Contract number / FOP EUROPA. A Final Report to the Directorate General Education and Culture of the European Commission

Transcription

1 Mid-term Evaluation of the Decision of the Council 1999/51/EC on the promotion of European Pathways for work-linked training, including apprenticeship ( EUROPASS-Training ) Contract number / FOP EUROPA A Final Report to the Directorate General Education and Culture of the European Commission ECOTEC Research & Consulting Limited Priestley House Albert Street Birmingham B4 7UD United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) Fax: +44 (0) Web:

2 Mid-term Evaluation of the Decision of the Council 1999/51/EC on the promotion of European Pathways for work-linked training, including apprenticeship ( EUROPASS- Training ) Contract number / FOP EUROPA A Final Report to the Directorate General Education and Culture of the European Commission July 2003 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Limited Priestley House Albert Street Birmingham B4 7UD UK Tel: +44 (0) Fax: +44 (0) Website: Marshalsea Road London SE1 1HL UK Tel: +44 (0) Fax: +44 (0) b Avenue de Tervuren B-1040 Bruxelles Belgique Tel: +32 (2) Fax: +32 (2) Modesto Lafuente 63 6a E Madrid España Tel: Fax: Park Row Leeds LS1 5JD UK Tel: +44 (0) Fax: +44 (0)

3 CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY... i 1.0 INTRODUCTION The EUROPASS Training initiative and its evaluation schedule Evaluation design Methodology Conditions affecting the evaluation study Structure of the report THE POLICY CONTEXT Introduction Transparency of qualifications and competencies and mobility Processes in the transparency of qualifications and competencies EUROPASS TRAINING: INITIATIVE OBJECTIVES Challenges to which EUROPASS Training responds EUROPASS Training objectives MANAGEMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION STRUCTURES Territorial dimension Management in practice Partnership building THE EUROPASS TRAINING INITIATIVE Funding EUROPASS Training dissemination and awareness Participation Survey of participant organisations NATIONAL CONTACT POINTS VIEWS ABOUT EUROPASS Understanding of the initiative EUROPASS Training Impact National Contact Points on sustainability and reform EXPERTS VIEWS ABOUT EUROPASS The EUROPASS Training Initiative EUROPASS Training and National Training Policies EUROPASS Training and Other Community Initiatives Future Trends...84

4 8.0 CONCLUSION Appropriateness Management and implementation Impact The need for further development POLICY OPTIONS: TOWARDS SOLUTIONS Introduction Policy option one: Leave EUROPASS Training unchanged and improve the understanding of the current initiative by all key stakeholders Policy option two: Simplify the situation of the set of transparency tools, including EUROPASS Training Policy option three: Change the EUROPASS Training document and the way in which it is filled in, keep the focus of the initiative Annex One: Case Studies Annex Two: Tender Specifications Annex Three: Supplementary Tables Annex Four: References Annex Five: Methodological Tools

5 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 : EUROPASS Training's Operational objectives and operational tools...ii Table 2: Views of participant organisations and NCPs on the impact of EUROPASS Training in its global objectives... iv Table 3: Management structures for EUROPASS Training by country Table 4: Number of approved applications for EUROPASS Training documents per country until October Table 5: Number of awarded EUROPASS Training documents by educational level to which holder aspired Table 6: Number of EUROPASS Training documents by age group Table 7: Proportion of EUROPASS Training documents given (by gender) Table 8: Principal occupational status at the time of application for a EUROPASS Training document Table 9: Top ten economic sectors participating in EUROPASS Table 10: Length of training periods certified by EUROPASS Table 11: Home country and country of destination of the estimated EUROPASS Training document given between 11/00 and 08/ Table 12: Number of sending organisations by country Table 13: Sending organisations: Top ten sectors (all countries) Table 14: Number of organisations participating in EUROPASS Training by size of company (Italy, Spain, The Netherlands (1), Luxembourg and Portugal combined) Table 15: Sample distribution by country Table 16: How would you define your organisation? Table 17: What is the size of your organisation all sites Table 18: What is the main economic sector in which your organisation operates? Table 19: Does your organisation have any sites abroad? Table 20: If you have participated as a host organisation, what has/have been the subject(s) of the training provided in periods certified by EUROPASS? Table 21: Have you read any EUROPASS Training promotional material? Table 22: How would you rate the clarity of the publicity materials for EUROPASS? Table 23: How did your organisation hear about EUROPASS? Table 24: How many EUROPASS Training documents has your organisation been involved in as sending organisation since the launch of the initiative? including those ongoing Table 25: How many EUROPASS Training documents has your organisation been involved in as host organisation since the launch of the initiative? including those on-going Table 26: What work experience had beneficiaries who participated in EUROPASS Training in your organisation? Table 27: If you have participated as sending organisation, what proportion of EUROPASS Training holders have carried out more than one work-related training period abroad? Table 28: How would you rate the information contained in the EUROPASS Training document? Table 29: What do you think that EUROPASS Training should certify?... 49

