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The paper discusses the development of Spanish Vocational Education and Training (VET) over the past four decades and the extent to which and ways in which joining the European Economic Communities in 1986 contributed to the transformation of Spain's VET system. The paper is structured in five sections: the justification of our choice of Europeanisation as a theoretical approach, a presentation of the system prior to accession into the European Union (EU), a description of the European VET policy defined in the Bruges-Copenhagen process, and an examination of changes in the Spanish VET at the turn of the century. The relations between the European and Spanish VET policies are then discussed in view of Europeanisation theory, particularly considering their specification in terms of the National Qualification Framework approved in 2002 and the European Qualification Framework (EQF) established in 2008 to examine adaptation and accommodation. The paper finishes by discussing how top-down and bottom-up trends based on the theory of Europeanisation have resulted in the current Spanish VET system adhering to its own national identity while converging with European recommendations.

Purpose: The European Ecolabel (EU Flower) has the mission to encourage cleaner production and influence consumers to promote Europe's transition to a circular economy. Nonetheless, little is known about EU Ecolabel evolution; it is not clear what the drivers that encourage its implementation are. Thus, this study aims to assess the growing acceptance of the EU Ecolabel in the European Union, and Spain more specifically, by examining product and service categories and geographical regions. Methods: The methodological approach taken in this study is a mixed methodology based on the triangulation method by consulting the EU Ecolabel scheme database, EU Ecolabel delegates from some autonomous regions, and the academic literature. Also, a geographic analysis was run in the ArcGIS Software with data about the accumulation of licenses assigned in 2016. Results and discussion: The analysis shows that most products in Spain that have been awarded the EU Ecolabel belong to the following categories: Do-It-Yourself Products (paint and varnish), Paper Products, Cleaning Up Products, and Electronic Equipment. At the same time, the study showed that this ecolabel faces significant obstacles in its diffusion, such as the competition with environmental labels launched previously in Europe and other regional labels. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate the existence of five drivers that may encourage the implementation of EU Flower in a region: (1) public management, (2) communication strategy, (3) sustainable public procurement criteria, (4) local income per capita, and (5) international trade incentives. Finally, this study provides essential recommendations for policymakers to trigger ecolabeling practices such as the need to improve the understanding of the EU ecolabel impact in different levels of activity, which means countries, regions, industrial clusters, firms, and consumers. Also, this investigation identifies areas for further research, and it expresses the need to develop business case studies about ecolabeling with the objective to visualize this phenomenon as an eco-innovation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online courses have become an increasingly attractive format for delivering teacher training. However, the low retention rates are a critical and still unsolved issue. This paper presents the results of a randomized controlled trial aimed at testing the impact of a personalized support model on teachers' retention in online training courses. The support consisted of a package of nine messages triggered by teachers' characteristics and their specific (in)actions on the course platform. The study involved 3,777 lower-secondary education professional and student teachers from nine European Union Member States and Turkey, who were invited to participate in four new online courses in school year 2018/2019. The experimental estimates show that the offered support increased course completion by 10 percentage points among professional teachers in EU Member States, while it had no effects among student teachers nor in Turkey. Implications for online teacher training providers--such as the importance of reaching out to participants with poor online training experience and who do not start the courses in time--are discussed.

This paper examines a large dataset of questionnaire responses (n = 5,321) of international students who have studied abroad (mainly via the Erasmus+ programme). Their acculturation experiences with campus discrimination (an acculturative stressor), academic support (a mediator of acculturation) and academic satisfaction (an outcome of acculturation) are analyzed and compared among five European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Portugal). The measures of acculturation experiences are verified by principal component analysis, which yields three components: campus discrimination, academic support, and academic satisfaction. The components are used as aggregate indexes for ranking the five major destination countries in Europe based on students' experiences. A country-by-country comparison suggests that experiences from study abroad are most positive in Germany

This paper describes the theoretical framework and the main objectives of the European Comenius project MuViT -- Multiliteracy Virtual. The project engages primary pupils across the world in multilingual and audiovisual reading and writing processes through the use of information technology resources to enhance multi-literacies, plurilingual awareness and transcultural understanding. The paper first sketches the necessity of a pedagogy of multi-literacies in our classrooms. In a second step it details on the objectives and tools developed within the Mu-ViT project. Thirdly it illustrates which research questions and activities are connected with the project. A bibliography is included. (Contains 3 figures.)

