21 Amendments of Vilija BLINKEVIČIŪTĖ related to 2015/2257(INI)
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Points outAffirms that Erasmus+ and other mobility programmes have fosteredcontributed to the European integration and strengthened the idea of citizenship; notes that these programmes have had an indirect positive impact on employment; points outstates that mobility in the context of vocational education and training (VET) is fundamental to the fight against unemployment, enhances employability and reduces the skills gaschool drop-out, improving employability, motivating further learning mobility and reducing the skills gap, as it leads to the development of both specific professional skills, as well as of transversal and transferable sets of skills and competencies like critical thinking and entrepreneurship;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Highlights that VET has a vital economic and social role in Europe as a mechanism leading to equal opportunities for all citizens, including from socially vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, unemployed youth, the long-term unemployed, including second-generation unemployed, job seekers close to retirement age, immigrants, people with disabilities, as well as women, which are under-represented in VET;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Notes that, despite improvements to the arrangements for the recognition of diplomas, credits, skills certificates, competency accreditations and acquired expertise in the context of VET, a legal basis applicable throughout the EU is needed; calls for specific targets such as the implementation of a fully operational credit transfer system and recognition by using European credit system for vocational education and training (ECVET), as well as the establishment of a legal basis for vocational education and training, based on the model of the Lisbon Recognition Convention and the European Network of Information Centres and National Academic Recognition Information Centres in the EU(ENIC-NARIC);
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Calls on the European Commission, and the Member States to position VET and VET mobility as an important choice leading to a promising career and thus to increase the visibility of VET programmes, make them accessible to all, ensure gender balance and non- discrimination, and guarantee sufficient financing;
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Calls on the European Commission, the Member States and the agencies to revise the requirements of the VET mobility programmes to make them relevant as regardskey stakeholders to continue their collaboration on improving VET mobility programmes in terms of duration and, content, combining periods ofpetencies and learning outcomes, combining mobility both in training centres and at workplace;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Highlights the importance of a common European education space based on a strong mobility component - that includes not only higher education but also VET - that will contribute to the creation and development of a stronger European identity and increased citizenship;
Amendment 69 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Urges that the manufacturingRecommends greater involvement of the private sector, including SMUs, should be more closely involved in the framing the design, elaboration, implementation and funding ofsupport of quality VET mobility programmes; believes that flexiblean ongoing, smooth and constructive dialogue between training centres and firms will ensure that VET is a succeshe education sector, employers, workforce and social partners and an exchange of knowledge and best practices under the Key Action 2 will ensure the success of VET mobility; encourages the development of joint VET qualifications that can ensure international recognition of qualifications, foster systematic cooperation and exchange of ideas, as well as address international work standards and requirements;
Amendment 81 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Calls on the European Commission to keep track of the demand and supply on the labour market within the European Union, as well as the geographic and occupational mobility, and to collaborate closer with the Members States, business environment and vocational education and training facilities in order to match the needs of the labour market;
Amendment 89 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Welcomes theSupports tools developed by the European Commission, such as Ploteus and Eures, which offerEuropean Qualifications Framework (EQF), Europass, EURES and the Learning Opportunities and Qualifications in Europe platform, that provide information about VETtraining and mobility in VET, but deploregrets the fact that they are little known and little usedir under-utilisation of some of these tools and lack of awareness, and calls for a strengthened implementation, especially in the case of ECVET;
Amendment 106 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. WelcomesValues positively the launch of pilot projects such, as well as thate recently approved by Parliament, entitled ‘'European framework for the mobility of apprentices’,' as thea basis for a specific mobility programme in the context of VETimprovements in the Erasmus+ programme aimed at enabling more and better VET mobility of long-term duration; urges the creation of a framework for long-term initiatives as opposed to solely project-focused actions, in order to establish a permanent and sustainable system that is fully operational that is predictable and that encourages free movement of skills across Europe;
Amendment 124 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls for athe revision of the multiannual financial framework (MFF) based on criteria including the prior assessment of the effectiveness of measures to combat unemployment, with funding for the less effective provisi, among other criteria, on an assessment of the resources' efficiency in relation to the fight against unemployment. This should be donse being cut, an approach which is particularly important at times of crisis such as these, which are marked by unacceptable imbalances.y reducing items with a limited impact especially in times of emergency and intolerable imbalances as the current ones, whilst increasing available funding for high impact and necessary actions in VET mobility;
Amendment 131 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7 a. Highlights the importance of clear learning outcomes and specific job descriptions for the Erasmus+ work experiences abroad for vocational education and training students, trainees, and apprentices; stresses that the preparation of the candidates before their international experiences is an integral part of the activity and needs to include career guidance sessions, language trainings and cross-cultural communication;
Amendment 140 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7 b. Calls on the European Commission to draw up and share updated statistics on Erasmus+, and the impact it has had;
Amendment 142 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 c (new)
Paragraph 7 c (new)
7 c. Notes that, in a transition towards a more digitised economy, a redefinition of jobs and skills is taking place; calls, in consequence, on the Member States and the European Commission to work in conjunction with the private sector and develop skilling strategies and VET programmes for the requalification of workers;
Amendment 143 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 d (new)
Paragraph 7 d (new)
7 d. Calls on Member States to provide appropriate training and ensure an ongoing professional development of teachers and education leaders in VET in order to help them use the most appropriate hands-on and real-life experiences teaching methods;
Amendment 145 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 e (new)
Paragraph 7 e (new)
7 e. Calls on the European Commission to work on an overview of the countries involved in cross-border vocational education and training programmes, as well as to analyse why some countries are applying for more VET work and learning experiences abroad, and build a plan on how to increase their involvement;
Amendment 146 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 f (new)
Paragraph 7 f (new)
7 f. Calls on the European Commission to establish minimum levels of allowances according to differences in living conditions, prices and costs between the Member States, available for the vocational education and training students, trainees, and apprentices, in order to fully benefit from the opportunities offered by these mobility programmes and to avoid discrimination, abandon or failure;
Amendment 147 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 g (new)
Paragraph 7 g (new)
7 g. Suggests that all of the stakeholders such as education institutions, public administration, private sector and civil society, work on joint strategies aimed at enhancing the return of the vocational education and training students, trainees, and apprentices that carried out work experiences abroad, in order to combat skills and workforce imbalances across Europe;
Amendment 148 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 h (new)
Paragraph 7 h (new)
7 h. Calls on the European Commission to put in place minimum standards, mandatory for all participants, in terms of insurance for people, especially young, travelling and working - during their apprenticeships, across Europe;
Amendment 149 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 i (new)
Paragraph 7 i (new)
7 i. Strongly supports an aggressive and efficient promotion of VET mobility programmes among women and considers that measures should be put in place in order to ensure that all mobility programmes are strictly gender balanced and offer true equal opportunities for all; considers that ambitious targets should be set in this regard and the progress should be strictly monitored;
Amendment 150 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 j (new)
Paragraph 7 j (new)
7 j. Recalls the problems related to the insufficient levels of payments regarding the Erasmus+ programme in the last years that jeopardise its proper implementation, in particular the learning and training mobility;