6 Table 30: Would an electronic version of the document be beneficial? Table 31: How clear is your understanding of the objectives of EUROPASS Table 32: How would you rate the effectiveness of EUROPASS Training in increasing the number of training periods abroad Table 33: How do you think that EUROPASS Training affects trainees willingness to undertake training abroad? Table 34: For sending organisations only: How do trainees in your organisation react when told of EUROPASS? Table 35: Do you think that EUROPASS Training helps to promote vocational training and to make it more attractive to young people? Table 36: How would you rate the effectiveness of EUROPASS Training in increasing the quality of training periods abroad Table 37: How would you rate the effectiveness of EUROPASS Training in increasing the quality and recognition of qualifications gained through periods of training abroad? Table 38: How would you rate the effectiveness of EUROPASS Training in increasing the visibility of periods of training abroad Table 39: How would you rate your understanding of the equivalence of training levels between the host and sending countries before your experience of EUROPASS?. 54 Table 40: How has your understanding of the equivalence of training levels between the host and sending countries changed since the involvement in EUROPASS? Table 41: To what extent does EUROPASS Training help to develop links between training and work experience? Table 42: How do you think that the EUROPASS Training document affects the employment prospects of its holders? Table 43: Has participation in EUROPASS Training increased the visibility of your organisation at European level? Table 44: How was the information from NCPs when requested? Table 45: Were the main methods of communication adequate with National Contact Points (NCPs) and partner organisations (POs)? Table 46: Had your organisation been involved in any other Community programme/initiative in the fields of education and training before EUROPASS? Table 47: Which of the following EU initiatives have you heard of? Table 48: In your opinion, how complementary is EUROPASS Training to the following Table 49: Do you find European initiatives relating to the certification and transparency of qualifications in the field of education and training? Table 50: How far have the objectives you had when you applied for participation in the EUROPASS Training initiative been fulfilled? Table 51: Has your EUROPASS Training experience made it more or less likely that you look favourably in the future on someone with a EUROPASS? Table 52: What do you perceive as the main problems related to the EUROPASS Training initiative? Multiple choice Table 53: Will your organisation continue to participate in EUROPASS Training in the future? Table 54: EUROPASS Training Relevance Table 55: Overall results of EUROPASS Training in your country so far by NCP... 76

7 Table 56: Continuing relevance of EUROPASS Training in your country so far by NCP Table 57: Justification of EUROPASS Training ss focus on vocational training by NCP Table 58: How easily could EUROPASS Training be extended to other education and training areas? Table 59: Number of pathways funded by mobility programmes Table 60: Complementarity between EUROPASS Training and other European initiatives.. 80 Table 61: EUROPASS Training s Operational objectives and operational tools Table 62: Views of participant organisations and NCPs on the impact of EUROPASS Training on its global objectives... 90

8 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ECOTEC Research and Consulting Limited were commissioned by the European Commission to carry out the mid-term evaluation of the EUROPASS Training initiative, on the promotion of European pathways for work-linked training, including apprenticeship. The research aimed to evaluate the initiative s appropriateness, management and implementation and impact -including achievement of its objectives. The main information collection tools used were: a survey sent to 899 participant organisations. The survey was replied to by 95 organisations. Ninety two questionnaires were suitable for processing, nineteen in-depth interviews with National Contact Points for the initiative (NCPs), a data grid to NCPs covering quantitative aspects of EUROPASS Training at national level, three in-depth interviews with national experts, nineteen case studies exploring best practice examples, evaluation of available secondary data and attendance of meetings at DG Education and Culture (DGEAC) with the participation of educational experts, representatives of various stakeholder groups and DGEAC personnel. Although a survey of participant individuals was envisaged for this evaluation, this could not be undertaken. This imposed some constrains to this mid-term evaluation. Evaluation findings EUROPASS Training appropriateness Extent to which operational objectives are consistent with operational tools A set of operational tools has been set up to fulfil EUROPASS Training operational objectives: i ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

