CONSTRUCTING NEW KNOWLEDGE SPACES: THE CASE OF THE EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA

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CONSTRUCTING NEW KNOWLEDGE SPACES THE CASE OF
THE EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA
Roger Dale U of Bristol
Policy Futures in Higher Education CKS/WUN
Horizons Seminar Series 2006
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The Lisbon Agenda of the EU is for Europe to
become the most competitive and dynamic
knowledge-based economy in the world capable of
sustainable economic growth with more and better
jobs and greater social cohesion EC 2000
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Background to BP/EHEA

• Lifelong Learning
• Vocational Education and Training common
  standards agreed in Copenhagen 2005
• EHEA

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3 pronged strategy for Bologna

• Enhancing mobility of labour
• Contributing to Europes economic competitiveness
  (the master discourse of Lisbon)
• Improving the attractiveness and international
  competitiveness of European higher education

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45 Members, 600 Universities

• Albania - Andorra - Armenia -Austria - Azerbaijan
  - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria -
  Croatia - Cyprus - Czech Republic - Denmark -
  Estonia - Finland - France - Georgia - Germany -
  Greece - Holy See - Hungary - Iceland - Ireland -
  Italy - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Malta -
  Moldova - Netherlands - Norway - Poland -
  Portugal - FYR Macedonia - Romania - Russia -
  Serbia and Montenegro - Slovakia - Slovenia -
  Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine -
  UK

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Key elements of Bologna process mobility

• Common degree architecture (323)
• European Credit Transfer System
• European Qualifications Framework
• Tuning (Generic and specific competences)
• Euroquality labels (Engineering, Chemistry)

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Key elements of Bologna process competitiveness
1. Contribution of Universities to Europe of
Knowledge (2003) (benchmarking with US and
Japan, especially on number of science
and technology graduates) 2. Mobilising the
Brainpower of Europe (2005)
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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION Mobilising the
brainpower of Europe enabling universities to
make their full contribution to the Lisbon
Strategy The search for knowledge has always
been at the heart of the European adventure. It
has helped to define our identity and our values,
and it is the driving force behind our future
competitiveness
COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES Brussels,
05.02.2003 COM(2003) 58 final COMMUNICATION FROM
THE COMMISSION The role of the universities in
the Europe of knowledge
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Key elements of Bologna process Attractiveness

• Erasmus Mundus (European Fulbright)
• Marie Curie measures (repatriation, etc)
• Passively, by removing the non-EU members from
  the US sphere of influence

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What does it mean?

• Construction of parallel HE sectors
  (European/national)
• Extending competitiveness beyond
  commercialisation, brain competition, etc, to
  competition over the rulesQA, degree
  architecture, mobility
• Discursive and Institutional thickening of
  Europe