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This study aims to analyze Indonesia's strategy in facing the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT-VPA) cooperation agreement between the European Union and Indonesia to improve the export performance of Indonesian wood products to the European Union market. With research, an analysis of the opportunities and challenges that Indonesia intends to face in maintaining the stability of the export activities of Indonesian wood products and improving the quality of these wood products so that they can be accepted based on the standards of the destination country. FLEGT-VPA is a bilateral agreement between the European Union and timber exporting nations to improve forest sector governance and ensure that timber and wood products supplied into the EU are produced in line with partner country laws and regulations. The issue that a developing country like Indonesia wants to experience in an effort to improve the quality of wood products according to the standards of the destination country is a large number of illegal logging, illegal timber sales and others. This study focuses on the pulp and paper industry and uses qualitative analysis research methods and analyzes the data collection techniques from various sources. The increase in the export performance of Indonesian pulp, paper and, paperboard to the European Union from 2016 after the ratification of the FLEGT-VPA shows that the quality of Indonesian products is promising to spread in the European Union market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union contains directions on how user data may be collected, stored, and when it must be deleted. As similar legislation is developed around the globe, there is the potential for repercussions across multiple fields of research, including educational data mining (EDM). Over the past two decades, the EDM community has taken consistent steps to protect learner privacy within our research, whilst pursuing goals that will benefit their learning. However, recent privacy legislation may cause our practices to need to change. The right to be forgotten states that users have the right to request that all their data (including deidentified data generated by them) be removed. In this paper, we discuss the potential challenges of this legislation for EDM research, including impacts on Open Science practices, data modeling, and data sharing. We also consider changes to EDM best practices that may aid compliance with this new legislation. [For the complete proceedings, see ED630829.]

This document contains 17 papers from a Universities Association for Continuing Education (UACE) seminar at which UACE strategies and objectives were reviewed. The papers focus on four broad areas: the context of the UACE's work to promote continuing education and lifelong learning; its role in promoting flexibility of provision; its relationship to other stakeholders in continuing education and lifelong learning; and revision of the UACE manifesto. The following papers are included: "Introduction" (David Watson); "UACE and Its Predecessors: Organisation and Priorities" (Chris Duke); "Continuing Education in the Mainstream: One Year On" (Michael Vaughan); "The European Union's Plans for Continuing Education" (Edward Thomas); "Part-Time Progress" (Ann Rumpus); "Distance Learning" (Geoff Peters); "Work Based Learning in Higher Education: Has It a Future?" (Derek Portwood); "The State of CVE [Continuing Vocational Education]: Three Propositions for Change" (Ian Woodward); "Access and Equity" (Terri Kelly); "The Political Parties" (Richard Taylor); "The Regional Dimension" (Freda Tallantyre); "Funding Bodies" (David Grugeon); "The Impact of Research" (Tom Schuller); "Future Scenarios" (Susanne Haselgrove); "Marginalising the Mainstream" (Hywel Francis); "Unfinished Business--The Continuing Role of a Continuing Education Association" (Maria Slowey); and "Conclusion: UACE and the Future" (David Watson). (MN)

In recent years, the need for English as a foreign language (EFL) education in schools has become a priority worldwide. The aim of our paper is to investigate which countries currently focus on researching motivation to learn EFL and what potential reasons are behind the focus. We performed a topic search of the keywords "EFL" and "motivation" in the "Web of Science" database for 2020. In total, we found 61 Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) articles. Asia prevails, especially Eastern Asian Chinese speaking regions (Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong). Policies in Asian regions such as China and Taiwan highly support EFL. There is the aim to develop Taiwan into a "bilingual nation". Likewise, the European Union promotes the establishment of the so-called European Education Area within which studying and training should be accessible and profitable for people living in the EU. Spain remains the European country with the highest number of EFL motivation publications. There were only a few papers from the Americas. In South America, we see evidence of the beginnings of a CLIL push, which has the potential to lead to expanded EFL motivation research in these previously under researched areas. [For the complete Volume 19 proceedings, see ED613922.]

From the standpoint of a MOOC practitioner (i.e., a MOOC provider) instead of a rigorous comparative law researcher, this article attempts to analyze the potential legal issues and risks underlying instruction via MOOCs and compare these legal issues and risks between the small jurisdiction Macao and such major jurisdictions as the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the European Union. These legal issues and risks so identified concern the three perspectives intellectual property, privacy, and accessibility. Supported by academic literature, statutes, acts, and court cases, this article elaborates on these three perspectives with respect to MOOC providers, quotes the key legal statutes and acts in these three perspectives in the context of MOOC providers, elucidates the statutes' and acts' emphases and the related remedies and penalties for breaches, and probably other details, and compares them across the aforesaid jurisdictions. Some prominent findings are that Macao, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the European Union appear to practice clearly defined and compendious laws to protect privacy whereas the United States' counterparts seem to be circumscribed by, for example, the ages of the individuals to protect. As such, for MOOC providers, the former four jurisdictions sound to be more critical than the latter jurisdiction in the perspective of privacy. As for accessibility, Macao's, the United States', the United Kingdom's, and Australia's laws focus on educational institutions. Nonetheless, whether the majority of MOOC providers can be regarded as such "education institutions" under such laws may likely be disputable. In contrast, the European Union more generically enacts a law on accessibility of digital products and services. Even so, to what extent and how MOOCs are supposed to conform to such a law may arguably still be contingent upon each particular scenario. [For the full proceedings, see ED636095.]

Imagine a student using an intelligent tutoring system. A researcher records the correctness and time of each of your attempts at solving a math problem, nothing more. With no names, no birth dates, no connections to the school, you would think it impossible to track the answers back to the class. Yet, class sections have been identified with no more data than this. This paper recounts shocking episodes where educational data was used to re-identify individual students, build profiles on students, and commit fraud. We look at the ethical principles that underlie privacy as it relates to research data, and discuss ethical issues in data mining relating to social networks and big data. We explore four major types of data used in EDM [educational data mining]: (i) clickstream data, (ii) student-interaction data, (iii) evaluative data, and (iv) demographic data. Each type of data can be harmful if disclosed in particular contexts, even if all personally identifiable information is removed. We consider laws and legal precedents controlling access to student data in the United States and the European Union. This paper concludes by describing some practical situations in EDM and suggesting privacy policies that satisfy the ethical concerns raised earlier in the paper. [For the full proceedings, see ED607784.]

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the percentage of expenditure on public education of a country and the effect that each percentage mark has on the economic growth, and therefore Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a country. The goal of this paper is to explore how investment in education impacts the economic growth of a country through the production of more skilled workers in the workforce. This paper aims to draw a comparison between the BRICS countries, and a representative number of the countries in the European Union to compare the investment, process and product delivered through these groupings. By looking at the production function from a Marxist perspective it is inevitable to notice that the error coefficient is significantly higher within the BRICS countries than in the European Union, which is reflected in the rate of economic growth. This paper would be of interest to economists, education policy makers, researchers, and scholars.