9 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report Table 1 : EUROPASS Training's Operational objectives and operational tools Operational objective Operational tool Establishing implementation mechanisms at NCPs established in all participant countries. national level in the framework of a co-ordinated Commission retains co-ordinating role approach at European level Setting up a system for co-ordination of information Promoting the initiative Production and distribution of the EUROPASS Training documents Ensuring the quality of the European pathways Source: ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd Four meetings for exchange of information organised by the Commission Informal contacts between the Commission and NCPS and between NCPs themselves Dissemination materials have been produced and distributed at European, national and sub-national level The Commission produced EUROPASS Training documents, which are distributed by NCPs NCPs and participant organisations are in charge of ensuring quality of European pathways certified by EUROPASS Training; co-lateral quality assurance through LEONARDO for many pathways All operational objectives have been therefore covered by operational tools. In our opinion, all operational tools established are consistent with the operational objectives set out for it. EUROPASS Training consistency with the policy developments in the field of lifelong learning, particularly in relation to transparency and transferability of qualifications and skills There is currently a political momentum regarding the need to improve transparency tools. Although successful and widely used in some cases, according to our survey to participant organisations, existing instruments and services supporting transparency of qualifications are not sufficiently visible and accessible to citizens, who consider the current situation for transparency tools too complex. Several NCPs and national experts suggested different ways in which these deficiencies could be addressed. In many of these, EUROPASS Training would play a very important role. This emphasises the consistency of EUROPASS Training with policy developments in the area of transparency of qualifications and competences and the relevance of EUROPASS Training for these future developments. Relevance of EUROPASS Training s specific objective The specific objective for EUROPASS Training is the promotion of periods of transnational mobility within work-linked training. Sixty percent of the respondents to our survey of participant organisations said that EUROPASS Training should certify work linked training, 77% that it should be expanded to certify all skills acquired abroad and 67% that it could be expanded to certify all training abroad. It is therefore not clear that EUROPASS Training specific objective should continue unchanged, and consideration should be given to extending the initiative s objective to the promotion of periods of transnational mobility within alternative learning environments. ii ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

10 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report EUROPASS Training management and implementation Clarity of the specific and operational objectives All NCPs reported their understanding of the specific and operational objectives of the initiative as adequate, and they pointed out that this understanding had been necessary for the production of national guidelines. They were less sure about the understanding of the initiative by its users, especially regarding the initiative s rationale and operational framework. Participant organisations, however, reported having a good understanding of the initiative. Eighty percent of the respondents of our survey of participants declared having a clear or very clear understanding of the objectives of EUROPASS Training. Territorial dimension Management of the EUROPASS Training initiative is decentralised to the national level in participant countries, with the Commission retaining a co-ordinating role. Some countries have decentralised the management structure for the initiative further to sub-national level. A majority of NCPs considered that this decentralised structure was effective and efficient. The rationale for decentralisation is clear in that the quality control on European pathways can only be done at national or regional level and the territorial management of the initiative should continue unchanged. Management in practice There are several actors involved in the management of EUROPASS Training. The European Commission has a primarily contractual involvement in the initiative, with some responsibility for European level promotion, development and evaluation, as well as the production of the EUROPASS Training documents. The day to day management of the initiative is the responsibility of National Contact Points, an arrangement that both the Commission and NCPs favour. Stakeholders and social partners may also be involved in the management of the initiative through Steering Committees, and they have a more active role in some countries, like Germany. Sending and host organisations and beneficiaries are rarely involved in the management of EUROPASS Training, other than by submitting applications (sending organisations) and being represented in fora where EUROPASS Training is discussed. The management of EUROPASS Training in practice is generally regarded as a merely functional role which NCPs perform alone, albeit with some involvement of a wider range of actors. Resources NCPs often manage EUROPASS Training alongside existing mobility programmes and EUROPASS Training is not considered to be an onerous initiative to manage in terms of human resources or finance given its current volume of activity. If the initiative is to be expanded and take-up and dissemination increased, resource implications will have to be taken into account. iii ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

