Parenting skills - the importance of training and validation

EPA was invited to take part at the Policy Debate on Intergenerational Learning on 30 March in Brussels. There, as usual, we emphasised the important role parents and grandparents play in the education of children and also the vast amount of learning they do while parenting. Andrew McCoshan from the ePlatform for Adult Learning in Europe became interested in the topic and as a result he published an article about EPA on this website of the European Commission: Why we need more quality learning opportunities for parents

Digitalisation programme for schools - newsflash from Croatia

The CEDEFOP website reported on a massive digitalisation programme of Croatian schools that will include the introduction of e-class registers (a well-established practice still a controversial one froma a parental point of view in many countries), a national distance learning portal and School 2.0, a 21st century way of schooling. Korak po Korak, the Croatian member of EPA has collected the opinion of some parents on the e-class register (e-class book) they already have experience with. The following reviews do not tackle the educational and trust issues arising from the introduction of this kind of feedback leaving out the child-parent bond yet, an issue in other countries.

Conference report on the Prague EPA Conference

On 24th and 25th April Prague hosted an EPA Conference on Supporting Parents to become the Best Primary Educators. EPA members were enjoying the possibility to explore the capital of the Czech Republic, a white spot on the map of EPA until now, but we also had an opportunity to learn about local and international initiatives aiming at supporting parents in their parenting roles. We were really honoured that the conference was attended and greeted by the Chairman of the Czech Parliamentary Committee on Education, Culture, Youth and Sports, the local mayor, high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Education and Municipality of Prague.

#DeliverNow - on Mother's Day for the EU Maternity Leave Directive

Half of Europe celebrates Mother’s Day today, 3 May, the other half will do so on 10 May. This occasion gives us a good opportunity to highlight the fact that the European Commission seems to be determined to withdraw the EU Maternity Leave Directive. It was adopted by the European Parliament in first reading in 2010, but the European Council is reluctant to put it on their agenda ever since quoting its being untimely because of the economic crisis. It proposes a minimum of 20 weeks of fully paid maternity leave (as compared to the present 14 weeks), the protection of pregnant women’s jobs and also a minimum of 2 weeks paid paternity leave. The European Women’s Lobby has been doing an extensive campaign to save the initiative.

Intergenerational Learning for Sustainable Societies - message on the European Day of Solidarity between Generations

EUCIS-LLL Press Release Today, on the European Day of Solidarity between Generations, half of the population is 40   years old or above, and it is estimated to be 48 years or above in 2060, inevitably shaking our already fragile social structures. It is high time we take solid measures to bridge the increasing gaps between generations and sharpen ourselves up for challenges ahead. Education is a natural setting to support intergenerational solidarity and many interesting initiatives are already taking place in our schools, universities, in adult education and other non-formal and informal education settings. They offer new ways of sharing knowledge and creating more cohesive societies. EUCIS-LLL strongly believes that intergenerational learning is now more relevant than ever and should be mainstreamed at all levels.

Call for Lab Submissions: Freedom vs control: For a democratic response

The Strasbourg World Forum for Democracy is an annual gathering of leaders, opinion-makers, civil society activists, representatives of business, social innovators, academia, and media to debate key challenges for democracies worldwide and encourage democratic innovation.

The fourth edition of the World Forum for Democracy, to take place on 18-20 November 2015, will focus on the challenges democracies face in addressing security risks without jeopardising freedom and democratic stability.

For the first time, the Forum will not only showcase already existing initiatives, but also innovative, untested ideas[3] to maintain and develop democracy’s basic principles in times of increasing security threats.

Interested organisations worldwide are invited to express their interest in presenting either an example/initiative or an idea to respond to security threats in a way that preserves the basic principles of democracy such as freedom of expression, public deliberation, and the privacy of citizens, by answering the questionnaire in the appendix and sending it to forum_democracy@coe.int by 15 May 2015. The World Forum Task Force will select the most interesting and relevant proposals in June 2015.

Promoting reading on mobiles - the key message of World Book and Copyright Day, 23 April 2015

Millions of people do not read for one reason: they do not have access to text. But today mobile phones and cellular networks are transforming a scarce resource into an abundant one.

Drawing on the analysis of over 4,000 surveys collected in seven developing countries and corresponding qualitative interviews, this report paints the most detailed picture to date of who reads books and stories on mobile devices and why.

The findings illuminate, for the first time, the habits, beliefs and profiles of mobile readers.  This information points to strategies to expand mobile reading and, by extension, the educational, social and economic benefits associated with increased reading.

Mobile technology can advance literacy and learning in underserved communities around the world. This report shows how. 

Read the full report here

Great infographic on the key messages here

Source: unesco.org