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1. PURPOSE OF CALL
The purpose of this call is to gather proposals
from course providers for suitable high quality courses
to be included in the Comenius and Grundtvig Catalogue.
This is a list of all those in-service training courses
for school and adult education staff, attendance at
which, may in principle, be fundable under the Comenius
or Grundtvig actions of the Socrates programme.
The catalogue will be valid for courses, which will
take place between 1 June 2002 and 31 July 2003.
2. BACKGROUND
The second phase of the Community action programme
in the field of education, Socrates was adopted by Decision
No 253/2000/EC of the European Parliament and Council
for a period from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2006.
Both the Comenius (school education) and Grundtvig (adult
education) parts of the programme include the provision
of in-service training courses for updating and improving
the skills and promoting the European dimension in the
training of educational staff in the two sectors concerned.
It is proposed to compile a catalogue of all the relevant
European in-service training courses, which are available
to educational staff, which will be widely disseminated
to all potential applicants.
The courses to be included in the catalogue must meet
the criteria outlined below and the course provider
must accept the special conditions outlined in point
8 below.
Please note that inclusion in the catalogue has no direct
funding implications.
However, courses included in the catalogue are eligible
to take on applicants wishing to undertake in-service
training funded by Comenius or Grundtvig grants.
It is anticipated that, over time the catalogue will
become the sole list of courses considered eligible
for this purpose.
National agencies will give priority to eligible applicants
applying to attend courses included in the catalogue.
Note that inclusion in the catalogue will not guarantee
full attendance at courses.
It is intended that the catalogue will be compiled and
updated regularly.
3. OBJECTIVES
The aim of developing a comprehensive catalogue
is twofold:
- to inform teachers and other educational staff from
all the countries participating in the Socrates programme
of European in-service training opportunities which
are open to them,
- to contribute to improving the quality and range of
European in-service training available for school and
adult education staff.
4. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
4.1. Eligibility of applicant course providers
Applicant course providers must fulfil the following
criteria:
- applicants must be institutions and/or organisations
that have legal status and work in the area of in-service
training provision for school or adult education staff,
- applicants must be from, and courses delivered in,
one of the 15 Member States of the European Union or
from Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway or from one of
the other participating countries in the programme;
Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia,
Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus
and Malta, Turkey ( 1 ),
- applicants must show evidence of prior experience
of working with multinational groups.Experience in implementing
policies, or of appropriately integrated structures,
relating to equality between men and women, boys and
girls, integration of disabled persons, eliminating
racism and xenophobia, promotion of social and economic
cohesion, is highly recommended,
- applicants must give proof of financial and technical
capacity to successfully offer the proposed course.These
capacities will be judged principally on the basis of
the following documents:
- the 2000 activity report,
- the accounts for the financial year 2000,
- the curricula vitae of the course organiser.
4.2. Formal criteria
Only those proposals that are properly and fully completed
and received within the deadline stipulated (see point
6) will be taken into consideration.
However, the national agency, which has received your
application, may require you to submit further information
if it considers it appropriate and necessary.
4.3. Eligibility of
courses
Content of the courses:
- eligible courses, including those aimed at language
teachers, must concentrate on providing participants
with practical teaching skills, techniques and methodologies,
- courses concerned with the management of adult education
institutions/organisations, as well as topics on European
integration, gender education and intercultural education
(teaching of anti-racism, education of migrant workers,
gypsies, travellers, occupational travellers, etc.)
are also eligible for inclusion in the catalogue,
- in the case of language courses in the less widely
used and least taught languages ( 1 ), courses focusing
on language learning may be allowed. In the case of
other languages, such courses will not be eligible (
2 ) (for example, pure English language courses are
not eligible),
- in the course description form, course providers are
required to provide detailed information under each
of the following headings:
- Target group.Course organisers must clearly identify
the eligible target group for which the course is organised.
- Preparation. Course organisers must ensure that participants
are provided with a suitable pre-departure preparation
programme (i.e. suggested reading material, teaching
modules, self-evaluation materials, questionnaires,
etc.).
- Objectives.These should be clearly and concisely stated
with specific reference to the target group envisaged.
- Methodology. This should be closely related to the
objectives and target group envisaged.