11 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report Efficiency in the use of resources The budget for the EUROPASS Training initiative was set at 7.3 million ECU for the period 1 January 2,000/ 31 December The initiative has been efficient in its use of resources. It has already reached over 34,000 participants, what suggests that cost per awarded EUROPASS Training will be within reasonable margins by the end of The EUROPASS Training document has been an efficient transparency mechanism. Eightyfive percent of the organisations surveyed during this evaluation considered the information contained in the EUROPASS Training document as useful or very useful. Several potential improvements were, nevertheless, highlighted during the evaluation process. In particular, the availability of an electronic version and further specification of the content of the document were deemed necessary by NCPs. Participant organisations supported similar developments less strongly. EUROPASS Training impact Global objectives EUROPASS Training aims to fulfil five global objectives. The views of NCPs and participant organisations on the impact of EUROPASS Training regarding these objectives are summarised below. Table 2: Views of participant organisations and NCPs on the impact of EUROPASS Training in its global objectives Participant organisations NCPs To improve the employment prospects of young + + people To encourage the development of effective links between training and work experience To promote the mobility of persons in training To promote the transparency of vocational + ++ certificates and To improve the quality and attractiveness of vocational education and training Source: ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd Key: (++) Very positive impact; (+) positive impact; (+-) no positive impact perceived EUROPASS Training has had its greatest impact in improving the transparency of training periods abroad. It has filled a vacuum that existed in the pre-2000 situation and both participant organisations and especially NCPs considered that it has been successful in this respect. Participant organisations in particular were very positive about the effect of EUROPASS Training in improving links between training and work experience, and the quality and attractiveness of vocational education and training. Both participant organisations and NCPs considered that EUROPASS Training improves the employment prospects of beneficiaries, although this benefit must be tempered by the lack of knowledge of the initiative by employers. By contrast, promotion of mobility of persons in training is the objective that EUROPASS Training has achieved the least. It is considered that EUROPASS iv ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

12 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report Training is an addendum to the benefits of mobility in training, but not an initiative that would encourage people in training to undertake a European pathway. Specific Objective: EUROPASS Training participation Over 34,000 EUROPASS Training applications had been approved from the initiative launch until October 2002, when this mid-term evaluation collected data on participation from NCPs. However, data available from NCPs covered this period only partially, mainly from the beginning of the initiative up to the end of 2001 or the first half of 2002, which suggests that the figure for approved applications might have already exceeded at least 40,000. This is a significant increase, of almost 80%, from November 2001, suggesting that the initiative is being increasingly recognised and used by potential beneficiaries. Extent to which the outcome and results attain the operational objectives The outputs of EUROPASS Training in attaining its operational objectives have been varied. The NCP network as implementation mechanism at national level and the mechanisms for production and distribution of the EUROPASS Training document have been widely successful. By contrast, the established system for the exchange of information and quality assurance mechanisms have been criticised by some NCPs during this evaluation. Finally, the instruments set up for promotion of the initiative have not disseminated EUROPASS Training as participants would have expected. Indeed, the survey to participant organisations highlighted that the main problem EUROPASS Training faces is that it is not well known by employers. Complementary objectives: Account of the specific needs of micro-enterprises, SMEs and the craft sector EUROPASS Training has been used by micro-enterprises. According to the available information from NCPs around 5% of the EUROPASS Training users would have been selfemployed people and a further 10% would be small organisations, between 2 and 49 employees. Moreover, our case studies present anecdotal evidence that the information provided by the EUROPASS Training document is useful for micro-enterprises, SMEs and the craft sector. Equal opportunities The take up of the initiative has represented a wide range of educational levels, age groups, economic sectors and has kept a gender balance, although no explicit equal opportunities policy has been developed for EUROPASS Training. v ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

13 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report Conclusions The EUROPASS Training initiative has been relatively successful in a variety of aspects during its first years and has established the basis for future progress in the area of transparency of qualifications. EUROPASS Training has, in its brief period of existence, confirmed itself as an important transparency tool, which is valued by its users. EUROPASS Training is also fulfilling to a large extent the objectives that were set for it at the outset of the initiative. Different stakeholders have identified both the continuing relevance but also the need for reform of the initiative. It is seen as an appropriate and relevant tool to achieve the objectives it was set. However, there are also constraints on EUROPASS Training and shortcomings in relation to both the document itself and the initiative, in the current policy context. In fact, the modest character of the initiative in its current form is one of the challenges that it has for the future. EUROPASS Training is considered by NCPs and participant organisations to be a useful tool and first step in the certification of skills acquired abroad, but it is also clear that these same actors believe that EUROPASS Training should be expanded. The opinion of the majority of stakeholders is that if the initiative is to achieve its potential, important changes will be needed in the future. This might require changes not only in the format of the present document, as previous analysis to this mid-term evaluation has suggested, but also in relation to the rationale of the initiative. In this respect, potential improvements of the initiative, opening new possibilities in terms of both the format of the EUROPASS Training document and its content, have been presented during this evaluation. In particular, the need for an electronic version of the document, further specification of its contents, integrating the initiative better with other transparency tools and extending the initiative beyond work-linked training to encompass all training undertaken abroad should be considered in the short term. vi ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