This paper explores linguistic landscapes and the enactment of public visibility and presence of non-majority linguistic groups in EU member states. Non-majority linguistic groups gain power, visibility and presence through the introduction of bilingual or multilingual signposts on roads, streets, squares, and public buildings in towns and cities where a given linguistic group represents a significant population share. The article offers a comparative analysis of language policies of EU member states regarding enactment of official bilingual or multilingual signs in public space. Twenty EU member states have signed the "European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages," while 17 members have ratified it. In addition, the Charter of Fundamental Rights, an integral party of the Lisbon Treaty, stipulates that language diversity is one of the fundamental values respected by the EU. Hence, this comparative research assesses various practices employed by member states in relation to the proclaimed values of multilingualism. Consequently, the paper depicts and compares different language policies that produce linguistic landscapes in EU member states. Finally, it tries to determine whether there is a convergence towards a common EU policy on bilingual and multilingual signs in public space.

Globalisation, technological changes and the industry-to-service economy transition has produced dramatic changes in the labour market, thus affecting higher education. It is no longer sufficient to provide students with disciplinary knowledge. Graduates are also expected to be adaptive, innovative and flexible. As these competencies are better developed in connection with practice, this implies modifications in the learning design. In this context, work-based learning (WBL) emerges as a relevant approach as it provides students learning experiences oriented for the appreciation of work and practical knowledge. However, several issues still restrain its expansion in the European Union (EU). There is (1) a great disparity in WBL implementation among EU countries which relates to educational cultures, (2) a concentration in certain disciplinary areas such as business and engineering, and (3) a lack of quality assurance. Drawing on reports and materials produced by the Erasmus+ project Integrating Entrepreneurship and Work Experience into Higher Education (WEXHE), this paper explores these issues by identifying differences in the level of implementation as well as design and delivery of WBL in seven EU countries across four disciplinary areas. It then brings forward success factors and drivers instrumental to the further development of better WBL.

The paper aimed to analyze the dynamics of livestock and milk and meat production in the top five EU countries growing sheep and goats: Spain, Romania, Greece, France and Italy. The empirical data from Eurostat and Faostat for the period 2012-2021 were processed using usual methods and procedures like fixed basis and structural indices, trend regression equation, determination coefficient and points method. The comparison between these five countries pointed out the decline of sheep number in four countries, except Romania and the decrease in goats number in Greece and Spain, but an increase in Romania, France and Italy. Ewe milk production increased in three countries, except Spain where it remained relatively constant and Romania where it declined. Goat milk production raised in three countries, except Greece and Romania. Sheep meat output increased in France and Spain, but in the other countries went down, while goat meat output increased only in Spain, the other four states recording a decline. In the year 2021, these five countries all together counted 46.1 million sheep, representing 76.% of the EU sheep livestock, and also they had 9.4 million goats, meaning 82.1% of the EU goats livestock. In 2020, all these countries produced 2.73 million tonnes sheep milk and 1.87 million tonnes goat milk, accounting for 1.7% and respectively 1.16% in the EU milk output. These counties also contributed by 85% to the EU sheep and goat meat production. This reflects the importance of small ruminants in the EU animal livestock and production. These species have to help the EU for greening agriculture, as they could valorize natural resources from the mountains and less favored areas and also could be grown in organic farming system, assuring jobs and income to the local population, food security and at the same time contributing to the biodiversity preservation and production of renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, the "Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency" (2012) have funded programmes designed to advance European citizenship and citizen competences through education. This paper reports on the findings from one project, Creative Connections, designed to encourage the "voices" of young people in exploring European identities. Children (aged 9-16) in 25 schools in six European Union (EU) countries (UK, Finland, Spain, Czech Republic, Portugal and Ireland) developed artworks that explored perceptions of European citizenship. Their art was posted on a secure website and they discussed images with peers using automatic online translated blogs. The project facilitated representations of identity/belonging using a range of media. However, some artworks suggested that children were alienated from "Europe", particularly EU responses to global austerity. This paper uses the theory of "precarity" to examine the ways in which the children expressed their concerns. Some artworks suggest that recent economic and political decisions have had the effect of challenging a sense of shared European citizenship; they resist a positive sense of identification with Europe and demonstrate fear for their future based on their current lives. This indicates that the EU's educational goals to promote citizenship competences may require revision to account for the challenges of contemporary societies.

