On September 18, 2009 a research team headed by CASE’s Jerzy Wiśniewski successfully presented their final report on “Key Competences in Europe: Opening Doors for Lifelong Learners across the School Curriculum and Teacher Education” at he DG Education Culture of the European Commission in Brussels. The report was the result of an almost 2 year long study performed by a consortium consisting of the European Institute of Education and Social Policy (EIESP) from France, Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) from the UK,  Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB) from Spain and several individual experts and that was led by CASE.

The aim of the study was to provide a comparative overview of policy and practice concerning the development and implementation of key competences in the education systems of the 27 member states of the European Union. Key competences are defined by the EC as those that “all individuals need for personal fulfillment and development, active citizenship, social inclusion and employment” and include the following 8 skills:
- Communication in the mother tongue;
- Communication in foreign languages;
- Mathematical competence and basic competences in science and technology;
- Digital competence;
- Learning to learn;
- Social and civic competences;
- Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship;
- Cultural awareness and expression.
Not only should these elements be included in the school curricula for pupils, but also in the (on-going) education of teachers as they are the ones having to pass on the competences to their students.

Based on the comparative approach the team has come up with a series of recommendations aimed at the European Commission and its agencies, member states, the research community, teacher education professionals, and teachers and school leaders. 

Executive Summary of the Report [download file]

Full text report (CASE Network Report No. 87) [download file]

[project page]