14 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 The EUROPASS Training initiative and its evaluation schedule The European Community initiative EUROPASS Training was established by the Council Decision 1999/51/EC of 21 December 1998 on the promotion of European pathways in work-linked training, including apprenticeship. This decision falls within the range of activities undertaken by the European Community to promote both apprenticeship and the mobility of people undergoing training 1. It establishes EUROPASS Training as a voluntary record at Community level of the period or periods of training which a person undergoing work-linked training, including apprenticeship, has followed in a Member state other than that in which his/her training is based (known as European pathway(s) 2 ). The new Community document EUROPASS Training came into effect on 1 st January 2000 in the European Community (article 8) and was later extended to the countries of the European Economic Area. The objective of the EUROPASS Training initiative is twofold 3 : to define the content as well as the general and common quality principles underpinning the European pathways and to boost the transparency and visibility of these European pathways by means of an official certificate attesting to the training and/or work experience acquired by the beneficiary in another country. Article 9 of the Council Decision obliges the European Commission to submit a report on the implementation of the initiative evaluating the impact of the Decision on the promotion of mobility in work-linked training, including apprenticeship, and proposing any further corrective measures designed to make it more effective, three years after its adoption. The Commission planned three correlated activities for the initiative. A mid-term Report to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementation of the Decision published in May , which focused on the operational and complementary objectives of the initiative. A Seminar with the actors concerned Member state representatives and experts, held in La Coruña 3-4 June Viviane Reding in EUROPASS Training Information booklet (10/10/02) 2 Council Decision of 21 December 1998 on the promotion of European pathways in work-linked straining, including apprenticeship 1999/51/EC, Official Journal L17 of 22 January 1999:45 3 Viviane Reding in EUROPASS Training Information booklet (10/10/02) More detailed information on the initiative s objectives can be found in section Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council: Report on the implementation of the Decision 1999/51 EC of the Council of 21 December 1998 on the promotion of European pathways in worklinked training, including apprenticeship Brussels, COM(2002) 214 Final. 1 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

15 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report This mid-term evaluation, which focus on the efficiency and effectiveness of the implementation of the Decision, providing lessons and recommendations for the management of the initiative. 1.2 Evaluation design EUROPASS Training is a recent initiative in which data collection possibilities have not yet been fully explored and taken advantage of. It was agreed from the outset that data collection and analysis should not only focus on the key political stakeholders for the initiative but should also enable the evaluation to account for the views of those who actually take part in it. As such, ECOTEC s mid-term evaluation study design involves a complex set of instruments for data collection: Nineteen in-depth interviews with National Contact Points Three in-depth interviews with national experts Collection of statistical data with an emphasis on the profile of participants in the initiative - from National Contact Points A surveys sent to 899 participating organisations and replied to by 95 organisations (92 replies were suitable for processing) 19 case studies describing the EUROPASS Training experience of best-practice participant organisations Evaluation of available secondary sources on EUROPASS Training and related initiatives and policy developments Attendance at meetings at DG Education and Culture with educational experts, representatives of various stakeholder groups and Commission personnel, which dealt with EUROPASS Training related developments 5. These tools for data collection were designed to ensure that the study responded to key questions related to the appropriateness, management, implementation and impact of EUROPASS Training, taking the analysis of the views of a comprehensive set of key actors as a starting point. This will enable the evaluation firstly to consider a broad range of goals and views on the initiative beyond the Council Decision, secondly to compare different stakeholders expectations, and thirdly to determine how the initiative responds to top-down and bottom-up demands. Given the time and budgetary constraints for the evaluation it has not been possible to examine the views and motivations of those organisations and individuals who would qualify for a EUROPASS Training document but who have decided not to participate in the initiative. 5 A survey to participating individuals was also envisaged for this mid-term evaluation, however, not enough data could be gathered so as to present reliable results in this report. 2 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