Multicultural European societies increasingly demand internationally oriented citizens, who are willing to actively participate in civic life and able to successfully access the labour market. The European dimension in education supposedly endows youngsters with civic values, multiculturalist attitudes and plurilingual competences which ultimately lead to raising awareness of their Europeanness. Formative years at university, pivotal to students' individual life course and projects, are a decisive stage in the development of supranational, collective identity-formation. Similarly, pan-European study programmes are aimed at inspiring a sense of European citizenship and identity, the most renowned of which within the Higher Education context is Erasmus+. By conducting focus group interviews, this paper probes Andalusian university students' understanding of their European identity and verifies the causal dynamics between European identity-taking and foreign country sojourns, comparing the perceptions expressed by returnees to those by students who have not had the opportunity to participate in international study programmes (ISP) at higher education yet. Results evidence students' apparent supranational orientation, general awareness of commonalities across Europe and utilitarian outlooks on the EU, although not a clear discernment of its institutions or a marked European identity.

This paper seeks to compare the evolution of inclusive education policy in the four countries of an EU-funded research project (QualiTYDES) operating under the shared policy environment of the UN, EU and European Commission. A shared policy cannot of course be assumed to result in common legislative or provisional outcomes at national level. The different sociocultural, political, historical and economic contexts in each country shape its journey towards "compliance" with an international convention (both pre-and post-ratification), and neither the route nor the destination can be assumed to be shared, given the scope for different interpretations of the same texts. This paper places the implementation trajectories of four European countries side by side as they attempt to move towards "inclusive" education systems. Following a brief overview of the international education policy environment relating to the education of people with disabilities, we describe the national education policy responses in Ireland, Austria, Spain and Czech Republic in recent decades, including both legislation pertaining to special educational need and implementation of policies in practice. The comparison highlights the different manifestations of inclusive education current in each country, and also explores the challenges which have arisen as individual countries attempt to align international policy with provision in existing education systems, each with their own legacy interests, pressures and priorities. Examples of "gaps" in this alignment are where learners with disabilities/SEN are likely to be failed, and represent the critical points at which barriers to fully inclusive education arise and negatively impact opportunity over the life course.

Copyright of Security: Theory & Practice / Bezpieczeństwo.Teoria i Praktyka is the property of Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski Krakow University, AFM Publishing Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper addresses attitudes around the projection of the EU among Latin American elites, namely the determinants of support for a Free Trade Agreement between the two regions and the trustworthiness of the EU government. We take as data elite surveys conducted in 15 Latin American countries (2014–2019) and consider sociodemographics, ideology, support for democracy, views of foreign powers, exports to the EU, and electoral democracy. Results show that ideology and support for democracy are key determinants of support for an interregional FTA, and that the trustworthiness of governments in the US, China, and Spain covary with attitudes toward the EU. The latter (trust in the government in Spain) proves to be the main driver and, furthermore, its impact is conditional on the economic strength (observed as exports) of the EU: wherever the EU is not a strong economic actor in Latin America, trust in the Spanish government does nothing but improve the image of the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of learning outcomes is at the heart of many research programmes and policy responses. International surveys (from the International Adult Literacy Survey, back in the mid-nineties, to the forthcoming Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes two OECD surveys), National Qualifications Frameworks or the European Qualifications Framework engineered by the European Commission and the most recent laws and policies on recognition of non-formal and informal learning outcomes (RNFILO), all rely on the concept of learning outcomes. This paper claims that it is no coincidence that the concept of learning outcomes is at the core of these seemingly unrelated policies, programmes and research projects. Learning outcomes provide a base for equitable assessment in the world of education and lifelong learning. Learning outcomes also are relevant to the labour market and the expectations of end-users such as employers. It also claims that, beyond the hype and some misunderstanding, approaches relying on learning outcomes bring more equity to the world of education and training and to the world of work. This paper aims at focusing on RNFILO as a policy tool, and insists on possible applications and policy implementation. It proposes a definition of the key terms, a possible rationale for organising recognition programmes, and a list of pros and cons for doing so. (Contains 5 notes.)