The purpose of this research is to explore the views of pupils of primary (6th grade) and secondary education (3rd grade of Gymnasium & 3rd grade of lyceum) of the Ionian Islands, about renewable sources and energy saving. In Greece, significant research has been carried out on renewable sources and energy saving. Their findings showed that the public as a whole has a positive attitude to energy saving and the utilization of renewable energy sources. At the same time, the contribution of RES to economic growth and society is recorded. In addition, it has been shown that the change of human behavior is considered a sufficient and necessary condition to solve the important environmental problems of our everyday life and makes students behavior; knowledge and perceptions on environment and it's problems, an act of major importance. [For the complete volume, "NORDSCI International Conference Proceedings: 5th Anniversary Edition (Sofia, Bulgaria, October 17-19, 2022). Book 1. Volume 5," see ED625663.]

These proceedings contain the papers of the 16th International Conference on e-Learning (EL 2022), which was organised by the International Association for Development of the Information Society, 19-21 July, 2022. This conference is part of the 16th Multi Conference on Computer Science and Information Systems 2022, 19-22 July, which had a total of 608 submissions. The e-Learning (EL) 2022 conference aims to address the main issues of concern within e-Learning. This conference covers both technical as well as the non-technical aspects of e-Learning. The conference accepted submissions in the following seven main areas: (1) Organisational Strategy and Management Issues; (2) Technological Issues; (3) e-Learning Curriculum Development Issues; (4) Instructional Design Issues; (5) e-Learning Delivery Issues; (6) e-Learning Research Methods and Approaches; and (7) e-Skills and Information Literacy for Learning. Besides the papers' presentations, the conference also included one keynote presentation from an internationally distinguished researcher, Professor Piet Kommers, UNESCO Professor of Learning Technologies, The Netherlands. The conference also featured one special talk by Professors: Cathie Norris, Regents Professor, University of North Texas, USA, Elliot Soloway, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor, University of Michigan, USA, and Anne Tapp, Professor, Dept. of Teacher Education, College of Education, Saginaw Valley State University, USA, and a talk by Dr. Yaping Gao, Ed.D., Senior Academic Director, Member Services & Partnerships Quality Matters, USA. [Individual papers are indexed in ERIC.]

This volume includes three sections of the 2021 NORDSCI international conference proceedings: (1) Education and Educational Research; (2) Language and Linguistics; and (3) Sociology and Healthcare. Education and Educational Research includes 15 papers covering the full spectrum of education, including history, sociology and economy of education, educational policy, strategy and technologies. This section also covers pedagogy and the education and socialization challenges post-COVID-19 pandemic. Language and Linguistics includes 7 papers covering topics related to theoretical, literary and historical linguistics, as well as stylistics and philology. The Sociology and Healthcare section has 15 papers covering topics related to human society, social structures, and social change, healthcare systems and healthcare services. [Individual papers are indexed in ERIC.]

Notwithstanding the fact that adult education is accepted as an equal subsystem in all European countries, it is still characterised by a distinct level of differentiation in the approach and offer, and by a pronouncedly disorganised legislation, which may be seen in the heterogeneity of competences and qualifications expected from adult educators. To be able to professionally respond to the requirements and necessities of contemporary society, adult educators must continuously develop subject-professional, pedagogical-teaching and andragogical competences. Today, the majority of adult educators in Croatia do not have the basic andragogical knowledge and skills because of, among other things, insufficient opportunities for such an education. Starting from this assumption, in the first part of the paper we have described the impact of European policies for adult education on the national strategic and regulatory documents. The central part of the paper is dedicated to an overview of initial and continuing professional education of adult educators in Croatia. The final part of the paper consists of recommendations for the professionalisation of the adult education system. [For the complete Volume 14, Number 1 proceedings, see ED568088.]

This book contains a compilation of papers presented at the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2023, organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (WIARS), held in International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2023, held in Lisbon, Portugal, from 22 to 24 of April 2023. he goal of understanding individuals and groups (mental functions and behavioral standpoints), from this academic and practical scientific discipline, aims ultimately to benefit society. The International Conference seeks to provide some answers and explore the several areas within the Psychology field, new developments in studies and proposals for future scientific projects. The goal is to offer a worldwide connection between psychologists, researchers and lecturers, from a wide range of academic fields, interested in exploring and giving their contribution in psychological issues. We take pride in having been able to connect and bring together academics, scholars, practitioners and others interested in a field that is fertile in new perspectives, ideas and knowledge. We counted on an extensive variety of contributors and presenters, which can supplement the view of the human essence and behavior, showing the impact of their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. This is, certainly, one of the reasons there are several nationalities and cultures represented, inspiring multi-disciplinary collaborative links, fomenting intellectual encounters and development. InPACT 2023 received 548 submissions, from more than 39 different countries all over the world, reviewed by a double-blind process. Submissions were prepared to take the form of Oral Presentations, Posters, Virtual Presentations and Workshops. 192 submissions (overall, 35% acceptance rate) were accepted for presentation at the conference.

In the past few years we have participated in several EU funded projects, aimed to create the educational content and auxiliary ICT tools to support the development of some essential soft skills of the students: the creativity, and the ability to write syntheses of the ideas extracted from various sources. In this context, we produced an easy to use web application for the assessment of creativity based on a new scale, and we also proposed a methodology to evaluate the quality of text summaries written by our students starting from a given source. Through a serendipitous coincidence, this research occurred while we were in search of a means to assess the risk in education, and noticed that the students' anxiety about the future (AAF) might be a good measure of this risk. This paper is an attempt to make sense of the data collected using the newly created tools, by exploring the possible correlations between creativity, summarization skills, and AAF from the perspective of the students' ability to cope with the uncertainties of the future. [For the complete proceedings, see ED579395.]

This study reviews the definition of lifelong learning in the context of the European Union policy agenda as sets out in the Lisbon strategy. The paper also reports on the mental health service users' and trainers' perceptions of a "successful" lifelong learning training intervention. The work reported in this paper was part of a larger study which examines EMILIA lifelong learning training in one EMILIA demonstration site. The study interviewed a number of mental health service user-trainees and service user-trainers using focused group in order to get a deeper understanding of the experience and results--"success" or otherwise--of EMILIA training model as applied to adults with long-term mental illness. Analysis was based on an interpretative technique--specifically recursive abstraction--of the interviews. The results show that students (trainees) perceived the training intervention as successful because of students were involved in setting the "ground rules," prefer and enjoy varied teaching methods, had the opportunity to network socially and, more importantly, realised that by participating they could achieve and succeed on the course. The review part of the study suggests that, although the European Union, as indeed most member states, predicates lifelong learning policy on mainly economic factors--i.e. economic growth and jobs--tackling exclusion or promoting social inclusion remains a central plank of strategies for lifelong learning at both national and European levels. [For the complete Volume 13, Number 1 proceedings, see ED568595.]

