Many thanks to all who contributed information for this edition of the L&W Newsletter! Particularly worth noting are two calls for papers relating to: the NHIBE Conference on Skiathos Island and NECE 2015 in Thessaloniki (see Conferences), and a questionnaire for the PROMOTE survey (see Projects).
The L&W Newsletter reaches you via a mailing list of over 1400 experts in and beyond Europe. It focuses on transnational research activities in the field of human resource development (HRD) and vocational education and training (VET), centred on major categories: conferences, networks, programmes, projects and publications. The next edition will appear in early August 2015. You are invited to submit short pieces of news (texts of 100 to 200 words, without attachments, but including links to web pages) - please by 31 July 2015 at the latest!

With best wishes
Sabine Manning
Research Forum WIFO
Editor of the L&W Newsletter

Conferences

New Horizons in Industry, Business and Education
9th International NHIBE Conference to be held on Skiathos Island, 27-29 August 2015 (website).
Topics of interest include: Education Strategies, Career Counselling, New Educational Methods, Industry and Education, Entrepreneurship,  Corporate Finance and Governance, Business Strategies, Science and Education, Innovative Educational Policies. Detailed information about the conference topics, the International Program Committees and the Call for Papers is available on the website. You may submit your abstract presentation online through the "Abstract submission form". Deadline: 01/06/2015. The International journal "Industry and Higher Education" will dedicate a special issue to the Conference from selected papers, as in the  previous venues. The "International Journal of Economic Sciences and Applied Research" will publish selected papers too. Contact: Scientific Administrative Team [email protected]
(Info received via NHIBE mailing list)

Citizenship education in an interdependent world
NECE 2015 - Networking European Citizenship Education Conference: 'Them' and 'Us' - Citizenship Education in an Interdependent World. 22-24 October 2015, Thessaloniki (Greece)
The starting point of this year's conference will be the question of how to re-imagine and define the role of citizenship education in increasingly divided and polarized societies. Fundamentalist religious, ethnic and cultural perceptions of 'Them' and 'Us' play an ever more important role in the ongoing crises and upheavals in today's world. Increasingly rigid notions of belonging and identity are affecting the ability and the readiness for democratically solving conflicts on international, European and national levels. NECE 2015 will look into the cause and the implications of this phenomenon in areas of special relevance for citizenship educators. Numerous workshops and panel sessions will offer an opportunity to actively participate. A call for projects and papers to be presented in a project market and in workshops will be launched within the next few weeks. You may find the draft programme, organisational advice and a list of hotel recommendations at http://www.bpb.de/veranstaltungen/netzwerke/nece/205543/nece-conference-2015. Contact: [email protected]
(Info received from lab-concepts.de)

EDEN 2015: Expanding Learning Scenarios
EDEN Annual Conference organised in Barcelona 9-12 June 2015 in collaboration with Universitat Oberta de Catalunya
The Conference opens its gates soon: More than 300 delegates from over 40 countries have registered already. The conference programme, that consists of over 200 accepted contributions, includes interactive speed-dating research paper sessions, demonstration and poster sessions, workshops, and lively synergy sessions dedicated to new project ideas and in-progress initiatives. See the detailed conference programme here. The Conference Publications include the electronic Conference Proceedings of double peer reviewed accepted conference submissions, the Book of Abstracts and the Book of Projects (Synergy contributions). The online registration is open until 5 June, with separate registration available for pre-conference and related events. Website: http://www.eden-online.org/2015_barcelona.html
(Info received from Eva Suba <[email protected]>)

NOTE: Forthcoming and recent events related to European research in work and learning are listed on the WIFO Conference page [www.conferences.wifo-gate.org].  

Networks

Paving the way for learning and qualifications
EUCIS-LLL is happy to invite you to its annual conference "Lifelong learning. Paving the way for learning and qualifications" 16 June 2015, Luxembourg. It will aim to assess progress and formulate recommendations for the future of EU and national learning strategies. Are you a teacher, educator, researcher, practitioner, learner or simply passionate about learning? At the conference you will find relevant partners for your own initiatives and projects across educational sectors, to gain innovative ideas and contribute to improving EU policies in a "practice to policy approach". For details of registration and the agenda see EUCIS-LLL website
(Info received via EUCIS-LLL newsletter #100 - May 2015)

Your guide: Who's who in transnational European VET and HRD research
The Directory of Professional Contacts (www.dpc.wifo-gate.org), maintained by the Research Forum WIFO, serves as a Who's who, offering up-to-date information on more than 200 contacts across 30 countries in the field of transnational European VET and HRD research. Each person included in the DPC is both a producer of transnational research and an active transnational networker. The criteria for inclusion in the DPC and and the references to individual professional work are explained in the introduction. They relate to evidence of transnational activities presented in WIFO resources of European collaboration such as the Bookshelf, Overview of articles, Conference page, ECER VETNET Proceedings and Overview of HRD conference papers, Networks at a glance and Overview of projects. The DPC is updated continuously as part of European collaboration in VET and HRD research.
(Contributed by Sabine Manning)

NOTE: References to research networks in the field of European work and learning are available on the WIFO page Networks at a glance [www.networks.wifo-gate.org]. Major online resources related to European research networks include the ECER VETNET Proceedings (www.ecer-vetnet.wifo-gate.org) offering a complete and up-to-date collection of conference papers submitted since 1998, and the Overview of selected HRD conference papers (www.ehrd-papers.wifo-gate.org).