This paper explores the differential influence of government ideology and education governance on the gender policies of socialist and conservative administrations in Spain from 1983 onwards.The first national policies which favoured equal rights for men and women in education, employment, and social and political life were developed under a European framework and promoted by the National Institute for Women, and governments of the autonomous communities. This was followed by a national policy strategy for gender which initially focused on education but whose influence gradually weakened. The situation changed once more in 2004 when the new socialist government developed a range of policies to promote equal opportunities for men and women. The paper closes with a reflection on how policy on gender equity developed in Spain between 1970 and the present, and the impact of different political ideologies and discourses on that process. It is argued that while policy researchers have long emphasised the impact of government ideology on educational policy and governance (e.g. Lingard and Ozga, 2007; Fullan 2001; Fullan et al., 1997), there are few analyses ofthe impact of different forms of ideology and governance on gender policy-making, of which the study reported in this paper is an example.

The role of work-based learning is a pivotal part of developing the learning region. With rates of employment at their highest for many years across Europe, the need for up-skilling the workforce in many areas will be essential to retain competitiveness and employability. This paper will focus on quality management up-skilling in small to medium-size enterprises (SMEs) in five European countries. Recent statistics indicate that the role of quality management has become critical to the SME if they are to survive in the current economic climate. Results have shown time and again that a result of successful application of quality tools in any company is an increase in productivity, profitability, and customer satisfaction. Key to the successful delivery of these quality management systems are the skills and aptitudes of the person responsible for their deployment, the quality manager. However it remains to be determined what makes up the key behaviors and characteristics that indicate an individual is at the level of "expert" practitioner and, if there are differences in opinion, to what extent. Also investigated are attitudes to requisite levels of education attainment for expert denomination and finally, whether the importance of expertise in other domains of practice is comparable between countries participating in the study (Ireland, Spain, Greece, Poland, and Sweden). The method of research chosen was qualitative interviews with senior management in SMEs in 20 companies across five countries. The rationale for the research design, method, and dissemination are discussed and an inventory of the characteristics deemed to qualify the practitioner as expert was then taken from the results. This was then compared across the participating countries. The paper concludes with recommendations for how educational institutions can facilitate full-time employees in achieving and maintaining the status of "domain expert" and also recommends a strategy for future research into the effects of culture on attribution of key behaviors and characteristics on the novice-to-expert trajectory deemed critical to fluid mobility of highly skilled employees, a critical component in support of the learning region. (Contains 1 figure, 1 table, and 3 notes.)

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss the use of virtual learning environments in multicultural higher education of two different subjects: foreign language and marketing. Design/methodology/approach: The paper describes the aims, development and results of an interdisciplinary collaboration project was held between two European universities through a webCT system, where students had to work on linguistic aspects and economic and management topics. Findings: Univariate analysis shows students to have a great interest in the project. Different multivariate techniques determine a strong positive relationship between students' participation, implication and motivation in the project and their individual final grades in the course. Regression also proved that the more exciting and challenging the class activities, and the higher the student's active participation, the better the results obtained by the student. Research limitations/implications: Even if it is an exploratory research that should be replicated in other contexts, both the qualitative and quantitative results seem to confirm the positive contribution of this interdisciplinary e-learning activity to the multicultural teaching-learning process. Originality/value: Results support the positive influence of interdisciplinary activities in the students' performance and the use of learning methods that facilitate active and cooperative learning through audiovisual pedagogical resources in multicultural contexts. (Contains 8 tables.)

Education is the main vehicle for empowering adults, and can contribute to community wellbeing. However, regarding mature adults (MAs) (over 45 years old), age has been identified in various studies as a significant barrier to accessing educational activities. This paper focuses on MAs' motivations to learn through an exploratory survey undertaken in six European countries. A K-means cluster analysis based on 16 variables has been run on n = 846 valid cases. Four clusters describing distinctive behaviours and attitudes of MAs towards learning activities were identified. The study confirms that MAs' motivations to learn are very diverse, overcoming some of the so-called "myths of global aging," such as the homogeneity of MAs or the correlation between age and a decline in motivation to learn. Furthermore, analysing the main motivations of MA learners can be useful for adapting education to cater to their specific needs, boosting a more inclusive education, and promoting MAs' empowerment.

