What should ‘European education’ look like?

To cut or not to cut? That is the question. Or rather – the question is one of degrees. Most would agree that budgets need to be trimmed right now, but if the cuts go too deep, will we be putting Europe’s recovery at risk? And are education budgets one of the areas that should be protected? Debating Europe recently spoke to Ruairi Quinn, Irish Minister for Education and Skills, and asked him about education in Europe.

We had a suggestion sent in by the European Students’ Union expressing concerns over public spending cuts in higher education. Their argument was that education is one area where investment is vital and short-term cuts could damage the future of European countries. Should we not freeze current levels of investment in higher education?

I would be concerned, first and foremost, that we would have a clear understanding of value for money in education. There is concern, for example, in my own country that the resources being used are used efficiently. The quality of education provision is currently uneven. So, extra resources in a time of austerity is an easy catchcry, but value for money is what’s really important.

We also had a suggestion from Riccardo Perrisich, the Former Director General for Industry in the European Commission, arguing that the “Swiss” education model might be interesting for the EU. He points out that education in Switzerland is carried out at the level of the canton, but that there are certain institutions that are run by the federal government. He wondered if we might see the development of “centres of excellence” in research and asked if it was utopian to propose that some of them be considered “federal” institutions in the mould of the Zurich Polytechnic?

No, it’s not. And I think it’s the way European education has to go. The QS index ranks the top universities in the world. It’s very significant for me that so many of the top 100 universities were from the US. That, in itself, is an indication that there has to be better cooperation between European institutions and we should promote and encourage and, indeed, incentivise collaboration between universities across frontiers. A lot of this is happening anyway. So, the infrastructure is increasingly more supportive, but it does need further effort.

The Erasmus programme is widely seen as a success, but we had another suggestion from Mr Perrisich that it should be made more general and, possibly, even made compulsory for young people to study abroad. In Austria, Switzerland and, until recently, Germany, young people can fulfill their national service obligations through social work. Shouldn’t all young people have the opportunity to study abroad?

Well, in terms of enlarging Erasmus, I would strongly support that. There are obviously logistical considerations, of course. But it would certainly help to foster stronger ties. When I was a young person there was French pop music, Spanish pop music, Irish pop music, etc. Now there’s just pop music. All of that has been integrated in an effortless way through globalisation, so young people in particular are familiar with this global culture.

Well, it’s interesting you should mention pop music, because English is increasingly becoming the language of choice when it comes to pop. On the other hand, we’ve been having a lively discussion on Debating Europe about whether or not Esperanto should be taught in schools across Europe.

I don’t think a modern version of Esperanto is a realistic prospect anymore. The history of Esperanto and its failure to catch fire is well-documented. On the other hand, some languages have excelled at becoming very international. English, as the most obvious example, has become very international – not least because a lot of entertainment in English is subtitled internationally. The second biggest language in the world internationally after English is Spanish.

So, I think realistically every European should learn a second language. The problem is not people having English as a second language. The problem is most English speakers have no other language.

What do YOU think about education in Europe? Do you think funding for higher education should be frozen or cut? Do you agree that there should be more cooperation between higher education institutes at the European level? Do you agree that Esperanto is not a realistic prospect because it failed to “catch fire”? Let us know your comments in the form below and we’ll take them to experts and policy-makers for their reactions.

More information and opinions in: http://www.debatingeurope.eu/2011/10/06/eu-universities/