Programmes

Seminars on entrepreneurship
Three seminars on entrepreneurship and business development for vulnerable groups will be held in Girona, Spain, funded within the EC's Erasmus+ programme in 2015/2016. These are: 1*Learning to learn entrepreneurial skills (2-7 Nov 2015); 2*Building a collaborative environment to enhance creativity & innovation at work lifelong: Senior trainers to help young people to start their own business (18-24 April 2016); 3*Culture and heritage as a resource for entrepreneurship & economic growth (10-16 Oct 2016). For more details see website. Contact: Maria Merce Rovira Regas at [email protected]
(Info received via CR&DALL mailing list)

NOTE: Contributions are welcome for the next edition of the Directory of Doctoral Dissertations (www.ddd.wifo-gate.org), provided as part of the WIFO Gateway, which focuses on European research in the field of vocational education (VET) and human resource development (HRD). Please provide information on expected or newly completed doctoral dissertations investigating issues of HRD, VET or work-related adult education, according to the following pattern: 1*Theme of dissertation (original language AND English); 2*Year of (expected) completion or publication; 3*Author (name and email address); 4*Tutor (name and email address); 5*Institution of tutor (name and home page). Contributions should be posted by email to the editor ([email protected]).

Projects

Questionnaire for PROMOTE survey
The "Knowledge Alliance" project PROMOTE (PROmoting and validating key competences in MObility and Traineeships in Europe), funded by the European Commission, aims at promoting and validating social, personal and organisational key competences such as entrepreneurship, civic and learning to learn competences with the help of an innovative, self-directed learning approach at the interface of higher education and business. This questionnaire will become part of the broader PROMOTE survey, which will employ qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate the awareness of existing methods as well as the demand for the validation of entrepreneurship, civic and learning to learn competences gained during mobility. This multiple-choice questionnaire should not take more than 10 minutes to complete. All information will be treated confidentially and no personal data will be disclosed or otherwise used except for the purpose of this research. Your contribution is greatly appreciated. Please access the questionnaire on the following link: http://survey.bupnet.de/index.php/survey/index/sid/265519/newtest/Y/lang/en
(Info received via ESREA ReNAdET mailing list)

SMEQUAL Conference
You are kindly invited to participate in the Final Conference of SMEQUAL Project, organized by Roma Tre University and Effebi Association, October 15th 2015. The conference is intended to bring together relevant National and European stakeholders who are interested in improving the quality of training systems for SMEs by incorporating the ECVET provisions. The aim of the conference is to share and promote among participants the European Guidelines and methods, elaborated by the Partnership, for the implementation of ECVET in the VET programmes. The conference is organized in the context of the International Lifelong Learning Project "SMEQUAL – SME's Qualifications Handbook", which is funded by the European Commission. The registration should be sent by 31st July 2015. Website: http://www.smequal-project.eu Contact: [email protected]
(Info received from Giuditta Alessandrini <[email protected]>

Retaining valuable workers
The importance of retaining older people in the workforce has been widely recognised as an EU policy goal and is linked to a wide range of economic and social benefits relating to knowledge and skills, financial security, health and social inclusion. Workage is a three year EU-funded project testing the proposition that the engagement and retention of employees aged 50+ will be improved by enhancing employee voice and empowering workplace practices for everyone. It focuses on removing obstacles to achieving a healthy and productive workforce. Workage is facilitating the transformation of work practices and cultures at two pilot sites: the maternity service in the Southern Health & Social Care Trust, Northern Ireland, and the Place Division, Stoke on Trent City Council. Interventions are focused on job design, self-organised teamworking, continuous improvement, high involvement innovation, workplace partnership and employee voice in strategic decision making. Website: www.workage.eu
(Posted by Peter Totterdill <[email protected]>)

NOTE: Contributions are invited to update the Overview of European research projects [www.projects.wifo-gate.org], provided as part of the WIFO Gateway. The overview focuses on transnational research projects, mainly supported by EU programmes, in the areas of human resource development, vocational education, work and learning. Please send the following information to the editor ([email protected]):  (A) exact title and acronym (short name) of the project; (B) name and email address of the coordinator or main contact; (C) address of the website (or info page/ flyer) of the project. Contact: Sabine Manning

Publications

Dual study programmes in global context
Graf, Lukas; Powell, Justin J. W.; Fortwengel, Johann & Bernhard, Nadine (2014). Dual study programmes in global context: Internationalisation in Germany and transfer to Brazil, France, Qatar, Mexico and the US. Bonn: Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst.
Dual study programs have developed in Germany since the late 1960s and represent a rapidly-expanding hybrid organizational form at the nexus of higher education and vocational training. This new book (English/German) analyzes institutional and organizational strategies to internationalize dual study programs in Germany as well as to transfer this specific model of practice-oriented academic education to other countries. Case studies examined include Brazil, France, Mexico, Qatar, and the US.
Open access: http://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/handle/document/41804
(Posted by Lukas Graf <[email protected]>)

