Los primos Uribe

3.3.1. Organisation and Financing of Courses Abroad

In most European countries, numerous bodies are involved in providing in-service training to foreign lan- guage teachers. These organisations not only organise courses, but also propose various types of activ- ities such as the organisation of trips, creating and disseminating teaching aids, etc. In this way, the pro- file of in-service training varies according to the goal and content of the training.

Figure 4.13: Bodies organising and/or financing periods spent abroad for foreign language

teachers at primary and (general lower and upper) secondary level. School Year 1998/99

Universities/ Public agencies Private bodies Teachers’

Institutes associations European Union B fr ❍ ❍ B de ❍ B nl (:) DK ❍ ❍ ❍ D ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ EL ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ E ❍ ❍ F ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ IRL ❍ ❍ ❍ I ❍ ❍ L ❍ NL ❍ ❍ A ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ P ❍ ❍ ❍ FIN ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ S ❍ ❍ ❍ UK (E/ W/NI) ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ UK (SC) ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ EFTA/EEA IS ❍ ❍ ❍ LI ❍ NO ❍ ❍ ❍ Pre-accession countries BG ❍ ❍ CZ ❍ ❍ EE ❍ ❍ CY ❍ ❍ ❍ LV ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ LT ❍ ❍ ❍ HU ❍ ❍ ❍ PL ❍ ❍ RO ❍ ❍ ❍ ❍ SI ❍ ❍ ❍ SK ❍ ❍ Source: Eurydice.

First, it is important to point out that in most cases teachers enrol for refresher courses abroad on their own initiative. Language teachers make an effort to travel abroad in order to improve their skills (sev- eral countries speak of ‘voluntary’ activities). Those teachers who decide to attend specific training courses abroad during their careers can contact various bodies that organise and – less frequently – finance them.

Universities and teacher training institutions appear to play an important role here through the

support that they provide to in-service training abroad. In Denmark, the Danmarks Lærerhøjskole and its departments are charged with in-service training in both Denmark and abroad. Almost 20% of

folkeskole teachers receive courses each year via this institution. In Spain, the Institutos de Ciencias de la Educación in cooperation with the Centros de Profesores y Recursos (which may be named differently

in the various Autonomous Communities) provide technical support to teaching staff wishing to travel abroad to study. In Iceland, the universities have an in-service training institution that facilitates study travel abroad.

The public authorities play a far from negligible role in organising and financing study courses abroad for foreign language teachers. In many cases, several ministries are involved, including the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In recent years, the foreign language teachers of the French Community of Belgium have benefited from training abroad thanks to an initiative of the Ministry of Education. In turn, the Modern Languages Inspectorate, working with the Self-Training and In-Service Training Centre, provides personalised assis- tance to teachers to enable them to reflect on their classroom experiences, to examine ways of improving their teaching and to prepare teaching aids based on such reflection. In Germany, courses are organised by the Pedagogical Exchange service on behalf of the Ministries of Education, Cultural Affairs and Science of the different Länder, the Foreign Ministry, the European Commission and the Council of Europe. In Ireland, too, the Ministry of Education organises summer courses in foreign countries, in cooperation with the cultural offices of the embassies concerned and associations that promote the teaching of lan- guages. In other countries, such as Austria, joint programmes are set up with the ministries of educa- tion of other countries. Teachers travelling abroad on their own initiative may obtain financial support under such cooperative arrangements.

In all central and eastern European countries, different ministries have concluded bilateral agreements with other European countries for perfecting the skills of their language teachers. Nevertheless, in all these countries, the possibility of travelling abroad is offered to a limited number of teachers. The exception is the Czech Republic, where 70-80% of French teachers and 30-50% of German teachers have taken part in in-service training courses abroad (between 1990 and 1998). In Lithuania, Romania and Poland, on the other hand, only 2-10% of foreign language teachers were able to take part in training programmes in their target language countries.

