Further Information : Other Funding
The European Commission has integrated its various educational and training initiatives under a single umbrella, the Lifelong Learning Programme
With a significant budget of nearly €7 billion for 2007 to 2013, the new programme replaces previous education, vocational training and e-Learning programmes, which ended in 2006.
The Lifelong Learning Programme combines four previous Programmes:
- Comenius - school education
- Erasmus - higher education
- Leonardo da Vinci - higher vocational training
- Grundtvig - adult education
Comenius targets schools and further education institutions, and is made up of three types of activity:
- School partnerships - enable pupils, students and staff from across Europe to work together on joint projects
- professional development - provides in-service training for staff involved in school education and opportunities for trainee teachers, and provides the opportunity to develop teaching resources
- Comenius Assistants - trainee teachers are placed in schools and colleges across Europe. They can help to enhance the European and cultural dimension across the curriculum, as well as offer classes in their native language. Placements may be from 3 to 10 months
Priorities include: languages and linguistic diversity; teacher education and training, including the training of continuum and pedagogical innovation; key competencies; school policy, especially reduction of early school leaving and drop out.
Erasmus is the EU educational programme for higher education students, teachers and institutions. Erasmus encourages student and teacher mobility, and promotes trans-national co-operation projects among universities across Europe. Its priorities include: joint development of study programmes (Curriculum Development), international intensive programmes, thematic networks between departments and faculties across Europe, language courses (EILC) and European credit transfer system (ECTS).
Leonardo da Vinci is designed to build a skilled workforce through European partnerships. Leonardo funds overseas work placements and the development of training materials with the aim of improving the provision of Vocational Education and Training (VET) across Europe. Leonardo focuses on raising the quality and relevant of vocational education and training and offers the opportunity for organisations involved in this field to build European partnerships, exchange best practice, increase the expertise of their staff and develop the skills of learners. Leonardo offers funding for
- Mobility for learners and trainees
- Placements for VET professionals
- Partnerships for the development and transfer of training
Grundtvig addresses the teaching and learning needs of institutions and individuals involved in adult education. There are four sub-actions:
- European co-operation projects (multilateral projects)
- Learning partnerships
- Individual training grants
- Grundtvig networks
Grundtvig can fund a range of activities related to basic skills, active citizenship, foreign languages, arts and culture, parental education, prison education etc. Many of the themes in Grundtvig are aimed at assisting people from vulnerable social groups, for example:
- people who left school without basic qualifications
- migrants - to support language learning and active citizenship
- vulnerable families - to provide parental education
- disabled people - to provide alternative educational methods through music and sport
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