This paper addressed the place of the use of international 'experts' in assuring the quality of Education programmes within Higher Education in relation to the globalisation agenda. The experiences of one such 'expert' are discussed and recommendations made as to the type of person suited to the role. Some issues relating to Higher Education in the Baltic States of Lithuania and Latvia are addressed, in particular the need for a change in the learning culture from a focus on teaching to one on learning, the need to embrace not resist change and the need to respond quickly to an ever changing education agenda. The paper attempts to address some of the difficulties faced by higher education institutions in the area and also the concerns of the international experts with particular reference to the lack of good data on which to base their conclusions and recommendations. Despite years of membership of the EU change is not occurring as fast as it needs to and this is where the advice of the 'expert' can be of use. [For the complete Volume 12 proceedings, see ED597979.]

The article attempts to explain the features of the phenomenon of euroscepticism typical for the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (Visegrad group--Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary) based on linguistic methods of research. This approach is due to the close relationship of ethno-cultural and value elements that manifest themselves ambiguously in the international field, and expressed mainly through language. System-typological concept of the language of the outstanding linguist, philosopher, culturologist and Cybernetics, G. P. Melnikov, who developed the ideas of V. von Humboldt, A. A. Potebna, I. A. Baudouin de Courtenay proposes to allocate the main characteristic or the main feature of the language (determinant), depending on how the communication function. Such a determinant, that is, the leading grammatical trend in the linguistic consciousness of the Indo-European peoples is the presentation of any plan according to the scheme of the developing event. This form is most developed in the Slavic languages, as the language technique that helps to preserve the inflection depends on the size of the language group, its homogeneity and the length of the information transmission chains, which provided the experience of settled agricultural Slavic peoples inhabiting the plains of Europe. The change in the ethno-cultural landscape associated with the influx of migrants meant recognition of the need to find new strategies in relation to migrants and the resulting cultural, linguistic and religious heterogeneity of the population. At the same time, it exacerbated the confrontation between the "supranational structure" - "national state", the EU -- member States, showing disappointment in mutual expectations. The phenomenon of euroscepticism, formed in the countries of the "Visegrad group", often defined as populism and known by statements of politicians and precedent texts broadcasted through the media, should be considered in connection with the system of values developed by the centuries-old way, and fixed oral and written tradition in the languages of these countries. The protagonists of euroscepticism under the pressure of the population declare the protection of morality, religion, traditional family and criticize same-sex marriage, sex education, liberal interpretation of reproductive rights and quotas for refugees, positioning themselves as an alternative to the liberal project. Based on the systematic approach, which states that the properties of the element included in the structure can be understood only on the basis of its links with other elements of this structure, the authors conclude that the Visegrad four countries represent a mild version of euroscepticism. According to the authors, the most complete reflection of the socio-cultural reality in the consciousness of a native speaker, which can be traced both on the actual grammatical material, and taking into account external factors, provides system linguistics, the main directions of which were outlined by V. von Humboldt. In Russian linguistics this direction is represented by the works of G. P. Melnikov, whose scientific school is developed by a number of research centers, as well as his students and followers in the RUDN, where G. P. Melnikov taught and wrote the main works. [For "NORDSCI International Conference Proceedings: Education and Language Edition (Athens, Greece, August 19, 2019). Book 1. Volume 2," see ED603411.]

The "beauty and truth" in the title reminds one of John Keats's "Ode on a Grecian Urn." That is not only a great Romantic poem, but also a highly sophisticated rhetorical discourse. In it, the interwoven voices of the speaker, of the Urn, and of Keats himself as an implied author, exploit the ambivalence and ambiguity of the pronoun "we" in creating speakers and listeners, performers and audiences. The current article explores the rhetoric of populist discourse in one of Nigel Farage's recent (May 4th, 2019) speeches. The speaker appeals to emotion rather than reason, systematically using anaphoric and epiphoric triads and other rhetorical devices to hammer his messages home. The article undertakes to examine the inconsistency in the speaker's development of the antagonism between "ordinary," "patriotic," "honest" people seen as the vast majority of the British population (far more than the 52% who voted for Brexit in the 2016 referendum) and the remaining tiny minority, including the political and cultural elites, the multinationals, the banks, the hedge funds, identified as THEY. Nigel Farage, the son of a stockbroker, a stockbroker himself, the friend of stockbrokers supporting his campaign, is one of the ordinary, honest people. [For "NORDSCI International Conference Proceedings: Education and Language Edition (Athens, Greece, August 19, 2019). Book 1. Volume 2," see ED603411.]

Methodologically, this is an attempt at transcending the already fuzzy borders between Discourse Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis, also borrowing the prevailing idea in Critical Theory and Cultural Studies that culture is ideological and political, and thus a site of struggle. The article, while starting from language-based approaches enriched by CDA's contributions, aims, by means of hedging language devices, at connecting and interpreting a number of puzzling facts, occurrences, statements and coincidences to be observed in the public space in the immediate contexts of the June 23rd, 2016 British EU referendum. These have to do with discourse, politics, hedge funds, financial transactions and a number of people associated with them. Who were the real winners of the original Brexit Affair? The article acknowledges the theoretical relevance of leading CDA theorists, while relying on online resources, especially those of such investigative journalists as Cam Simpson, Gavin Finch and Kit Chellel. Why would anyone charge anyone with major misdeeds and risk going to court, when the 'hedging' of the Brexit affair (or business) in the current article might prompt everyone to draw their own conclusions? [For "NORDSCI International Conference Proceedings: Education and Language Edition (Athens, Greece, August 19, 2019). Book 1. Volume 2," see ED603411.]

Making construals is a practical approach to computing that was originally developed for and by computer science undergraduates. It is the central theme of an EU project aimed at disseminating the relevant principles to a broader audience. This involves bringing together technical experts in making construals and international experts in educational technology in organising wide-ranging learning activities. This paper, which complements the tutorial and discussion on making construals in (Beynon et al. 2015a, 2015b), documents issues that arise from this encounter. Its central argument is that making construals offers a significant new contribution to educational technology. [For the full proceedings, see ED562093.]

