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EU ministers address the ability of education systems to respond to crisis situations
© EU
A meeting of the Education Council, chaired by Minister of Education, Youth and Sports Vladimír Balaš, took place in Brussels today. During the policy discussion, ministers focused on the capacity of European education systems to respond to crisis situations, such as the current Russian aggression against Ukraine. In addition, the ministers adopted two documents, namely the Council Conclusions on Promoting Well-being in Digital Education, prepared by the Czech Presidency of the EU Council, and the Council Recommendation on the Pathways to School Success initiative.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Ministers adopted the Council Conclusions on Promoting well-being in Digital Education. These focus on issues such as promoting the digital skills of pupils and teachers, appropriate settings for the use of digital tools in teaching, and promoting mental health. The conclusions aim to highlight the need to develop digitalisation beyond the provision of infrastructure and skills, which has been the focus of EU Member States and institutions since the covid-19 pandemic.
Subsequently, a Council Recommendation on the Pathways to School Success initiative was adopted, which is a key document of the European Education Area. It aims to strengthen learning outcomes in basic skills and reduce the number of early school leavers. 'Success' in the school environment is associated with an emphasis on motivation, personal and socio-emotional development and the well-being of pupils.
In a policy debate, EU ministers discussed the European Education Area, an emerging area of enhanced cooperation in education within the EU. Options for strengthening its resilience and tools for dealing more quickly and effectively with unexpected impacts were discussed. This includes the current Russian aggression in Ukraine, which has driven millions of refugees into the EU, almost half of whom are school-age children.
The discussion was opened by a video message from Serhiy Shkarlet, Ukrainian Minister of Education and Science, who thanked the ministers for their crucial cooperation and support. He described the current situation in Ukraine, where many Ukrainian pupils and children are hungry and without heat due to Russian barbarism. He also briefly stressed Ukraine's support for the temporary inclusion of Ukrainian children in the education systems of EU countries and reiterated his thanks for finding ways to support the education of Ukrainian children.
"We are sincerely grateful to all EU countries for their unwavering support for Ukraine, and for all the measures taken to help temporarily displaced children, students, teachers and researchers, as well as all other citizens of Ukraine who have had to flee abroad because of the cruel invasion of the Russian Federation into the territory of Ukraine. I very much appreciate the openness, cooperation and support of the EU countries. I would like to stress the importance of the EU's aid of EUR 100 million for the rebuilding of schools in Ukraine that were destroyed as a result of the targeting of non-military targets of the Russian military aggression. Currently, 2 767 educational institutions have been hit by bombing and shelling, 337 of which have been completely destroyed," the Ukrainian Minister told his counterparts.
The ministers present expressed their solidarity with Ukraine and pledged further efforts to support pupils and students fleeing Ukraine by Member States and the European Commission. The informal lunch discussion that followed was devoted to the topic of supporting the Ukrainian education system as it rebuilds.
"I very much appreciate the continued cooperation with our colleagues in Ukraine. It is only through this and regular communication that we are able to respond to the ever-changing situation to provide the best possible education for both children in EU countries and new arrivals from Ukraine. I believe that the situation will soon change and we will be able to turn the basis for the reconstruction of the Ukrainian education system and further cooperation with EU countries we discussed today into reality," said Minister Balaš.
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https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/video/I-233938?&lg=INT
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