Professionalisation of adult educators
Lattke, Susanne; Jütte, Wolfgang (eds.): Professionalisation of adult educators. International and comparative perspectives. Peter Lang 2014 [Details]
In many regions of the world, professionalisation in adult and continuing education is brought into the focus of educational policy and research. Various fields of practice are looking for scientific and political support in raising the level of professionalism. While there are no simple lessons to be learned from other countries, a closer analysis of international experience may reveal common and diverging interests. It may also provide worthwhile insights into opportunities and risks surrounding professionalisation. This edited volume is intended to further stimulate international exchange, cross-country approaches and comparative research in this field. It includes contributions to the theoretical debate and to the development of (comparative) research as well as reports on research findings and development activities concerning the professionalisation of adult educators.
(Info received via ESREA ReNAdET mailing list)

New issue of IJRVET
The International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET) has published a new issue (open access). Topics of the new issue include: Assessment of Prior Learning; Formation of Apprenticeships in the Swedish Education System; Qualification of Adult Educators in Portugal; Difficulties in Defining Social-Emotional Intelligence, Competence and Skills. Homepage: http://www.ijrvet.net. IJRVET has just been added to DOAJ Directory of Open Access Journals, only 9 months after its first published issue. DOAJ is often cited, being regarded as a source of quality. You may look up the IJRVET entry via the search facility of the DOAJ Portal (https://doaj.org/search). IJRVET is now indexed in 9 databases - and more are expected to follow.
(Contributed by Michael Gessler <[email protected]>)

Qualification of adult educators in Europe
Catarina Paulos. Qualification of adult educators in Europe: Insights From the Portuguese case. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training, Vol 2, No 1 (2015) [Details]
This article explores the role of the European Union in defining an adult education policy and the way European countries appropriate those guidelines and implement them in their realities. These policies have been widening and diversifying adult education, creating the necessity for qualifying educational professionals. With the implementation of some adult education political measures, new educational practices were developed and new professional activities were born. To discuss some of these issues, the data used are from research integrated in a PhD programme about the qualification of adult educators working in recognition of prior learning in Portugal. This research aims to understand the professional paths of adult educators from the time they started working until they got the job as recognition of prior learning professionals, their process of qualification and ways of learning and training.
(Contributed by Catarina Paulos <[email protected]>)

Induction processes for job entrants
Marthe Geiben: Induction processes for job entrants in car service in France and Germany. European Educational Research Journal, January 2015, 14: 86-99 [Details]
Induction in enterprises is a crucial phase for each employee, not only to become able to fulfil all relevant tasks but also to enable professional development as well as social and value-oriented integration into the new organisation. This is even more relevant for young people coming from initial vocational education and training with intermediate-level qualifications (European Qualification Framework 3 and 4). The research question of the presented doctoral thesis is to discover how induction processes are organised for these employees in two selected countries, and to interpret possible differences. Therefore, the author presents a mixed-method approach that focuses on qualitative case studies in selected enterprises in car service in France and Germany combined with a secondary analysis of existing quantitative data (e.g. European Social Survey, INDUCT, Costs and Benefits of in-company training in Germany). This approach is complemented by an in-depth literature review of pedagogical literature and sources from other selected disciplines, for example Human Resources Development. This paper presents the conception and first results of the case studies. The focus therefore is on the description of induction processes. The few existing differences are interpreted from two aspects: Hofstede's cultural dimensions and organisational differences between the cases.
(Contributed by Marthe Geiben <[email protected]>)

Teacher's profession highly appealing
Martin, A., Pennanen, M. 2015. Mobility and transition of pedagogical expertise in Finland. University of Jyväskylä. Finnish Institute for Educational Research. https://ktl.jyu.fi/en/publications/g051
Finland is a remarkable exception when the number of teacher applicants is compared to other European countries. In many countries it is difficult to fill all the starting places, whereas in Finland teacher training is one of the most popular choices among university applicants. The teacher's profession is highly appealing and appreciated in Finland. Teachers are committed to and satisfied with their work, and thus only relatively few teachers decide to leave the field. However, there are some problems with in-service training and also with the induction phase of new teachers. In this respect the situation in Finland is worse than in many other countries. These are the main findings drawn from a recent Finnish project which studied teachers' professional motivation, teacher mobility, and the challenging skill requirements the teachers face at work in primary and secondary education.
(Summary of press release 8.4.15 received from [email protected])

NOTE: Updates on publications provided by the WIFO Gateway include the WIFO Bookshelf [www.books.wifo-gate.org], a collection of references to publications focusing on cross-European issues of work and learning, and "From the Journals" - Overview of articles on cross-European issues in VET and HRD research [www.articles.wifo-gate.org], selected from European and international Journals related to education research [www.journals.wifo-gate.org].