- Outcomes.These should be described in terms of the
skills to be acquired or improved and should be clearly
defined (e.g. as ‚can do™ statements).
- Accreditation.Course organisers must accredit attendance
at courses by certificate or otherwise (e.g. credits
as part of a diploma or Masters programme). All certificates
must clearly state the topic and number of teaching
hours of the programme.
In some countries, national authorities may take this
accreditation into account for the purposes of the participant's
career progression, salary, etc.
- Follow-up phase.Course organisers should ensure that
participants are provided with a range of activities
for use in their professional contexts which will enable
them to draw maximum benefit from the course (distance
learning activities, telephone/e-mail contact with trainers,
self-evaluation of lessons taught after the period abroad
etc.). Training providers are especially encouraged
to establish networks of trainees for the purpose of
mutual support and study.
- Clear procedures. Course organisers should ensure
that clear information is provided on the procedures
to be observed in relation to booking of course places
by participants, cancellation of participation etc.
Course organisers should note that any such procedures
must be in accordance with the financial and grant management
procedures laid down in the guidelines for applicants,
the annual Socrates call for proposals and this call
for catalogue courses.
- Appropriately resourced venue. With a view to providing
equality of opportunities for all potential participants,
course organisers should ensure that appropriate measures
are taken and facilities provided to ensure full participation
by women, ethnic and religious minorities, physically
impaired people and those with special needs.
4.4. Programme of the course
In the course description form, the course provider
must provide a detailed programme: description day-by-day
of the activities envisaged, conferences, practical
workshops, etc.
4.5. Duration of the courses
Courses must be for a minimum duration of one week (five
full-course days; arrival and departure days will not
be part of these five days). If the pedagogical objectives
of the course require it to be of a longer duration
course organisers are free to organise courses up to
a maximum duration of four weeks.
4.6. Location of the courses:
- courses must take place in one of the participating
countries in the Socrates programme,
- in the case of language courses or courses for training
of teachers of a specific foreign language, these courses
must normally take place in a country where the target
language is widely spoken,
- the course may in some cases take the form of a placement
in an enterprise, where this is considered to be conducive
to achieving the objectives mentioned above.
4.7. Target group
The target group for general in-service training should
include at least one of the following sub-groups
- teachers (including those in pre-school, school and
adult education), teacher trainers,
- teachers/trainers working with adults, and the trainers
of such teachers/trainers,
- heads and managerial staff of institutions/organisations
providing adult learning opportunities,
- head teachers, school management staff, school inspectors,
counsellors, mentors, tutors or careers advisors,
- staff working with pupils/persons at risk, for example,
mediators and street educators,
- staff involved in intercultural education at all levels
and working with (children of) migrant workers, gypsies
and travellers, and occupational travellers,
- staff working with pupils/persons with special educational
needs,
- additional categories of school or adult education
staff at the discretion of national authorities (for
example mediators, educators, school psychologists,
etc.).
For language teacher training the target audience should
include at least one of the following groups:
- qualified and practising teachers of an official language
of the EU (or Irish or Luxembourgish) as a foreign language,
- trainers of foreign language teachers,
- teachers retraining as a foreign language teacher,
- primary or pre-primary teachers whose responsibilities
include or will in the future include teaching foreign
languages,
- teachers of other subjects through the medium of a
foreign language,
- language teachers re-entering the profession after
a period away from teaching,
- inspectors or advisors in the field of language teaching.
Providers should note that they are free to recruit
participants from any source they wish, provided that
they endeavour to ensure that trainees constitute a
multinational group (from at least three countries participating
in the Socrates programme).
4.8. Course trainers:
- trainers must have appropriate qualifications and
experience. CVs of trainers should, where possible,
be attached to the application form. Where one or more
trainers' CVs are not available at the time of application,
then the organisers must clearly indicate the qualifications
that the trainers they intend to recruit will hold,
- the training team must be multinational, or, at the
very least, the team of trainers must have significant
experience of more than one European education system.
(The requirement for a multinational training team does
not apply to courses with a significant language content
aimed at language teachers),
- for Grundtvig courses the training teams must have
significant experience of intercultural education with
adults and of working in European adult education environments.
