respectful
of and founded on creative diversity. In this context, renewed
efforts to fight racism, ethnocentrism, anti-Semitism and xenophobia
are needed. |
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| Education
for democratic citizenship concerns not only the teaching of
democratic norms but essentially the development of reflective
and creative persons. It is based on the understanding that
democracy is not fixed and immutable, but rather that it must
be built and rebuilt every day in every society. Over the past
ten years, our countries have joined together in the will to
form democratic societies; for such societies, the future is
to be invented and built; the mission of education is to prepare
future citizens so that they can take part in this initiative. |
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| In
the past, basic education was defined in terms of an obligation
fixed by the state and covering the childhood period, and therefore
meant primary school. Today, such a definition has several deficiencies: |
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with the development of knowledge and of its influence on
the lives of people, basic education takes more time: in
our countries, it covers at least lower secondary education
and touches other levels;
basic education cannot be defined solely by an obligatory
duration, but must now be defined in terms of outcomes;
basic education should indeed become an 'education for everybody'
regardless of age, social and economic background, gender
and residence, founded on the respect for difference. The
problems to be solved concern those who do not reach the
level required for successful integration into working life
and who cannot take part in social development; children
who fail often come from very underprivileged families and,
conversely, failure in school often leads to social exclusion;
and the solution to these problems is therefore closely
linked to anti-poverty strategies;
the definition of basic education is no longer fixed by
the state alone: in many cases, the expectations of society
and of families, and the economy, along with the supply
of knowledge from outside of the formal education system,
have led to the evolution of educational duration and content;
because as society is rapidly changing, each individual
needs lifelong learning: learning how to learn is seen as
a fundamental skill for all. The expanding area of adult
basic education for out-of-school children, youth and adults
is essential to achieving learning throughout life.
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| The
foundation of this process begins at birth. Early childhood
education and care must be holistic and integrated to ensure
the survival, growth and development of young child. In particular,
more attention should be paid to young children under 3 years
old, children in difficult and emergent situations and in rural
areas for their participation in and access to quality early
childhood programmes. |
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| The
primary child caretakers are parents, and the family and community
environment plays an important role. In this regard, an effort
to link early childhood education and care with adult education
deserves attention. The learning that parents and grandparents
do enhances the learning that children do. In turn, the success
or failure of learning at school has an impact on how adults
learn later on in their lives. The vision, provision, policy
and system of early childhood education and care can vary across
countries, but there is a growing consensus that some form of
early childhood programme focusing on the child's holistic development
is essential to favour the social, psychological, affective
and cognitive development of the young child. |
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| Three
levels of action |
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| In
each country |
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1. Definition
of basic education:
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The definition of basic education must be in terms of levels
to be attained, and knowledge and skills to be acquired along
the lines of the Jomtien 'enlarged vision', not in terms of
a period of compulsory school education. |
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| Basic
education allows personal development, intellectual autonomy,
integration into professional life and participation in the
development of the society in the context of democracy. In order
to achieve these aims, basic education must lead to the acquisition
of: |
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key skills, used as personal development tools and, later
on, as a basis for lifelong learning;
initial vocational guidance;
the knowledge, values and abilities that are needed for
individual development, and for the exercise of participatory
and responsible citizenship in a democracy.
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| 2.
Operational goals for 2015 |
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all young women and men achieve basic education as defined
in their country, through their initial education.
young people and adults who have not achieved the set level
of basic education, or who have lost the corresponding skills,
are offered the means to undergo training in order to attain
this level; in particular promotion of literacy is an essential
task.
in the framework of their right to education, children of
at least 3 are offered access to pre-primary education on
request from their parents.
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| 3. Strategies:
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| 3.1.
National action plan |
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| Develop,
in consultation with all stakeholders, a national action plan
with precise goals and objectives, and agreed milestones for
assessing progress. This plan should include and deal with very
precise questions on all aspects of curriculum. It will pay
particular attention to the right of disadvantaged groups to
education. |
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| 3.2.
Allocation of resources |
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investment level currently dedicated to education, despite decreasing
demographic trends, must be maintained; and if reductions have
been made in the level of educational expenditure since 1990,
investment should be increased to what it was then. Benchmark
resources are needed to increase the efficiency in the use of
resources. |
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| Education
should be given high priority, and not less than 6 per cent
of a country's GNP should be devoted to education, as recommended
by the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-first
Century, chaired by Jacques Delors. |
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| 3.3.
Equitable allocations |
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| Ensure that the allocation of public resources for education
across sub-sectors and communities serve to reduce inequities
in access and quality rather than to exacerbate them, particularly
through the use of positive discrimination measures. |
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| 3.4.
Effective partnerships |
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| Set
up the institutional and legal formulas to ensure a real sharing
of responsibility among the various levels (central, regional
and local) of public authorities responsible for education. |
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| Promote
effective and formal partnerships between schoolteachers, families,
communities, civil society, employers, voluntary bodies, social
services and political authorities. This is particularly important
for excluded groups: parents must have the possibility to express
the difficulties that hinder the educational success of their
children and to take part in the definition of solutions so
as to achieve this success. Education for democratic citizenship
also relies on effective partnership in order to ensure commitment
of the whole of society to prevent racism and xenophobia. Partnerships
alone allow taking advantage of all the opportunities society
provides for learning, especially to ensure that all adults
have a right to education. Many adults never participate in
learning opportunities after leaving school. Education for all
must address this. The development of the International Adult
Learners' Week (September 2000) following on from International
Literacy Day is one way of encouraging participation in adult
learning, increasing international solidarity. |
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| Moreover,
partnership contributes to linking education to working life;
and to take full advantage of the changing employment environment
that community service provides for increasing opportunities
for employment (not necessary paid or fully paid employment)
and the student's need to be aware of this. Career guidance
and consulting services for both young people and adults need
strengthening. |
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| 3.5.
