Socrates Programme

In a world of relentless change, it is increasingly important to build up knowledge in order to acquire useful skills, to get a job, or simply for personal fulfilment. Education today is more and more a lifelong process. Learning and training no longer means only what goes
on in school or university, but also in less formal environments and at any time of life.

A key feature of Europe which is often mentioned is its diversity. This is particularly true in the area of education, where systems and practices vary enormously from one country to another. This diversity is a source of enrichment for everyone and offers fertile ground for innovation and the quest for quality. Together we can be stronger and more creative.

Socrates is Europe’s education programme and involves around 30 European countries. Its main objective is precisely to build up a Europe of knowledge and thus provide a better response to the major challenges of this new century: to promote lifelong learning, encourage access to education for everybody, and help people acquire recognised qualifications and skills. In more specific terms, Socrates seeks to promote language learning, and to encourage mobility and innovation.

Socrates advocates European cooperation in all areas of education. This cooperation takes different forms: mobility (moving around Europe), organising joint projects, setting up European networks (disseminating ideas and good practice), and conducting studies and comparative analyses.

In practice, Socrates offers people grants to study, teach, undertake a placement or follow a training course in another country. It provides support for educational establishments to organise teaching projects and to exchange experiences. It helps associations and NGOs in organising activities on educational topics, etc.

One golden rule must be respected: only activities which have a European dimension based on transnational cooperation may receive financial assistance. Socrates targets all forums of learning irrespective of level, ranging from nursery school to university. This includes adult education, which often involves more informal pathways. Educational establishments cannot fulfil their mission behind close doors and must open up to new ideas and practices, e.g. by building up partnerships with establishments in other countries or working with the various players of civil society.

Socrates targets all the members of the education community, and this truly means everybody:

• pupils during compulsory schooling, students, people – the young and the not so young alike – wishing to return to learning;
• teachers being trained or in service; ancillary, administrative and managerial staff involved in education
• educational establishments of all types
• but also all external interested parties: civil servants and decision makers; local and regional authorities; parents’ associations; the social partners; the business sector; associations and NGOs.

Whatever the target groups and whatever the type of project, Socrates sets out to stress the multi-cultural character of Europe as one of the cornerstones of active citizenship. It supports the education of the least advantaged groups of people. It endeavours to counter social exclusion and under-achievement at school. It promotes equal opportunities for women and men irrespective of circumstances. It sets great store by the new information communication technologies (ICT). It encourages the learning of the different European languages, and innovation in education.

Socrates comprises eight separate actions:

• Comenius: school education
• Erasmus: higher education
• Grundtvig: adult education and other education pathways
• Lingua: learning European languages
• Minerva: information and communication technologies (ICT) in education
• Observation and innovation of education systems and policies
• Joint actions with other European programmes
• Supplementary measures

Further information on Socrates is obtainable from:

• The Socrates national agency in your country
• The Internet site: http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/socrates.html
• For more detailed information on Socrates consult the brochure “Socrates, gateway to education”.
• For technical details and help in submitting an application, consult the “Guidelines for Applicants”.