16 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report The evaluation has, nevertheless, attended to this issue by asking for the views of National Contact Points on this issue. The mid-term evaluation also seeks to draw out implications from the above information for the future of the initiative, providing recommendations both on the management of the initiative and on improving its impact and future role within the wider context of European education and training policies. 1.3 Methodology The main objective of this mid-term evaluation is to assess the performance of the EUROPASS Training scheme in relation to the achievement of its objectives 6. This will be done focusing on the following issues as set out in the Terms of Reference: Appropriateness - the extent to which the operational objectives are consistent with the operational tools - consistency with the policy developments in the field of lifelong learning, - whether EUROPASS Training s specific objective is still relevant Management and implementation - the clarity of the specific and operational objectives - territorial dimension - management in practice - resources - efficiency in the use of resources Impact - impact on global objectives - impact on specific objective - the extent to which the outcome and results attain the operational objectives - impact on complementary objectives 1.4 Conditions affecting the evaluation study In order to understand the context, possibilities and limits of this mid-term evaluation, four points have to be highlighted: The initiative itself is very recent, and in some countries it is still in a preliminary process of development, which limits the scope and depth of the evaluation. The available information on the EUROPASS Training initiative not produced for dissemination purposes is therefore very scarce. The evaluation builds upon the mid-term Implementation Report for the initiative, completing and updating the information offered 6 For a detailed description of the initiative objective s see section 3 3 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

17 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report and using the report as a basis for analysis. The implementation report, which did not intend to be evaluative, gave a first overview of the implementation of the initiative, informing especially on the different management approaches of the initiative in participating countries. The information given in the implementation report, however, is limited, in part due to the novelty of the initiative itself, and it is not targeted on many of the dimensions addressed in this report. Much new information has been incorporated to inform and to strengthen both the descriptive and the formative side of the evaluation. No complete or standardised data collection systems for the initiative have been developed, and no time-frame for data collection for this evaluation was set, which makes the data available for this report not strictly comparable between participating countries. The evaluation must form the basis for recommendations as to a successor Community initiative in this area, as well as recommendations for the management of the current initiative in its last years. This will need to take account of not only the efficiency and effectiveness of the current initiative, but also the appropriateness of its objectives within a changing policy framework. This would ideally be done in a combined evaluation of all transparency initiatives and their role in the changing policy context rather than in an evaluation of one of those initiatives. 1.5 Structure of the report This final report is structured in nine sections. Section two explains the relevant policy context for EUROPASS Training. Section three presents the objectives of the EUROPASS Training initiative. Section four reviews the management and implementation systems for the initiative. Section five outlines the results of a data grid for quantitative data sent to NCPs and a survey to participant organisations. Section six presents the views of National Contact Points about EUROPASS Training. Section seven presents the views of national experts outside NCPs. Section eight draws together the findings presented in the preceding chapters and presents ECOTEC s conclusions for this evaluation. Section nine outlines some policy options for the future of the initiative. 4 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

18 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report 2.0 THE POLICY CONTEXT 2.1 Introduction European pathways for training refer to any period of vocational training completed by a person undergoing work-linked training as part of their training in another Member State 7, complying with a number of quality criteria. This involves, in particular, forming a partnership between the establishment where the person completes his/her training and the host body abroad. Within the framework of the partnership, both partners agree on the contents, objectives, duration, methods and monitoring of the European pathway. The figure of a mentor with precise functions during the training periods is also envisaged. It is in order to recognise such a European pathway for training and to provide better transparency and greater visibility to these training periods abroad that a standard Community information document, the EUROPASS document, was introduced. The EUROPASS document, whose contents and presentation have been defined at Community level, is delivered to its holder by the body responsible for organising the training at the Member State of origin. The document provides the personal details of the trainee, information on the concerned training initiative, which includes the European pathway, and details of training periods abroad (host partner, mentor, etc.). It therefore helps to certify training periods in another Member state in a standardised way, giving European training bodies and employers reliable and easily comparable information and helping its users in their professional advancement. The concept of European pathway involves all forms of mobility which are aimed at people in work-related training, including apprenticeship, whatever the framework in which this mobility action is integrated. The EUROPASS initiative is not a new mobility programme like LEONARDO, SOCRATES or Marie Curie Fellowships. The European pathways recorded by the EUROPASS documentation take place in the framework of any programme or initiative in the field of education and training, as well as outside any community or national programme. Because of the differences among the national training systems of Member States, this measure is largely decentralised. 7 These include in the EUROPASS Training initiative EU and EEA countries. The participation of EFTA/EEA countries (ISL,N,FL), not expressly envisaged by the text of the Council Decision was possible by amending Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement (co-operation in specific fields outside the four freedoms), so that they would be recognised as Member States as far as the EUROPASS-Training Decision was concerned (EUROPASS Training meeting of the representatives of national bodies, Brussels 12 May 2000). Candidate countries are not concerned by the Decision, although consideration is being given to the opportunity to have them associated in the framework of their preparation to accession. 5 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