At its inception in 1993, the European Union (EU) did not consider education one of the pillars of its regional cohesiveness and identity. As time went by, recognition of the potential role of education at individual and social levels increased. This concern for education, however, is much more centred on the acquisition of knowledge and skills towards developing a competitive labour force than towards facilitating the integration of all citizens in the European community--a bias which is reflected in EU policies and recommendations. At local levels, communities need to offer educational opportunities to all members of society, irrespective of their social, cultural and linguistic background and their level of education. In many EU member countries, this kind of learning is offered by "popular universities" (PUs), which are not state-funded and run in close collaboration with their respective local communities. The authors of this paper carried out a qualitative survey, collecting data on PUs in Spain and France. Their purpose was to examine how European PU offerings align with community needs, and to what extent they address emerging issues such as immigration, the refugee crisis, an aging population and youth unemployment. In the evaluation of their comparative survey, the authors link the grassroots approaches of PUs in Spain and France to the broader European Union (EU) discourse on lifelong learning (LLL) as seen in policy documents such as the European Commission's "Memorandum on Lifelong Learning". Finally, they examine the ways in which PUs' approach to LLL works to contest the dominant consensus on the meaning and scope of lifelong learning, offering an alternative way forward.

In this paper we explore the views and opinions of four secondary education science teachers regarding the teaching of scientific competences. Their views were gathered in the context of a training programme in which they had to design, implement, and assess their own teaching unit for developing students' scientific competences by means of context-based learning. Analysis of the data yielded a set of 14 categories distributed across 5 areas: scientific competence and context-based teaching; the teacher and his/her professional environment; implementation in the classroom; development of the teaching unit; and assessment. This process also identified the aspects which teachers believed either facilitated or acted as an obstacle to the development of scientific competences through context-based teaching. We discuss the implications of our findings and suggest ways in which a shift towards a context-based approach to teaching scientific competences can best be achieved, and consider a series of factors related to teachers' professional identity that may influence this process.