This paper's aim is to analyze university students' opinions about Europe, Europeanship, and Europe Union nowadays when entering European Unions arguments are on. Data's are collected by "interview" method by senior class students in different parts of this qualitative research. In 2008-2009 academic years, 50 students' opinions on European Citizenship, European Union Accordance Process, nationality role and aptitudes about Union (like, dislike) from different students at Education, Political Science, Theology, Law and Communication Faculties of Ankara University are taken. Data were analyzed by descriptive analysis approach, content analysis approach and expressive analysis approach. Study's findings are considered valuable as in order to indicate University students' opinions about Process of Entering European Union and Unity. After having expert opinion, questionnaire questions are below that is half built: (1) What is your opinion on being an exact member of European Union? When does this come true? (2) What are the advantages for Turkey being a member of EU? (3) Do you feel that EU is sincere about accepting Turkey as a member? Why? (4) How does EU affect Turkey's Unitarian system? (5) Is EU is a threat for national identity? (6) Is it possible that understanding can be formed about rights and freedoms between European mutually? Findings are obtained from research: Opinions are shown below in four headings as: (a) Opinions on being exact member or not, (b) Opinions on advantages of being member of the Union, (c) Opinions on member countries of accepting Turkey as EU member, (d) Opinions on European citizenship, national identity and rights and freedoms. Research results are like: 58% of the participants believe that Turkey will be a member of the EU, but this will take a long time. 42% of them think that exact membership will never come true. According to gained results from findings of the research, people who do not support membership of the EU membership state that not accepting to the Union because of language and cultural difference, and Turkey's not being ready for the membership are the main points of their claim. Benefits of the membership are seen as development of economy. Participants' faculties are different; thus, results are different, too. Education faculty students estimate on economical development concept. Theology and law faculties' students state that there will be development in judgment, basic rights and freedoms. Free circulation concept is used by communication faculty senior students. Minority issue and trying to solve this problem at upper identity are another discussed issue during EU membership process. It is seen from the questionnaire that understanding can be formed about rights and freedoms between European mutually idea is shared by half of the students. In addition, some of the students find out this process as wearing out the country. While some participants accept national identity and citizenship as an equal, others think that national identity is a changing disclosure. One of this research results is that participants' idea on unity cannot be supplied in human rights and freedoms in Europe. [This paper was published in "European Turks: Education and Integration. Volume II," p842-853, Erciyes University Press, April 2010.]

This paper analyzes the government expenditures as the percentage of gross domestic product across countries of the European Union. There is a statistical model based on Z-score, whose aim is to calculate how much each EU country deviates from the average value. The model shows that government expenditures on education vary significantly between EU countries. [For the complete Volume 13, Number 1 proceedings, see ED568595.]

With regard to the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, in the beginning of 2018 the National Association of the Municipalities in Republic of Bulgaria launched a call for proposals under the Grant 'Support of the Municipal Initiatives Related to the Local Dimension of the Bulgarian Presidency in 2018'. The Municipality of Kostenets proposed and implemented the project 'Raising Awareness of the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the European Union' with the participation of a team formed by students and teachers from 'Georgi Sava Rakovski' Vocational High School. The activities of the team included: 1) research of information about the European Union and the Bulgarian Presidency; 2) project based teaching, where students and teachers learnt together about the role of the European funds for the development of Kostenets Municipality; 3) active citizenship through students' participation in discussions about global and local issues with a member of the European Parliament, the town mayor and municipality experts. The project gave opportunities to the students to understand and experience the dimensions of the glocal education, to appreciate the citizenship not only as consumers' privileges but also as personal responsibilities, to raise their awareness for the global issues and to believe that each of them can contribute to the common good at local and global level. [For the complete Volume 17 proceedings, see ED596826.]

Many higher education students are interested in MOOCs. At the same time, numerous questions are still without answers: formal aspects of participation in MOOCs, the type of motivation on the part of students for participation in MOOCs, quality of MOOCs, students' opinions about type, structure, contents, communication in MOOCs and other aspects. The authors of this article have tried conducting analyses of some aspects of MOOCs in Europe and in Australia as well as presenting and analysing the research results of a survey conducted among students of several countries within the framework of the European Union project IRNet (www.irnet.us.edu.pl). [For full proceedings, see ED571459.]

Although the interactive whiteboard (IWB) is becoming increasingly prevalent in classrooms throughout the more efficient parts of the world and research has shown how this tool can increase the effectiveness of teaching and even transform pedagogy (Kennewell & Beauchamp, 2007), research literature overviews (Higgins, Beauchamp, & Miller, 2007; Koenraad, 2008) also identify obstacles to the realisation of added value and to the uptake of this technology by teachers in some educational contexts and in language education in particular (Cutrim Schmid & Whyte, 2012; Thomas & Cutrim Schmid, 2010). One such obstacle is the lack of pedagogical quality and sustained support in teacher development. A desire to meet this need has motivated a number of European projects. This paper focuses on two such projects, iTILT and SmartVET, funded via the Lifelong Learning Programme, which address teacher education and professional development with the IWB. Both based their approach on findings from IWB specific and general professional development research and on needs analysis, using related research instruments. [For full proceedings, see ED565044.]

Education and learning are strongly linked with society and its evolution and knowledge. In the field of formal education, ICTs are increasingly deployed as tools to extend the learner's capacity to perceive, understand and communicate, as seen in the increase in online learning programs and the use of the computer as a learning support tool in the classroom. They can provide more flexible and effective ways for professional development for teachers, improve initial teacher training, and connect teachers to the global teacher community, too. This paper analyses a variety of strategies ICT integration into initial teacher training. Based on the analysis of those strategies, it discusses new possibilities and challenges that ICT has brought to teacher training and professional development. It concludes with discussion of emerging research issues with respect to ICT integration into initial teacher training. [For complete volume, see ED567118.]

In 2010 the Turkish Board of Education (BoE) introduced a new rights-based citizenship education course to supersede the previous civics courses that promoted nationalist-militarist norms and values. This paper explores the internal and external influences on this curriculum reform drawing on a dataset derived from semi-structured interviews with 16 officials involved in the reform and documents obtained from the BoE's archive. The analysis finds that the reform was initiated by the government's intent to achieve European Union membership and demonstrate democratization. It further reveals that external support for democratic citizenship education could be counter-productive in nationalist context where political power does not explicitly support the promotion of democracy and human rights in education.