4.9. Language issues
For all courses, participants must be given materials
in at least one of the 11 official European Union languages
or Luxembourgish or Irish.
However, it is highly recommended that such materials
be provided in a variety languages to ensure maximum
dissemination and usage possibilities.
4.10. Evaluation
Course providers must commit themselves to having an
evaluation session at the end of the course. They must
provide at least one computer with an Internet connection
at the disposal of participants so that participants
can input their opinion on the quality of the course.
The European Commission will make this evaluation public
via Internet. It is intended to be a quality check and
a valuable information tool for future participants.
If the evaluation of the majority of participants is
negative on two successive occasions, the course concerned
will be deleted from the catalogue
In such cases course providers may inform the Directorate-General
for Education and Culture (Socrates programme) of any
explanation they consider necessary before any final
decisions are taken in this respect.
4.11. Dates of courses
Courses for inclusion in this catalogue should be scheduled
to take place between 1 June 2002 and 31 July 2003.
5. LENGTH OF TIME
IN THE CATALOGUE
Courses included in the catalogue will remain in it
until all the scheduled courses have been held, subject
to satisfactory evaluations from course participants
and receipt of a satisfactory written report from the
provider.
For inclusion in subsequent years, all providers will
need to submit a new, full application.
6. PROCEDURE FOR SUBMITTING
APPLICATIONS
6.1. Forms
Forms can be obtained on the Internet at the following
address:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/courses.html
or by contacting the Socrates national agency in your
country.
The addresses of the national agencies can be downloaded
from the Internet site:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/socrates/nat-est.html
6.2. Submission of the application
Applications must be sent to the appropriate national
agency of the country of origin of the course provider
by ordinary or registered mail by 31 May 2001 at
the latest.
The date on the postmark will be considered the official
date of dispatch.
Course providers should note that one application form
will be sufficient even if they wish to submit one course
for different dates or in different places.
However, if they wish to submit different courses, providers
must use different forms and all documentation requested
will need to be provided for each course.
All course providers must send the application form
and all requisite annexes in one of the 11 official
languages of the European Union to the national agency
of the country of origin of the course provider.
Course providers should note that the course description
form (Annex 3) must be competed in the language in which
the course will be held with the exception of boxes
which explicitly demand translation into English or
French. For example, where a course organiser intends
to offer a course in which the language of tuition will
be Italian, he/she should ensure that the Italian version
of this form (Annex 3) is completed in Italian.
Failure to comply with this requirement will render
the application invalid.
The application, duly completed, dated and signed, must
be sent in duplicate.
It must provide comprehensive and verifiable information
with regard to the criteria listed above.
Two paper copies of the course description form must
accompany the application as well as a copy in electronic
format.
Applications, which do not provide an electronic format
of the course description form, will not be considered
for inclusion in the catalogue.
7. PROCESSING OF THE
APPLICATIONS
Following the deadline, the national agencies will arrange
for the assessment of each application on the basis
of the documentation received in accordance with this
call for proposals.The selected courses will then be
forwarded to the European Commission, which will include
them in the catalogue.
8. SPECIAL CONDITIONS
Once the Comenius and Grundtvig catalogue is published,
educational staff will contact course providers in order
to pre-register. This pre-registration does not create
any obligation of payment if the participant is not
awarded a grant.
Therefore course providers are advised to have a sufficient
reserve list of participants. At least five weeks before
the beginning of the course the national agency will
inform each participant of the results of the grant
awarding process. Only at this stage will the participant
be able to confirm his/her attendance at the course.
Course providers should ensure that they inform both
potential participants and national agencies of the
importance of finalising lists of course participants
sufficiently in advance to ensure that there is an efficient
management of the highly complex task of organising
multilateral transnational training courses.
Course providers are reminded that programme funds may
not, under any circumstances be used to reimburse any
expenses arising from participants cancellation of their
attendance for any reason other than force majeure (certified
serious illness or the death of a close relative only).
At no stage will the European Commission intervene in
relation to resolving issues of disagreement between
course participants, course organisers and/or national
agencies or any other matter relating to the operational
aspects of the management of courses advertised in the
catalogue.
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