The paper analyzed the trends and relationships in the EU ewes and goats livestock and milk output in the period 2010-2018 based on Eurostat Data using the fixed basis index, descriptive statistics, average yearly growth rate, Bravais- Pearson correlation coefficients, determination coefficient and regression models. The results attested the important contribution given by the two species to the EU milk sector in order to diversify cheese varieties and stimulate consumption and export. While sheep livestock declined in general, and the goats population increased, ewes and goats' milk delivered to dairy industry increased. In the decreasing order, the main EU countries raising sheep are Spain, Romania, Greece, Italy and France, and the main countries growing goats are Greece, Spain, Romania, France, Italy and Netherlands. Raw milk production increased in case of the both species in many countries. Ewe milk is mainly produced in Greece, Spain, Italy and France, while goat milk is especially produced in France, Spain, Netherlands and Greece. The diverse policies, management and marketing and production performance from a country to another pointed out the need to improve farmers skills in resources, livestock and production management, to encourage them to join in associations to benefit of low-price inputs and a direct access to market. The coupled aids financed by the EU are incentives to sustain sheep and goat farming and dairy sector, farmers' income, the valorization of the natural resources, the development of the disadvantaged rural and peri-urban areas, animal health and welfare, environment quality and biodiversity, and the offer of organic dairy products to consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Water & Landscape (WAL) / Agua & Territorio (AYT) is the property of Editorial de la Universidad de Jaen and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract The main aim of this study was to analyse scientific and energy production, funding, collaboration among countries and most cited papers on the renewable energies topic through bibliometric and social network study of articles included in the Web of Science database. 12,167 papers were recovered from 2007 to 2016. Wind power is the energy from which a greater number of articles have been published (n = 3,930), followed by solar energy (n = 2,570) and ocean energy (n = 1,565). The United States leads the world production of articles (n = 2,320), followed by China (n = 1,629), the United Kingdom (n = 1007), Germany (n = 730) and Spain (n = 729). China is the leading country in financed works (80%), followed by South Korea (77%), Spain (61%) and the United States (59%). An important level of international collaboration has been identified, notably popping up the triangle made by United States, China and the European Union. Highlights • Scientific study based in the analysis of the energy production, funding and collaboration among countries. • Wind power is the energy from which a greater number of articles have been published. • The United States leads the world production of articles. • China is the leading country in financed works. • The triangle made by United States, China and the European Union have the most important level of collaboration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the (re)interpretation of migration networks on the move following the European Union (EU) enlargement towards eastern Europe, which affected people's mobility in time–space. The paper poses two questions: are one or more migration networks engaged in this mobility? Is it possible to rethink migration networks in the context of mobility? Drawing on 60 in‐depth interviews with Romanians in Spain, my novel argument is that even while on they move people construct dynamic and multifaceted networks situated between encounter and difference that transcend their distinctive features and complement each other: 'associative networks' grouped around migrant associations; 'professional networks' articulated around the institutions that represent Romania in Spain; and 'global networks of encounter' that include highly mobile young people. The conclusions emphasize that the notion of migration networks on the move can be rethought by taking a transformative approach that overcomes differences and seeks interconnective synergy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) has been identified by the EU as a powerful resource capable of making substantial contributions to energy savings and reducing GHG emissions. Spain's effort to promote CHP has been prolific since the 1980s. In this regard, there have been various Laws, Royal Decrees (RDs) and European Union (EU) Directives addressed to reach the national objectives set for the CHP sector. Despite these attempts, the evolution and growth of installed CHP capacity has been irregular, compared to other technologies. Likewise, the academic treatment of the Spanish CHP evolution has not deserved the same attention as other technologies such as wind, photovoltaic and thermal solar systems. As a result, this article is aimed at providing a comprehensive overview of the regulatory frameworks applied to the Spanish CHP sector and analysing the reasons behind the variable evolution of the installed CHP capacity. The study covers the legislative context from 1980 to 2020, describing the evolution during both the pre-liberalization and liberalization periods, highlighting the modifications in economic policies that affected self-producers and the so-called Special Regime (SR) for CHP, and examining the challenges faced during the cost containment measures that followed. The manuscript finds and explains the connection between the regulatory framework and the evolution of installed CHP capacity in Spain. Likewise, the connection between the industrial situation and the promotion of CHP, as well as the influence of the Spanish Electricity Sector (SES)'s liberalization on the CHP sector are also pointed out. The paper intends to provide valuable insights for CHP experts and policymakers by showcasing the importance of aligning regulatory measures with the objectives of energy efficiency. It also serves as a reference for countries in various stages of promoting CHP, and provides evidence for the importance of stable energy-policy control mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews some academic works on fake news published in Spain in the last seven years, a period in which the 2016 and 2020 US elections and the COVID-19 pandemic marked a turning point in the 'era of disinformation', a term that the European Union (EU) describes as "verifiably false or misleading information that is created, presented and disseminated for profit or to deliberately mislead the public, and is likely to cause public harm". Methodology: Some of the most relevant academic articles on fake news published from 2016 to the present were analysed. Results: In the last seven years, hoaxes and fake news have become even more sophisticated—including audiovisual materials, known as deep fakes—and constitute a political and social concern of the first order insofar as they threaten democratic life and social harmony in all countries. Conclusions: Although it is not a phenomenon specific to the media, since it has found its natural medium in social networks and the Internet, disinformation—which polarises society and fosters hatred—once again calls into question the role of journalism in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catalan companies have, until very recently, had the Spanish-speaking world as their main market. Following long periods of legal and official repression of the public and commercial use of Catalan, globalisation now places them in a new, multilingual context that makes feasible the use of Catalan alongside that of other languages. This paper describes in what ways Catalan companies (whether or not exporters to the rest of Spain and/on the rest of the world) include the use of Catalan alongside other languages. The study reports on the ELAN.cat project, a partial replication of the EU-wide study of exporting firms conducted by Hagen. About 1071 Catalan firms were investigated, of which a third were exporters to markets outside Spain. Five hypotheses were tested, relating the management of multilingualism, company ownership and the main market, with the use of Catalan. The use of Catalan was found to be so widespread within companies that it failed to act as a discriminating variable in several of the hypotheses; in several cases, the correlation was negative. Low levels of awareness of the need for intercultural training were also detected. The implications of the results for the international competitiveness of Catalan firms are briefly discussed.