19 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report 2.2 Transparency of qualifications and competencies and mobility The free movement of labour within the EU is a key principle enshrined in policy since the Treaty of Rome in 1957 and restated on many occasions since then. The strategies pursued in an attempt to remove this obstacle include 8 : Directives enabling people holding qualifications to seek recognition of their diploma in order to pursue a regulated profession in a Member State other than the one in which they obtained their qualifications (directives approved from the 1960s to 1999). Establishing comparisons between qualifications for some occupations and sectors across all Member States ( ). Efforts to improve transparency, aimed at making qualifications more easily understood in all member states these include the Council Resolutions of 1992 and 1996 and projects undertaken within the LEONARDO Programme since It is in the lines of the third type of action that EUROPASS Training is located. Recently, the European debate about transparency of qualifications has seen several developments, which underpin the importance of an initiative such as EUROPASS Training. The Stockholm European Council in March 2001 following lines established at the end of 2000 in Nice requested the Commission to prepare an Action Plan for Skills and Mobility. Presented in February , the Action Plan proposes to tackle three main challenges: insufficient occupational mobility, low levels of geographical mobility 10 and poor access to information on mobility, and proposes more uniform, transparent and flexible arrangements for recognising qualifications and diplomas and periods of study 11. The Presidency conclusions to the Barcelona European Council (15 & 16 March 2002) furthered this proposal. They ask for priority action from the Council in lowering regulatory and administrative barriers to professional recognition as well as other barriers resulting from failure to recognise formal qualifications and non-formal learning and in ensuring genuine mobility for all those involved in education 12. The integration of EUROPASS Training within developments in all the above areas, its contribution towards improving the quality of 8 We follow Achieving mobility by improving transparency of vocational qualifications: A proposal for action European Forum in the field of Transparency of Vocational Qualifications, February 7, A High Level Task Force set up by the Commission to contribute to this task and made up of experts from business, the world of education and social partners had submitted its recommendations on 14 th December The importance of geographical mobility in the EU context is reflected in the new Issue of The social situation in the European Union: 2002 (EUROSTAT/European Commission, 2002) which has this as its special theme, and where the most current available data on this issue can be found. For a comparison with the USA patterns see New European Labour Markets, open to All, with access for all COM (2001) 116 final, Brussels, Communication from the Commission to the Council, The European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions Commission s Action Plan for Skills and mobility COM (2002) 72 Brussels, See also Barbier et. Al. Digest, Journal of European Social Policy 2002,12(2): See The Presidency Conclusions Barcelona European Council, SN 100/02 ADD 1. 6 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

20 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report work-linked training and its value for users, are the main focus of the present evaluation, which is not aimed at evaluating mobility as such Processes in the transparency of qualifications and competencies If mobility gives the context to understand the initiative, the rationale behind the creation of a EUROPASS Training document is related to a crucial theme in education policies in the EU since the 1990s: transparency of qualifications and competencies The European Forum on transparency of qualifications Established by CEDEFOP and the European Commission, the European Forum on Transparency of Vocational Qualifications 14 was created in 1998, with the aim of promoting mobility of individuals by making qualifications and learning visible. It brings social partners together with national training authorities representatives around the issue of transparency and has developed varied instruments and working areas to develop transparency, like the European Curriculum Vitae or the Certificate Supplement, which are reviewed below. The work of the Forum created the bases for taking the EUROPASS Training initiative and other initiatives forward The process towards enhanced co-operation in vocational education and training 15 The Council resolution on enhanced co-operation in vocational education and training, adopted on 19 December 2002, gives a mandate to work towards Increasing transparency in vocational education and training through the implementation and rationalisation of information tools and networks, including the integration of existing instruments such as the European CV, certificate and diploma supplements, the Common European Framework of reference for languages and the EUROPASS Training into one single framework. On this basis, and building upon the work of the Transparency and Quality Forums, a working group on transparency has been established. The initial mandate of the technical working group on a single transparency framework, taking into account the results of the Transparency Forum and the evaluation of the current EUROPASS Training tool, is the following: To identify the elements to be included in the integrated framework for transparency of qualifications and competencies; To develop an integrated framework which enables citizens to present and promote their qualifications and competencies in a more coherent, visible and comparable way. The framework should be user friendly and the relationship between its different elements should be clear. 13 See also EUROPASS Training Meeting of representatives of national bodies, Brussels 12 May 2000 p7. 14 For more information see 15 We follow European Commission, DG Education and Culture (2002) Increased co-operation in vocational education and training: towards an integrated approach, unpublished draft. 7 ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