At the same time, there are public organisations in the target language countries, which work to promote the language and the culture that they represent, supply technical assistance and organise courses for teachers or travel. Those with the greatest presence in the different European countries are the British Council (for English), the Alliance française (for French), the Goethe Institut (for German), the

Instituto Cervantes (for Spanish) and the Istituto italiano di Cultura (for Italian). In Greece and Cyprus,

these bodies work in close cooperation with the Ministry of Education, in particular supplying technical assistance for the organisation of courses abroad. In the United Kingdom, the Central Bureau for

International Education and Training, part of the British Council, advises on and coordinates training

The European Centre for Modern Languages in Graz, Austria, has provided particularly valuable services for refining the skills of language teachers, including those in pre-accession countries.

In most countries, teaching staff associations also play an active role in the organisation and financ- ing of stays abroad.

Last, a number of private training organisations and agencies operate in a few countries. In the pre-accession countries, the Soros Foundation organises courses alongside other public and private bodies. In some countries, in-service teacher training also takes the form of courses offered by institu- tions of North American origin.

Opportunities for in-service training and refresher courses for foreign language teachers are growing by the year: the courses on offer respond to training needs with a wealth of initiatives that allow teachers to get to know and reflect on new approaches to foreign language teaching. Universities, teaching staff associations, public bodies and private specialist agencies are also providing courses to ensure that teachers are fully aware of these changes and able to adjust to them.

3.3.2. The Role of the Public Authorities in Coordinating In-Service Training Activities

As shown in the previous section, many different bodies offer in-service training to teachers. As a result, the public authorities seek to coordinate this diversity of in-service training opportunities offered to teachers. They monitor the extent to which the implementation and distribution of the courses ade- quately meet the need for teachers to improve their language skills.

In all countries and for all in-service training activities directed at language teachers, ministries of edu- cation tend to delegate the task of course coordination to centralised or decentralised organisations. This task can be carried out in a variety of ways.

Activities organised and/or coordinated by the ministry

The most widespread situation is that the ministry of education and its departments are in charge of organising and sometimes assessing in-service training activities for teachers. In Greece, in-service train- ing courses are organised by the Ministry of Education in cooperation with 16 Training Centres (PEK). The Pedagogiko Institouto and the Educational Research Centre are responsible for coordinating and promoting in-service training programmes at the primary and secondary levels. In Italy, the central gov- ernment similarly coordinates and promotes courses. The Ministry establishes the objectives and crite- ria of training courses, assigning precise training tasks to the IRRSAE (Istituti Regionali di Ricerca,

Sperimentazione e Aggiornamento Educativi), the universities, and the local school authorities. It also

certifies professional associations and other institutions that offer training courses. Nonetheless, schools and teachers are free to choose those programmes that are most suited to their teaching activities. Sometimes, inspectorates are responsible in cooperation with other bodies for organising and supervis- ing in-service training courses for teachers. In the German-speaking Community of Belgium, the Ministry of Education provides financing and coordination via the teaching inspectorate and a peda- gogical service (Pädagogische Arbeitsgruppe). In France, a training plan is drawn up for every school year, under the responsibility of the rector of the Académie. It takes into account the directions and the priorities set by the ministry in an annual framework circular. The content of activities is nevertheless defined at the local level by the in-service training managers of the Académie and the teaching inspec- tors concerned. In Portugal, courses are coordinated via different administrative organisations such as the Department of Basic Education, the Department of Secondary or Technical Education, the Institute for Innovation in Education and the Scientific and Pedagogical Council for In-Service Training.

Supervision of courses lies with the Inspectorate. In Cyprus, the language inspectors of the Ministry of Education and Culture, in cooperation with the Pedagogical Institute, are in charge of planning and implementing courses.

As regards the pre-accession countries, some measure of decentralisation may also be observed. Thus, in Romania, responsibility for coordinating and promoting in-service training courses for secondary school teachers lies with the central authorities. However, the present reforms, which aim to accelerate the decentralisation process, are transferring important responsibilities to the departmental inspec- torates, including the planning and organisation of training programmes and the assessment of their effects on the career plans of the teachers concerned. In the Czech Republic, schools receive an in-ser- vice training budget from the Ministry. Schools enjoy a certain freedom of decision, but can only turn to organisations approved by the Ministry of Education.