A crucial issue in the European Union (EU) is which policies should be regulated by EU and which ones by national governments. Given this situation it is interesting to study the citizens' preference for the level of political decision making. The interest of the paper is mainly empirical, which consists in the creation of a measure for supranationalism decision making from different measured policies and to study how personal variables affect the level of political decision. A combination of Item response theory (IRT) and structural equation modeling (SEM) will be used. IRT is useful to discover whether a cumulative scale for different policies exists, and SEM will be used as validity of the supranationalism scale. Multiple group Confirmatory Factor analysis taking into account invariance tests will be used to compare the differences within gender, age, education and political trust with supranationalism scale. A whole model combining all these predictors and the supranationalism scale can be done using multiple input multiple cause-MIMIC models. The application is based on Spanish data from the European Social Survey. Differences in education and age on the level of political decision making are found. The combination of IRT and SEM methods it of great interest in the case is the researcher wants to fulfill both goals, creating the construct for supranationalism and validation of the model.

There is a growing literature on the assessment of quality of life conditions in geographically and/or politically divided regions. Sometimes these territories are countries within a specified supranational structure, such as the European Union, for instance, and sometimes they are regions within countries. There is also some research that focuses on the municipal level of analysis, measuring the quality of life in cities. In the end what the researcher obtains is, at best, an average of the living conditions in the specified territory. However, if results are intended to have policy implications, attention should be paid to the variance in living conditions within regions. In this paper we attempt to quantify the relative importance of three different geographic levels of analysis in assessing the quality of life of the Spanish population. The geo-political division in Spain consists firstly of regions called "Comunidades Autonomas," which are then divided into provinces which in turn are divided into municipalities. We are interested in evaluating the extent to which the quality of life conditions of an average person living in a given municipality are explained by the province and region in which the municipality is located. To do so, we first construct a composite indicator of quality of life (QoL) for the 643 largest municipalities of Spain using 19 variables which are weighted using Value Efficiency Analysis (VEA). VEA is a refinement of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) that imposes some consistency on the weights of the indicators used to construct the aggregate index. The indicators cover aspects related to consumption, social services, housing, transport, environment, labour market, health, culture and leisure, education and security. We then make a variance decomposition of the VEA scores to assess the importance of the three levels of geo-political administration. The results show that the municipal level is the most important of these, accounting for 52%f the variance in QoL. Regions explain 38% while provinces only account for a moderate 10%. Therefore, political action at the regional and municipal level would seem to have a larger impact on QoL indicators.

This paper describes how a new "Moodle" module, called "CTPracticals", is applied to the teaching of the practical content of a basic computer organization course. In the core of the module, an automatic verification engine enables it to process the VHDL designs automatically as they are submitted. Moreover, a straightforward modification of this engine would make it possible to extend its application to other programming languages. The module provides students with real-time knowledge of the state of their work by their accessing the result of the automatic assessment or feedback messages. Teachers have a constant global view of the status of their class and have available multiple options such as sending feedback messages to students, obtaining statistics, launching additional verifications in batch, and so on. Likewise, the module substantially improves some organizational aspects, and its design may help teachers to encourage teamwork. Its use partially frees teachers from certain routine work, saving time that can be devoted to teaching objectives and tutoring activities. (Contains 4 tables and 5 figures.)

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in creating a dynamic and successful European economy. Time-poor managers in these organisations generally have fewer opportunities for training and development than their counterparts in larger organisations. As a result, different requirements are placed on training. The aim of this study was to test the principles of action learning in a virtual environment. The action-learning programme was based on virtual working but did also involve face-to-face workshops, thus providing a blended approach. The project was designed to be "evaluation-led", with evaluation progressing alongside the project from design to finalisation. The focus of this paper is on how the evaluation-led approach unfolded. To this end, we start by explaining our research approach, we then move on to an analysis of the project to conclude with a discussion of the findings and of the lessons learnt. We conclude by highlighting some further research needs. (Contains 1 table and 5 notes.)