We are delighted to welcome you to the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2016, taking place in Lisbon, Portugal, from 30 of April to 2 of May, 2016. Psychology, nowadays, offers a large range of scientific fields where it can be applied. The goal of understanding individuals and groups (mental functions and behavioral standpoints), from this academic and practical scientific discipline, is aimed ultimately to benefit society. This International Conference seeks to provide some answers and explore the several areas within the Psychology field, new developments in studies and proposals for future scientific projects. The goal is to offer a worldwide connection between psychologists, researchers and lecturers, from a wide range of academic fields, interested in exploring and giving their contribution in psychological issues. The conference is a forum that connects and brings together academics, scholars, practitioners and others interested in a field that is fertile in new perspectives, ideas and knowledge. There is an extensive variety of contributors and presenters, which can supplement the view of the human essence and behavior, showing the impact of their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. This is, certainly, one of the reasons there are nationalities and cultures represented, inspiring multi-disciplinary collaborative links, fomenting intellectual encounter and development. InPACT 2016 received 332 submissions, from 37 different countries, reviewed by a double-blind process. Submissions were prepared to take form of Oral Presentations, Posters, Virtual Presentations and Workshops. It was accepted for presentation in the conference 96 submissions (29% acceptance rate). The conference also includes: (1) A keynote presentation from Prof. Dr. Richard Bentall (Institute of Psychology, Health & Society of the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom); (2) Three Special Talks, one from Emeritus Professor Carlos Amaral Dias (University of Coimbra, Director of Instituto Superior Miguel Torga, Vice-President of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Private practitioner of psychiatry and psychoanalysis, Portugal) and Prof. Clara Pracana (Full and Training member of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Portugal), another from Emeritus Professor Michael Wang (University of Leicester, United Kingdom), and a third one from Dr. Conceição Almeida (Founder of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytical Psychotherapy, and Vice-President of the Board. Member of the Teaching Committee, Portugal); (3) An Invited Talk from Dr. Ana Vasconcelos (SAMS--Serviços de Assistência Médico-Social do Sindicato dos Bancários de Sul e Ilhas, founding member of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, and member of NPA-Neuropshycanalysis Association, Portugal). Thus, we would like to express our gratitude to all our invitees. This volume is composed by the abstracts of the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT 2016), organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (W.I.A.R.S.). This conference addresses different categories inside Applied Psychology area and papers fit broadly into one of the named themes and sub-themes. To develop the conference program six main broad-ranging categories had been chosen, which also cover different interest areas: (1) In CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY: Emotions and related psychological processes; Assessment; Psychotherapy and counseling; Addictive behaviors; Eating disorders; Personality disorders; Quality of life and mental health; Communication within relationships; Services of mental health; and Psychopathology. (2) In EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY: Language and cognitive processes; School environment and childhood disorders; Parenting and parenting related processes; Learning and technology; Psychology in schools; Intelligence and creativity; Motivation in classroom; Perspectives on teaching; Assessment and evaluation; and Individual differences in learning. (3) In SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: Cross-cultural dimensions of mental disorders; Employment issues and training; Organizational psychology; Psychology in politics and international issues; Social factors in adolescence and its development; Social anxiety and self-esteem; Immigration and social policy; Self-efficacy and identity development; Parenting and social support; and Addiction and stigmatization. (4) In LEGAL PSYCHOLOGY: Violence and trauma; Mass-media and aggression; Intra-familial violence; Juvenile delinquency; Aggressive behavior in childhood; Internet offending; Working with crime perpetrators; Forensic psychology; Violent risk assessment; and Law enforcement and stress. (5) In COGNITIVE AND EXPERIMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY: Perception, memory and attention; Decision making and problem-solving; Concept formation, reasoning and judgment; Language processing; Learning skills and education; Cognitive Neuroscience; Computer analogies and information processing (Artificial Intelligence and computer simulations); Social and cultural factors in the cognitive approach; Experimental methods, research and statistics; and Biopsychology. (6) In PSYCHOANALYSIS AND PSYCHOANALYTICAL PSYCHOTHERAPY: Psychoanalysis and psychology; The unconscious; The Oedipus complex; Psychoanalysis of children; Pathological mourning; Addictive personalities; Borderline organizations; Narcissistic personalities; Anxiety and phobias; Psychosis; Neuropsychoanalysis. The proceedings contain the results of the research and developments conducted by authors who focused on what they are passionate about: to promote growth in research methods intimately related to Psychology and its applications. It includes an extensive variety of contributors and presenters by sharing their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. Authors will be invited to publish extended contributions for a book to be published by inScience Press. We would like to express thanks to all the authors and participants, the members of the academic scientific committee, partners and, of course, to the organizing and administration team for making and putting this conference together. (Individual papers contain references.) [Abstract modified to meet ERIC guidelines.]

The conflict in Ukraine has determined significant shifts in European defence and security paradigms. This paper focuses on the European Union (EU) has reacted to the crisis on its borders, examining the evolution of EU defence spending, procurement policies, and cooperation agreements in the wake of the conflict, analysing the impact on both individual member states and collective EU initiatives. The aim of this paper is to examine how the conflict in Ukraine influenced the European Union countries in terms of defence spending and defence policies. The objectives of the paper consist in identifying the main changes in the defence expenditures of the European Union Countries, overall and in terms of destination of expenditures and highlighting the main changes on terms of procurement policies and cooperation agreements generated by the events in Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the directives of the European Union on the fight against money laundering and financing of terrorism (AMLD) as one of the key measures of the European Union in the fight against international terrorism after September 11, 2001, from the aspect of respect for human rights. Through various revisions, from the first AMLD to the most recent, this legislative framework has been progressively improved to respond to emerging challenges in the financial world and to strengthen the fight against financial crimes. In the paper, a special research focus is given to solutions to the "security vs. human rights" and problems in the implementation of AMLD. The results of the analysis show that the European Union is developing the AMLD measure regarding the dilemma "security vs. human rights" found an adequate balance, i.e. AMLD is continuously developing in such a way that it respects human rights while not jeopardizing the effectiveness of protecting democratic societies within the EU and accepted common values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document contains the agenda and papers presented at the Agora IX meeting in Thessaloniki, Greece in June 2000 on alternative education and training processes. The papers are "Integration of Migrant Pupils in the Danish Education System" (Bang); "Support Services for Inclusive Education" (De Vroey); "Single Sex Schooling or Coeducation?" (Schrodt); "Serving the Needs of Gifted Individuals: The Optimal Match Model" (Monks); "The Common Culture Needed for the Democratic Transformation of Schools" (Rochex); "Danish Production Schools" (Ljung); "A Review of the Training Workshops and Craft Centres in Extremadura" (Lucas); "Combating Social and Economic Exclusion" (Brodigan); "The Irish Leaving Certificate Applied: Trojan Horse or Contrived Equilibrium?" (Gleeson); "Contribution of Mr. Manfred Schneider from the BBJ-Unternehmensgruppe" (Manfred Schneider); "Strategies to Combat Failure at School: A Comparison of Italian and European Experiences" (Montedoro); "Nightriders Tailoring Training to Young People's Lifestyles" (Lavelle); "Comprehensive Education or Removal of Pupils: The Dilemma Facing Education Systems in Responding to School Failure" (Casal); "The New Skills Approach The Roles of those Involved' (Rue); "The Relationship Between Centralised and Decentralised Learning in Vocational Training" (Vogel); "Company Role and Responsibility in Education and Training" (Suomalainen); and "The Role of Local Authorities in the Integration of Disadvantaged Young People in Germany" (Schlegel). The document contains a list of event participants. (SLR/CL)