Activities organised and/or coordinated by regional or local authorities

In the case of countries where policy-making is largely decentralised, training courses may be organised and managed at different levels. In Germany, in-service teacher training is organised in the Länder at central, regional and local level. In-service training can take place within schools or in the form of guided private study. In order to centralise the organisation of in-service training activities, all Länder have established state-run in-service training institutions, which are subordinate to the Ministry of Education, Cultural Affairs and Science. In-service training at regional level is conducted differently in each Land by in-service teacher training institutions and their departments and by intermediate and lower-level school supervisory authorities (Schulämter). The Schulämter are also responsible for the organisation of in-service training at local level. In Spain, the Autonomous Communities organise in-ser- vice training activities in regional Centros de Profesores y Recursos (which may adopt other names in the different Communities) that are also in charge of regulating supply and demand.

In Finland and Sweden, responsibility for training teachers is devolved to the municipalities, in line with the general drive to decentralise administration. The municipalities ensure that all teachers have the opportunity to take part in training courses. In Iceland, universities and initial training institutions also supervise and coordinate in-service training courses. In Lithuania, the Ministry of Education finances and coordinates in-service training provision in regional education centres, as well as in the in-service train- ing institutions established at universities engaged in in-service training of foreign language teachers. Decentralisation can reach down to the level of the individual school. In this way, in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom (England, Wales, Northern Ireland), and Estonia (11_{), funding for in-service training}

is to a large degree delegated to individual schools, which choose the courses and institutions most rel- evant to their needs.

As we have seen, the public authorities at both central and local or school level are active in the coor- dination and planning of a steadily expanding provision. Various bodies have been specifically devel- oped for this purpose, such as teaching innovation institutes, departments of pedagogy, training cen- tres and inspectorates. In addition to training, all of them provide opportunities to discuss and study the content and methodology of language teaching.

(11_{) In Estonia, however, a small part of the budget is centralised at ministerial or municipal level for priorities in the in-service}

The public authorities also promote international relations. In this respect, the joint initiatives of the Ministries of Education and Foreign Affairs in the various European countries appear to play a particu- larly important role in twinning, post-to-post teacher exchanges, and agreements on courses provided by foreign organisations.

3.3.3. Exchanges between Teachers

When it comes to teacher mobility, most countries are gradually setting up schemes to facilitate exchanges between language teachers (12_{). This system is, however, still in its infancy and involves only}

a limited number of teachers at this point. Some examples are worthy of mention.

In Belgium, the three Communities have organised teacher exchanges as part of the Operation Trèfle initiative.

The Danish Cultural Institute has organised since 1990/91 an exchange programme that assists teach- ers in finding an exchange opportunity with colleagues abroad.

In Greece, foreign language teachers at the secondary level may participate in a mobility programme organised within the framework of a specific initial and in-service training programme for teachers (EPEAEK). The Ministry of Education is responsible for organising these exchanges between profession- als, lasting 7-15 days.

In Spain, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs organise, for foreign language teachers, a post-to-post exchange programme with Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. Other programmes organised by the Ministry of Education enable teaching staff to travel to the United States. In Ireland, there has been for many years a small-scale, post-to-post exchange programme with France for secondary level teachers of French (three months or one year) and with Germany for teachers of German (three months). The programmes are part of the French-Irish and German-Irish cultural agree- ments, and are jointly organised by the Ministry of Education and the relevant embassies.

Finally, in the United Kingdom, the Central Bureau for International Education and Training administers post-to-post teacher exchanges with Austria, France, Germany, Spain, and Switzerland.

(12_{) This section examines exchanges between foreign language teachers organised and financed outside the scope of the EU}

ANNEX

Time devoted to foreign language (command, teaching methodology and practice) in the min- imum curriculum for initial training of generalist teachers. School Year 1998/99

GENERAL SUBJECT- PEDAGOGICAL