Accessibility is hardly a new problem and certainly did not originate with the Web. Lack of access to buildings long preceded the call for accessible Web content. Although it is unlikely that rehabilitation educators look at Web page accessibility with indifference, many may also find it difficult to implement. The authors posit three reasons why rehabilitation educators should be concerned: (a) the transition from an industrial to an information society; (b) increasing use of the Web for course material dissemination; and (c) modeling accessibility for other faculty and advocating for their students. These reasons stem from changes in society, the economy, and their teaching methods. Moreover, these changes create an ethical problem related to equity and inclusion for students. This paper reviews the accessibility laws and regulations in the United States and selected European countries to provide information on Web accessibility to rehabilitation educators. Readers can use this information to gain an understanding of what is being done to make websites accessible in order to better advocate for persons with disabilities.

Copyright of Zagreb Law Review is the property of University of Zagreb Law School / Pravni fakultet Sveucilista u Zagrebu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Pharmaceutical companies frequently engage in drug advertising to connect with potential buyers. In the competitive pharmaceutical market, where patients are highly sensitive to various forms of advertising, manufacturers aim to reach a broad audience. This rapid dissemination of information in the advertising of medicinal products leads to some details being unverified and inaccurate, which emphasizes the critical importance of establishing and enforcing legislation. This paper aims to evaluate the current legislation for advertising of medicinal products in Republic of North Macedonia, as well as the regulations in European Union member states, namely Germany, Slovenia and Spain. The basic legal act that regulates the advertising of medicinal products in the European Union is Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of Europe of 6 November 2001 on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use such as amended by Directive 2004/27/EC of 31 March 2004. By reviewing relevant literature and conducting a comparative analysis of regulations in the Republic of North Macedonia and European Union, it can be concluded that the European Directive serves as a foundational framework. Each country has transposed the European Directive in domestic laws and regulatory guidelines with local adaptations and all Member States have therefore adopted further specific measures concerning the advertising of medicinal products. Depending on the member state, pharmaceutical promotion can be monitored and controlled by the government, by a national competent authority or not, this approach is called “self-regulation.Upon examining the regulatory structures in each specific country, there are five key components that must be implemented: development and adoption of national laws and regulations; implementation of the regulation, codes and other standards; monitoring the pharmaceutical promotion to ensure compliance with legal regulations; enforcement of the law through suitable sanctions to prevent violations; and evaluation of regulatory efficiency. Drawing parallels between the practices of established European member states and the regulatory framework of the Republic of North Macedonia, it becomes evident that there is an opportunity for the Republic of North Macedonia to leverage positive experiences from the European countries. By incorporating successful elements of European member states' regulations, the Republic of North Macedonia could enhance its own pharmaceutical regulatory environment. Based on this evaluation of established practices and experiences in European countries, direction will be provided for harmonizing and improving the regulatory framework for advertising od medicinal products in the Republic of North Macedonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, youth unemployment has been the focus of attention of international and community bodies in the area of social rights. Specifically, there is a need to promote attitudes and skills to access employment, decent work, and entrepreneurship. The measures implemented have not been effective. In 2023, Spain had the highest youth unemployment rate in the European Union (29.6%). An improvement in the level and quality of education and training of young people would reduce their level of unemployment. Entrepreneurship education is, therefore, a necessary value in the society of the 21st century since it is a tool for the development and growth of the younger population. In the entrepreneurship education model proposed in this study for adolescents, we focus on the capacities of self-efficacy and personal initiative as precursors of entrepreneurial behavior. This paper analyzes the differences between the mean values of the variables before and after the implementation of the educational program and the influence or correlation between the variables. The main results are threefold: (i) the educational program implemented improves the mean values of the two variables analyzed; (ii) self-efficacy exerts a positive or direct influence on personal initiative, and (iii) the educational program improves or reinforces the positive influence of self-efficacy on personal initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Migraciones is the property of Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Instituto Universitario de Estudios sobre Migraciones and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The objective of this paper is to analyze the Youth Guarantee Plan Plus for the period 2021-2027 that is being developed in Spain. This Plan suppose the continuation of the intervention with young people within the framework of the National Youth Guarantee System designed within the framework of the European Union regulations, like the majority of the Member States, and therefore it must be framed within the positive actions to try to solve the problem of youth unemployment in Spain. The truth is that we are facing a Plan that is very continuous with the measures already adopted in the context of active employment policies in Spain for young people, so it does not represent an important innovation in terms of youth employment, [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Educar is the property of Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Servei de Publicacions and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)