The digital age is characterized by the increasing availability and pervasiveness of electronic communication products and services. These advancements, epitomized by the Internet, greatly increase the speed and efficiency of transactions and catalyze productivity and economic growth. The architecture of the Internet separates content from ownership on the network and allows for application and service providers to lie beyond the jurisdiction of national rules and regulations (Bach 2001). While characteristics of the Internet appear to make this technology “borderless,” our geo-political global makeup, the backbone of the law, remains delineated in terms of sovereign nations. These nations follow vastly different approaches in their attempt to regulate the Internet and the digital economy. Thus, while the Internet can be viewed as a global network, national governments have different standards for the treatment of personal information and identifiers. This essay first explores the cross-border variation in privacy protection in the United States and European Union, and discusses major regulatory initiatives implemented by both regions, including the EU Data Directive and the US Patriot Act. Theoretical analysis of privacy protection is offered to explain the considerable variation between the different regimes. An examination of the regulatory spillover in the travel industry with regard to passenger information concludes the practical analysis of this paper. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today the concept of e-commerce has become commonly used, and e-commerce has become an integral part of commercial transactions. An increase in the number of global Internet users is the driver of increase in the number of e-commerce transactions. The introduction and role of e-commerce is not well-understood by any manager of a small and medium enterprise. It takes time and money to introduce e-commerce in business, especially in retailing. Enterprise managers need a clear e-commerce introduction strategy to see the potential benefits. The introduction of e-commerce requires a supportive environment affected by various factors. The pace of factor development depends on each country’s ability to take appropriate measures to shape the environment. Latvia and the European Union (EU) have developed policy documents and a relevant legal framework as well as introduced support programs to contribute to an environment conducive to e-commerce in retailing. In Latvia, businesspersons have access to various e-commerce platforms for retail. Research methods. The present research employed general research methods, logical construction as well as analysis and synthesis. The research period: data were analyzed for the period from 2010 to 2020. The sources of information used: specific economic literature, research documents and scientific conference papers, World Data, EU legal documents, Eurostat data, World Trade Organization data, laws of the Republic of Latvia, data from the Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia as well as eBay, Amazon, Etsy and website ss.com data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our contribution focuses on synchronous oral telecollaboration in secondary schools. With reference to the EU project TILA, aspects of task design and implementation are discussed against the backdrop of issues of technological quality in connection with class organisation in computer labs. Case study evidence is provided in favour of the integration of telecollaborative out-of-class activities. [For full proceedings, see ED565087.]

Lexical competence constitutes a crucial aspect in L2 learning, since building a rich repository of words is considered indispensable for successful communication. CALL practitioners have experimented with various kinds of computer-mediated glosses to facilitate L2 vocabulary building in the context of incidental vocabulary learning. Intentional learning, on the other hand, is generally underestimated, since it is considered out of fashion and not in line with the communicative L2 learning paradigm. Yet, work is still being done in this area and a substantial body of research indicates that the usefulness of incidental vocabulary learning does not exclude the use of dedicated vocabulary study and that by using aids explicitly geared to building vocabularies (such as word lists and word cards), L2 learners exhibit good retention rates and faster learning gains. Intentional vocabulary study should, therefore, have its place in the instructional and learning context. Regardless of the approach, incidental or intentional, the crucial question with respect to vocabulary teaching/learning remains: which and how many words should we teach/learn at different language levels? An attempt to answer the above question was made within the framework of the EU-funded project titled "KELLY" (Keywords for Language Learning for Young and Adults Alike) presented here. The project aimed at building corpus-informed vocabulary lists for L2 learners ranging from A1 to C2 levels for nine languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, Greek, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Russian and Swedish. [For the complete volume, see ED574893.]

In recognition of the status of the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai as a platform for exchange of ideas and experience in lifelong learning, UNESCO, the Shanghai Municipal People's Government, the Chinese Society of Educational Development Strategy and the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO joined forces to co-organise the Shanghai International Forum on Lifelong Learning from 19-21 May 2010, during the World Expo. The aim of the Forum was twofold: to reinforce the momentum for lifelong learning engendered by the Sixth International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VI), held in Belem do Para in Brazil in December 2009; and to share Member States' best practice in harnessing the lifelong learning discourse as a comprehensive course of action for establishing learning systems and societies. The three-day Forum was successful in many respects. It brought together more than 200 dedicated participants from 35 countries and a truly remarkable group of experts from across the world, who contributed to developing learning concepts and practices within a lifelong learning perspective. The Forum offered a unique opportunity for practitioners, policy-makers, advocates and academics alike to share experience and achievements, and to debate the crucial issues facing education today in a series of plenary sessions, thematic debates and visits to World Expo and lifelong learning institutions in Shanghai. The 24 papers collected in this book document the rich debates and exciting discussions in the Forum. These papers include: (1) Discovering the treasure of learning (Roberto Carneiro); (2) Evolution of and perspectives on lifelong learning (Adama Ouane); (3) Lifelong learning: moving beyond Education for All (EFA) (Rosa Maria Torres); (4) Revisiting the classics: The necessary return to research on the teaching-learning relationship in modern China (Ye Lan); (5) The development of an institutional framework of lifelong learning in China (Hao Keming); (6) The development of lifelong learning policy in the United States of America (Brenda Dann-Messier); (7) Better city, better life! Lifelong learning with Canadian characteristics (Roger Boshier); (8) Policy developments towards lifelong learning in the European Union (Heribert Hinzen); (9) Policy framework designed to build a learning society in Thailand (Kasama Varavarn); (10) Lifelong learning and connected-up development: insights from South Africa (Shirley Walters); (11) Improving coordination between formal education and non-formal education in the domain of lifelong learning in Benin (Abdel Rahamane Baba-Moussa); (12) Promoting the quality of adult non-formal education and lifelong learning in Tanzania: policy, practice, challenges and prospects (Salum R. Mnjagila); (13) A review of Mexico's lifelong learning model (Juan de Dios Castro); (14) Sharing innovative practices in financing lifelong learning in the Philippines (Ma. Eloisa M. Ramirez); (15) Using research to guide policy frameworks for building a learning society in the United States of America (Judith Alamprese); (16) Distance education: ends, means, opportunities and threats (John Daniel); (17) The new paradigm of lifelong learning and the construction of a new learning media market--informal and non-standard learning platform for all (Kang Ning); (18) Reflections on the value of higher education in lifelong learning (Han Yanming); (19) Introduction to building a learning city (Han SoongHee); (20) Constructing a learning society for "better city, better life": Shanghai's experience (Li Junxiu); (21) Development of lifelong learning and promotion of the construction of a learning city in Changzhou (Ju Liqin); (22) Lifelong education of farmers in the context of coordinated urban-rural development in China (Hong Fuzeng); (23) Lifelong learning and industry development--the practice of the machinery industry (Tu Zhonghua); and (24) Summary report of Shanghai International Forum on Lifelong Learning (Manzoor Ahmed). Individual papers contain figures, tables, references and bibliographies.

The most important issue that Turkey has been dealing with since the beginning of 2000s is the entrance to the European Union and the preparatory activities for this period. No what how it is evaluated, as an opportunity or a threat to which will break us off our cultural values, EU is a reality that our country faces. The programs such as FORCE, PETRA, COMETT and EUROTECHNET are the first programs which are implemented by the European Union at the beginning of 1980s. As the results were positive, European Union decided that the programs should go on and they decided that they should be brought together under the programs of "Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci". The first implementations of these programs were carried out between 1995 and 1999 and they are being currently implemented. In this study which is called "The Ideas of the Students of Education Faculty about the European Union Education and Youth Programs", the ideas of the students about these programs were searched for and their knowledge about these programs were uncovered. Scanning model was used in this study. Two question were asked to the students and they are: "What do you think about the entrance of Turkey to the European Union?" and "What do you know about European Union Education and Youth Programs?". 36,7% of the students mentioned that they are skeptical about entering the European Union and 34,2% said that they did not approve of Turkey's entering the European Union. Among the reasons of disapproval of entrance to the Union are the ideas that our cultural values will be degenerated, that the solitary state of our country will be damaged, that European Union is biased against our country and that the period of entrance to the union is ambiguous and too long. It has been found out the students of Kastamonu University are negative against entering the European Union. 48,3% of the students at Kastamonu University and 42,9% of the students at Gazi University mentioned that they did not know anything about the Education Programs. It has been seen that the female students are more knowledgeable about the programs than the male students. The students of the third year grade were found out to be more knowledgeable about the programs.