Address specific issues |
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| Identify
a specific set of problem issues and develop strategies to address
them. The experience of the past decade in this region suggests
that these might include identifying children excluded from
basic education (rural children, disabled children, girls, street
children, ethnic minorities and children affected by conflict
or HIV/AIDS), and implementing flexible and creative programmes
to restore their right to basic education. |
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| Promising
directions include: |
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more opportunities for teachers' initiative, creativity
and decision-making;
more attention to cultivating a positive attitude to learning;
a focus on general skills, life skills and competitions;
rethinking the content and organization of general education
by relating it to contemporary life and student interests;
improving the quality of education by ensuring that schools
are healthy for children, effective with children and protective
of children. This implies a broader definition of quality
that includes addressing the quality of learners (health,
nutrition, etc.), the quality of the curricula including
assessment and materials, the quality of the learning process
(teachers and technologies to enhance learning) and the
quality of the learning environment (child-centred, gender-sensitive,
healthy and safe). Furthermore, basic education can play
a role in reducing risks of infection by HIV/AIDS and other
health hazards;
intergenerational learning: the learning that parents and
grandparents do enhances the learning that children do.
In turn, the success or failure of learning at school impacts
on how adults learn later on in their lives;
develop and support awareness of the cultures present in
each country, understanding differences, intercultural exchanges
and creativity as well as defending democratic and universal
values by all forms and practices of formal and non-formal
education.
support lifelong education for citizenship efforts of non-governmental
organizations and citizens, associations that participate
in the democratic dynamic and cultural development.
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| 3.6.
Monitoring |
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Set up a monitoring plan that allows levels achieved to
be measured against levels required and in particular to
determine, in social and geographical terms, the populations
that have the most difficulties in attaining the objectives
set. Research-based policies should explore how individuals
and their communities can learn, and why they do not.
Establish
quality-improvement systems to enable the responsible education
personnel to allocate resources according to locally perceived
needs and priorities. Enlisting parents, teachers and community
representatives in this process can promote ownership and
help to enhance a sense of local responsibility.
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| 3.7.
Personnel |
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| Basic
education and basic training personnel include all the actors
related to the educational, social, cultural and health sectors.
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The main objective is to instil in the institutions and the
personnel that are responsible for education, the will that
is needed in order to attain the goal of the educational success
of each pupil and to develop the practices that are required
for this purpose. It implies, in particular, training and retraining
teachers, assessing schools and teachers, co-ordinating their
action, and training teachers and social interveners in how
to dialogue with excluded families and with the parents of pupils
in difficulty. |
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| The
Warsaw regional EFA conference refers to the already internationally
adopted documents such as the ILO Convention on the Status of
Teachers and the 1996 recommendations of the 45th International
Conference on Education. Measures to increase the social status
of teachers of all school levels should be taken; this has to
do not only with salaries but also with academic qualification
and access to post-graduate studies. At the same time it should
be emphasized that the nature of the teaching profession is
related to decision-making and planning, and to identifying
and solving problems, rather than to transmitting knowledge
and following rules. The recognition of this fact has consequences
for the goals and style of in-service teacher-education programmes.
Teachers must have the possibility with their organizations
to participate in the process of formulating educational policies. |
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Moreover, the essential role of universities and other institutions
of higher education should also be emphasized both in educational
research and in pre-service teacher education. |
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| In the
region |
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1.
Sharing information, good practices and interesting experiences
in the management and improvement of basic education systems
across the region should be facilitated in order to find common
convergent solutions. This regional co-operation should rely
on existing intergovernmental (Council of EUROPE, UNESCO, OECD,
EU, CIS, NAFTA, OSCE, etc.) and non-governmental structures.
These exchanges can be encouraged to take place in a variety
of ways, including e-mail, written communication, ad hoc meetings
and committees.
2. Given
the need for further improvement of education systems, particularly
in hard-hit economies of Central and Eastern Europe, enhanced
flows of financial assistance are needed and should be provided.
In this context, bilateral, regional and multilateral agencies
are invited to re-assess their priorities and to consider significant
increases of assistance to education. |
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| With
the whole world |
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| Education
must be allowed to play its key role for lasting development
in the context of globalization and by respecting the responsibilities
of each country. This can be achieved by implementing the following
measures: |
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1.
Empower developing countries to identify their needs, and
to lead and own their development by working in close partnership
towards achieving the goals defined at the Dakar Forum.
2. Encourage international organizations, notably the UNESCO
Institute for Statistics, to improve and collect internationally
comparable data and develop quality research and thus enable
the worldwide community to assess achievement of the goals
established in Dakar. This process should be done in concertation
and co-operation with national and regional research and
statistical institutions. International agencies will be
asked to assist in national capacity-building for statistical
collection and analysis.
3.Rectify the level of assistance that is provided by the
countries in our region and reserve an adequate portion
for basic education in order to meet the expectations of
all actors in the field of Education for All.
4. Since
there is no common model for Overseas Development Aid, an
early rethinking of its levels, ways and means by the North
American and European countries should be considered in
light of the Dakar Forum.
5. The
revised draft Dakar Declaration should be made available
to all ministries, institutions and authorities concerned
by 30 March at the latest to allow for proper consultation
and consensus building.
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