The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on education and culture
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Text
adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of
the Assembly, on 26 November 2021 (see Doc. 15397, report of the Committee on Culture, Science, Education
and Media, rapporteur: Mr Constantinos Efstathiou).See
also Recommendation 2217
(2021).
1. Long periods of isolation during
the Covid-19 pandemic have shown to what degree education and exposure
to culture are vital for individual and collective well-being. The
Parliamentary Assembly urges that both sectors must continue to
play their fundamental role in upholding an inclusive and democratic
society by reducing inequalities, creating opportunities and helping
people, particularly young people, to develop positive attitudes
and the competences required to be active and creative citizens
in a healthy and vibrant democracy.
2. During the first lockdown in spring 2020, nurseries, primary
and secondary schools and universities were closed, as a result
of which a hybrid solution of limited physical presence and distance
learning has become the norm. Different cultural sectors have been
particularly hard hit, suffering substantial economic losses. It
is of concern that smaller independent cultural institutions are
particularly at risk of disappearing if left without any public
support. Seven million artists and cultural professionals in Europe
are under threat of losing their jobs due to the precariousness
of their situation.
3. The Assembly welcomes the fact that both the European Commission
and the European Parliament have taken important political steps
to ensure that the education and cultural sectors are considered
to be among the priorities and will be eligible for support through
the European emergency Recovery and Resilience Facility, with an
increased European Union budget for the period 2021-2027. However,
to benefit from this support, member States must include education
and culture in their national recovery programmes. All democratic
countries have a particular responsibility to ensure that education
and culture can effectively respond to any challenges and obstacles
which may derail the democratic process. In this respect, a series
of measures must be adopted to ensure that this objective is fulfilled.
4. The Assembly considers, inter alia,
that national strategies ought to build on synergies and acknowledge that
cultural and education policies should be mutually reinforcing.
The Council of Europe Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic
Culture provides an excellent basis on which to develop innovative partnerships
and projects between schools and different cultural sectors to guide
young people in developing key democratic competences.
5. In the context of the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development
Goals and the European Union’s European Green Deal, the Assembly
considers that investments in education and in cultural and creative sectors
in Europe could also be an integral part of investments in innovation,
leading to more sustainable and creative economies. Building synergies,
mainstreaming culture and education in other sectors and providing incentives
for creative partnerships with the private sector could therefore
be key for the future.
6. The digital space has become the main place in which schools
and higher education institutions provide education and where numerous
actors in cultural and creative sectors perform and connect with
their audiences. While this trend can be very positive for democratising
access to education and culture, it also brings with it serious
threats. The swift change to almost exclusive use of digital technologies
has deepened the existing digital divide and inequalities and has
deprived artists and creative sectors of fair revenue due to the
lack of regulation. The Assembly therefore believes that there is
an urgent need to resolve ongoing problems with global digital providers
and to establish a strong European digital framework that is well
adapted for online education and for various online cultural offerings.
7. Accordingly, the Assembly calls for the governments and parliaments
of the member States of the Council of Europe to evaluate the lessons
learned from the implementation of emergency measures and to review
their policies, putting more emphasis on the long-term perspective,
and to address structural weaknesses that have intensified during
the Covid-19 pandemic. Policy makers should, in particular:
7.1 concerning the overall policy
framework:
7.1.1 incorporate education and culture into
national Covid-19 recovery plans and long-term strategies;
7.1.2 re-engage in a broad debate on policies for education
and culture, encouraging citizen participation in the debate and
the involvement of relevant stakeholders;
7.1.3 consider taking a broader view across sectors where investments
in education and in cultural and creative sectors can also be an
integral part of investments in innovation, leading to more sustainable
and creative economies in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development
Goals;
7.1.4 build synergies between the cultural sectors and the education
system, including formal education and lifelong learning, encouraging
innovative partnerships to promote social inclusion and a culture
of inclusion;
7.2 concerning the cultural sectors:
7.2.1 uphold
the right of everyone to participate in cultural life as a core
human right;
7.2.2 secure sustainable funding for cultural policies and develop
strategic thinking at interministerial level to mainstream culture
and creativity in other policy areas, such as education, vocational
training, employment, research and innovation, social services,
welfare and health; and increase public participation in the formulation
of cultural policies;
7.2.3 provide support mechanisms for artists and culture-related
microenterprises and continue to financially support European exchanges
and co-productions to sustain the diversity of cultural and creative
expression and cultural pluralism, which reflect the vitality of
European cultural identities and are also positive factors for innovation,
global competitiveness and sustainable development;
7.2.4 improve working arrangements for contractual and freelance
cultural workers to ensure social security and decent income levels,
and provide them with training in income generation and project
financing as well as in digital competences;
7.2.5 co-operate at European level to strengthen the legal protection
of authors and regulate digital platforms to ensure fair remuneration
for and legal protection of online artistic and creative work;
7.3 concerning education:
7.3.1 make every effort
to promote equity, social cohesion and active citizenship through
high-quality inclusive education, in line with UN Sustainable Development
Goal 4 and Committee of Ministers Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)13
on ensuring quality education, and make best use of the available
Council of Europe educational materials, guidelines and practical
tools;
7.3.2 stimulate both the acquisition of knowledge and personal
development of learners, consider different models of delivery –
ranging from classroom teaching and working in smaller groups to
making use of quality online and blended learning resources and
possibilities – and expand further the role that schools play in
developing students’ competences for democratic culture;
7.3.3 develop a rights-based approach as part of inclusive education,
valuing human dignity and human rights, together with a critical
understanding of social inequalities;
7.3.4 develop mechanisms that will ensure that quality online
education is free from gender, ethnic, cultural, age and other stereotypes;
7.3.5 give due consideration to the right of learners from minority
language groups to learn in their own language, especially in primary
education;
7.3.6 provide safe learning environments (in schools, libraries
or other public institutions) to avoid learning loss and exclusion;
7.3.7 reassess and review the provision of education for disadvantaged
students and those with special needs; consider setting up school-based
or local support groups consisting of various stakeholders (trained
volunteers, parent peer groups, specialised psychologists and other professionals,
and information technology specialists) to provide adequate learning
support in co-operation with teachers;
7.3.8 provide pre-service and in-service training and guidance
for teachers and support staff on how to implement the Council of
Europe Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture
in an open and creative way in schools; consider creating the conditions
for innovative partnerships while involving cultural institutions
and individual artists in this process;
7.3.9 facilitate online professional development and peer-to-peer
learning opportunities for teachers, enabling them to meet remotely
and share experiences; include relevant methodological training
and access to educational resources as part of digital learning opportunities
for teachers;
7.3.10 guarantee free access to virtual learning environments,
which give access to open educational resources, to alleviate dependence
on digital platforms provided by private companies.
8. The Assembly invites the European Union to co-operate with
the Council of Europe and support innovative projects and European
exchange programmes that could provide guidance for the development
of new models that would ensure the viable and sustainable operation
of the education and cultural sectors. Building synergies, mainstreaming
culture and education in other sectors and providing incentives
for creative partnerships with the private sector are key for the
future, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and
the European Union’s European Green Deal initiative. Moreover, the
Assembly believes that there is an urgent need to resolve ongoing
problems with global digital providers and to establish a strong
European digital framework to further democratise access to education
and culture, while ensuring that it is well adapted for online education
and guarantees fair treatment and fair remuneration for online cultural
offerings.