Many European governments associate improving literacy with providing development assistance to regions like Africa and Asia from which the majority of the world's 774 million illiterates come. As school attendance is compulsory in the region, it is assumed that the Education for All (EFA) goals have been achieved and literacy is therefore not deemed a priority concern. It is in this context that the Institute and its partners, the Agence Nationale de Lutte Contre L'Illettrisme (ANLCI) and the UNESCO French National Commission, organized a Regional Meeting on "Literacy and the Promotion of Citizenship: The Challenge of Learning" from 2-5 April 2005 in Lyon, France. With the support of the European Union and the involvement of the European Association of Education of Adults (EAEA), it brought together 145 participants representing governments, research institutes and universities, non-government organizations, and public and private literacy providers. This publication brings together the main presentations from that meeting, and as such documents the diversity of literacy-related thinking and practice in the region. This publication begins with a foreword by Adama Ouane and contains the following papers: (1) Literacies for Active Citizenships (Evangelos Intzidis and Eleni Karantzola); (2) Literacy and Social Inclusion in Ireland and the European Union (Inez Bailey); (3) Young Adults, Gender and Literacy: A UK Perspective (Bethia McNeil); (4) Ensuring Quality in Literacy: Populations, Practices, Pedagogy and Professionalism (Ursula Howard); (5) Assessing Low Levels of Literacy: The Case of France (Jean-Pierre Jeantheau); (6) Basic skills education for the Turkish Roma population (Maria Simion); (7) Social Integration through Literacy: The Example of Romas in Bulgaria (Maria Todorova); (8) Literacy for Migrants: The Nordic Example (Qarin Franker); (9) Interventions for the Imprisoned Populations in Greece (Dimitrios Bekiaridis-Moschou); (10) Professional Development Training Staff in Austria (Antje Doberer-Bey); (11) Ensuring Learners' Participation: The Experience of Frontier College (John O'Leary); (12) Ensuring Learners' Participation Workshop Skills for Life in England (Andrew Nelson); (13) Workplace Basic Education in Ireland (Inez Bailey and Helen Ryan); (14) The Role of Municipalities in Literacy (Rosa M. Falgas i Casanovas); (15) From Adult Learners' Week to Local Education Plan (Lidwien Vos de Wael); (16) Literacy and Numeracy in Local Communities (Jan Eldred); (17) Libraries as an Open Space for Further Education (Barbora Horavova); (18) Illiterates Online! Learning reading and writing via internet? (Ralf Kellershohn); and (19) Literacy through ICTs (Helen Ryan). Individual papers contain tables, footnotes, notes, endnotes, appendices and references. [Additional funding for this paper was provided by French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Conseil general du Rhone, and Trace Element Institut pour l'UNESCO, and Ecole nationale superieure des sciences.]

This document contains the agenda and papers on work and training presented at the Agora VII meeting in Thessaloniki, Greece in October, 1999. The Foreword describes each session with a list of the topics and papers, along with a brief introduction to the topics. The three sessions are: Work and Training in Society in the 21st Century; Working Time and Training Time Inside and Outside the Enterprise Management of People and Skills; and Working Time and Training Time in the Course of Life. The papers are "To What Extent is Work Also Training?" (Johan van Rens); "Learning: Where, When, and How?" (Eric Fries Guggenheim); "The Place of Work and Education in Contemporary Society" (Juan Jose Castillo); "Crisis in the Traditions for Admission to Training"(Jorgen Mork); "The OECD's Thematic Review on Adult Learning. The Themes Under Review" (Patrick Werquin); "The Contexts of Training" (Saul Meghnagi); "Training in the Context of Reduced Working Hours" (Jacques Trautmann); "The Future of the Relationship Between Working Time and Learning Time" (Klaus Schedler); "Working Time, Education Time and Social Capital" (Tom Schuller); "Synthesis of the Work" (Andre Kirchberger). The document also contains a list of event participants and a bibliography. (SLR)

This document contains 13 papers from an international conference on new approaches to and implementation of lifelong vocational education and training (VET) and technical and vocational education and training (TVET). The document begins with two keynote speeches and five topic presentations, which are titled as follows: "Current Issues Regarding the Future of Work and the Reform of TVET" (Rupert Maclean); "Tasks for the Realization of a Life-Long Learning Society" (Moo-Kee Bae); "Improving Systems to Provide VET through One's Lifetime" (Helmut Putz); "Information and Communication Technology in Vocational Education and Training" (Morgan V. Lewis); "Assessment and Recognition of Learning and Training--Approaches in the European Union" (Anders Nilsson); "Financing Mechanisms for VET" (Gregory Wurzburg); and "TVET Institution-Industry Partnership: The Colombo Plan Region" (Shyamal Majumdar). Presented next are nine country-specific case studies, including three devoted to lifelong learning in Korea. The case studies are titled as follows: "Germany" (Gisela Dybowski); "France" (Hugues Bertrand); "Australia" (Tom Karmel, John Stanwick); "United Kingdom" (Brendan Barker); "China" (Zuguang Yu); "Japan" Shigemi Yahata); "Korea" (Sung-Joon Paik); "Korea: Current Operational Status and Future Direction of CE (Customized Education) in Vocational Colleges" (Sung-Tae Hong); and "Korea: A Case Study on the Business Learning System for Bringing Up a Specialist in Korea" (Gu-Hun Yang). Some papers contain substantial bibliographies. (MN)

This document contains papers from a 2-day meeting on identification, evaluation, and recognition of nonformal learning in the European Union. The following papers are included: "Identification, Assessment, and Recognition of Non-Formal Learning: European Tendencies" (Jens Bjornavold); "Why Measure Human Capital?" (Riel Miller); "Mobility and Social Cohesion" (Eric Fries Guggenheim); "Social Partners' Round Table--Is There Any Consensus on the Validation of Non-Formal Learning and If So, What?" (Eugenio Rosa, Mike Coles, Donald Kerr); "Work-Related Projects on New Methods of Skill Definition and Accreditation: Moves Towards a Personal Skills Medium in the USA and in Europe" (Barbara Jones, Kari Hadjivassiliou); "The Recognition and Validation of Informal Learning in France" (Anne-Marie Charraud); "Finnish Competence-Based Qualifications--Organization, Assessment, and Legitimacy" (Petri Haltia); "Accreditation of Non Formal Learning in the Netherlands" (Marian Nieskens, Ruud Klarus); "Examination of the Requirements for Successful Validation of Vocational Learning--The Issue of Legitimacy" (Jens Bjornavold); "A Few Features of the Situation in France--The Views of CFDT (Confederation Francaise Democratique du Travail) on the Measurement of Informally Acquired Competences" (Jose Danilo); and "Social Partners' Round-Table Discussion: the Validation of Prior Learning: What Can We Build Together?" (Juan Maria Memendez-Valdes, Hjordis Dalsgaard, Nikolaus Bley). A summary of the conference discussions concludes the document. Several papers contain substantial bibliographies. (MN)