21 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report To indicate how implementation can best be organised and to advise on how existing structures, notably the National Contact Points for EUROPASS Training, the National Resource Centres for Guidance and the National Reference Points for Vocational Education and Training, could be usefully rationalised to support effective follow up. In addition, the development of appropriate links with the EURES and NARIC networks should be examined. To report systematically to the co-ordination group and the ACVT, and by May 2003, to present a report to the Commission outlining a basis for concrete action in this field, in particular a new legal basis to succeed the existing EUROPASS Training Decision. Commission proposals will be submitted to the ACVT for opinion. The working group should be composed of representatives of the Member States, Candidate and EEA countries and Social Partners. The group should be supported by CEDEFOP and ETF and, if needed, be strengthened by other sources of expertise, for example independent experts, networks etc. The work of this working group and the political support towards enhanced co-operation in vocational education and training will therefore be crucial for the development of the EUROPASS Training initiative into the basis for the above mentioned integrated framework for the transparency of qualifications and competencies Integrated framework for the transparency of qualifications and competencies The new integrated framework for transparency will have as its background the work of the Transparency Forum and other Community initiatives that run parallel to EUROPASS Training and help to understand its rationale and context. Other related EU instruments and initiatives in related fields include 16 : The European CV The European curriculum vitae model was developed by the European Forum on Transparency of vocational qualifications to give a comprehensive standardised overview of education attainments and work experience of an individual The certificate supplement The certificate supplement, also developed by the European Forum on Transparency of qualifications, is based on a European format which describes the qualifications acquired and helps to demonstrate actual skills and competencies to employers by providing a detailed description of each individual s vocational training background, without aiming to substitute for the original qualifications of the individual or an automatic system that guarantees recognition. 16 Initiatives and instruments should be read in conjunction with parallel processes in the field of Education, such as the Bologna process and the Bruges Process, whose experiences can be used as a basis for promoting closer co-operation within vocational education and training, as pointed out by the Commission COM (2002) and previously Communication from the Commission Making a European Area of Lifelong Learning a Reality COM (2001) 678 final, Brussels p ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd

22 EUROPASS Training Mid-term Evaluation Final Report European Credit Transfer System European Credit Transfer System (ECTS), provides a way of measuring and comparing learning achievements, and transferring them from one institution to another in the field of higher education, improving access to information on foreign curricula and providing common procedures for academic recognition. ECTS guarantees the reciprocal recognition of qualifications awarded by its signatory institutions, where one ECTS credit corresponds to a unit of value assigned to a course on the basis of the work involved. Accumulating 60 ECTS credits is equivalent to one year s academic study 17. As stated in the Communication from the Commission Making a European Area of Lifelong Learning a Reality (COM (2001)678 final) the Commission, in co-operation with the Member States, will (by 2003) develop a modular system for the accumulation of qualifications, allowing citizens to combine education and training from various institutions and countries. This will build on the ECTS and EUROPASS Training The recognition of non-formal learning This initiative of the European Union aims to enhance the visibility of skills and competencies in the labour market and to improve the recognition of non-formal training. Assessing and recognising non-formal learning is very closely linked to other achievements of the Forum on Transparency, mainly the certificate supplement and the European CV The network of national reference points The network of national reference points gives access to information on national vocational training systems in EU and EEA countries Other international initiatives and projects The Diploma Supplement The Diploma Supplement (DS) is a document attached to a higher education diploma aiming at improving international transparency and at facilitating the academic and professional recognition of qualifications (diplomas, degrees, certificates etc.). It is designed to provide a description of the nature, level, context, content and status of the studies that were pursued and successfully completed by the individual named on the original qualification to which this supplement is appended. It should be free from any value-judgements, equivalence statements or suggestions about recognition. It is a flexible non-prescriptive tool which is designed to save time, money and workload. It is capable of adaptation to local needs. The DS is produced by national institutions according to a template developed by a Joint European Commission - Council of Europe - UNESCO working party and is available in the 11 official EU languages. The DS is composed of eight sections (information identifying the holder of the qualification, information identifying the qualification, information on the level of the qualification, information on the contents and results gained, information on the function of the 17 Passport to mobility: Learning differently, learning abroad European Commission, Belgium, May ECOTEC Research and Consulting Ltd