This document contains 11 papers from a 2-day meeting on the principles, practice, and effectiveness of Jobrotation, which denotes a European Union program of investing in human capital by giving employees the opportunity to temporarily leave their posts for training without any major disturbance in the production process. The following papers are included: "Foreword: Jobrotation--Employment/Training Rotation--Good Practice in the European Union"; "'Jobrotation' in France: A Pioneering Measure" (Patrick Guilloux); "Jobrotation Development and Dissemination in Europe" (Jens Kruhoffer); "German Experience of Jobrotation: A Case Study" (Monika Kammeier); "Danish Experience of Jobrotation: A Case Study" (Ghita Vejlebo); "Jobrotation Efficiency: Small and Large Companies Compared" (Lizzi Feiler); "Contribution of Mr. Athanasios Papathanasiou, Director of the Technopolis Vocational Training Centre"; "Jobrotation from the Perspective of Enterprises, Employees and Political Decision-Makers--Expectations and Results Illustrated by the Example of 'Jobrotation for the Bremen Region'" (Hubertus Schick); "A Few Danish Comments on the Concept of Jobrotation" (Jorgen Mork); "Jobrotation as a Means of Promoting Innovation and Employment. A Model for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in North Rhine-Westphalia (D)" (Reiner Siebert); and "Synthesis of the Work" (Andre Kirchberger). One paper contains a substantial bibliography. (MN)

These proceedings present 10 presentations and 3 working group reports from a workshop on the challenges of the new learning culture and their consequences for the partner countries of the European Union (EU). "Introduction and Summary of the Workshop" (Bernhard Buck) begins with a brief overview of distinctions between the vocational education and training (VET) system; curriculum development; and standards. The second part contains summaries of the opening remarks, the papers presented, and the discussions held during the workshop as well as outputs from three working groups. Part I has four papers on requirements for curriculum innovation: "The VET System and Qualification Needs of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises" (Edwin G. Nelson); "Against Over-Specialisation and in Favour of Flexibility: The 'Correct' Design of Occupational Profiles" (Marian Piotrowski, Henryk Bednarczyk); "The Role of Social Partners in Curriculum Development" (Haralabos Fragoulis); and "The Integration of Research and Development in Curriculum Innovation" (Pavel Petrovic). Part II on problem solving--the new quality of work and learning consists of six papers: "Problem Solving: How to Manage Uncertainty" (Bernhard Buck); "The Relevance of Key Qualifications in the Transition Process" (Janko Mursak); "Choosing the Internet Approach: 'Learning by Doing'" (Robert Blom); "Problem-Solving Tools in a Learning Organisation" (Paul Olry); "The Implications of Ecological Awareness for Problem Solving" (Hilde Biehler-Baudisch); and "The (Re)Integration of Work and Learning" (Andre Hendrikse). Reports of three working groups discusses the following: the learning environment in VET curriculum innovation; the differences between teachers and trainers; and active methods for learning problem solving and open-structured training materials. Appendixes include a participant list and "Phare Projects on Curriculum Development: What Has Been Achieved" (Helene Jourdan). (YLB)

This section presents conference paper abstracts on technology and innovation management. An empirical study of organizational cognition in semiconductor manufacturing and process development presents evidence that learning in high technology industries can be leveraged. Prolonged, sustained investments in learning at a relatively constant level may generate highly non-linear surges in performance, but performance deteriorates as market windows close. A model of capability reconfiguration is developed in order to explain the responses of incumbents to technological change. Substitution, evolution and transformation are identified as three mechanisms of capability reconfiguration that entail different costs. The choice of reconfiguration mechanism is linked not only to the nature of technological change but also to the attributes of capabilities. The geographic concentration and co-location of university research and industrial research and development in three technological areas, such as medical imaging, neural networks, and signal processing are examined. Another paper examined the relationship between interdivisional knowledge transfer and organizational innovativeness in the context of the diversed firm.

This paper aims to select the AI-based methods that have the potential to be adapted for the assessment of the European Union R&I policy impact on the member states' innovation performance. A structured scientific literature analysis is employed to review the most recent 1,544 papers published in the Web of Science database from 2017 to 2021. The primary findings reveal that there is a growing interest in the usage of artificial and computational intelligence, seeking to improve the decision-making processes. Such methods as Bayesian neural network, fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis, self-organizing neural maps, multi-output neural networks, and data envelopment analysis can be well-applicable for the case of the European Union research and innovation investment efficiency evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union is introducing the concept of the Digital Product Passport (DPP) to the manufacturing industry. The first domain areas are batteries and textiles, but regulation will soon reach all manufacturing domains. In this paper, we briefly discuss the requirements of the DPP and its contributions to the circular economy and sustainable decision making through the product lifecycle and manufacturing value chain. Some preliminary architectural viewpoints are explained, aligned with the intention to exploit the International Data Spaces (IDS) reference architecture for secure data sharing among various actors. A practical way to manage the complex innovation process of how to cocreate and implement the DPP via several iterative minimum viable DPP deployments is also outlined. It contains the proof-of-concept process with the build-measure-learn circles and the sprint model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism has a significant and, for some countries, even a dominant impact on economic growth and more efficient use of natural, technical and human resources. The main goal of the research is to explore the current state of international tourism, and the basic causes of that state, as well as to indicate possible ways of increasing income based on the export of tourist services. The paper will use the descriptive method, the method of specialization and comparison, the methods of analysis and synthesis, as well as the methods of generalization and observation. The main conclusion is that the global Covid-19 pandemic has hit the international tourism sector the hardest, and that it is gradually returning to the pre-crisis level. The paper focuses on the EU and B&H, which has been found to have great possibilities for the growth and development of tourism, especially in the field of rural tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's globalized world, where the consumer mentality leads to economic growth worldwide, transport services are the ones that represent significant opportunities or obstacles for further development. This was best seen when the disruption in transport services in these times of crisis led to further delays in the production of certain products and even shortages of certain products. With regard to the above mentioned, it is clear how important transport services are, so their treatment within the tax system is a very interesting topic, especially within the value added tax system. In the first part of this paper transport services will be defined. Once different types of transport services have been defined, they will be treated within the value added tax system as a general sales tax. In this paper, special attention will be paid to the treatment of freight transport and passenger transport. The primary goal of this paper is to show the differences in value added taxation of transport of goods and passengers in both the Republic of Croatia and EU member states, as well as third countries that are not members of the European Union. The paper will also present the differences in value added taxation when services are provided between two taxpayers, but also in the case when they take place between a taxpayer and the final consumer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]