Citation
(2004), "Guidance Policies in the Knowledge Society: Trends, Challenges and Responses across Europe", Education + Training, Vol. 46 No. 6/7. https://doi.org/10.1108/et.2004.00446fae.001
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2004, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Guidance Policies in the Knowledge Society: Trends, Challenges and Responses across Europe
Books
Guidance Policies in the Knowledge Society: Trends, Challenges and Responses across Europe
Ronald SultanaEuropean Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop)2004
The different ways in which career and guidance services are organized in 29 European countries are considered in this free publication from the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) The report also describes best practice and proposes a series of benchmarks.
The report argues that several key weaknesses need to be corrected if European countries are to provide quality lifelong-guidance services. First, the shift to lifelong guidance requires providers to have new and advanced skills.
Lifelong guidance is only rhetorical if provision for adults in employment – not to mention senior citizens – remains limited.
Secondly, the challenge of providing lifelong guidance services has far-reaching resource implications that few, if any, can afford without rethinking their models of provision. Guidance workers need not all be working at the same level of competence. Tiered services may be an option. These would permit some people to focus on relatively straightforward, information-related tasks and others, with more advanced helping skills, to deal with face-to face individual or group interviews. European countries also need to diversify both guidance services and guidance providers.
Finally, services must be monitored to ensure quality.
The report concludes that most guidance services across the different countries and sectors have registered some progress in dealing with these key challenges, but some are lagging. Collectively, however, the 29 countries provide a rich tapestry, signposting pathways for policy-makers and practitioners in their bid to serve citizens in the emerging knowledge society.
An electronic version of the report can be downloaded (pdf) from www.trainingvillage.gr/etv/upload/Projects_Networks/Guidance/Policy_review_survey/Synthesis_reports/Cedefop_overview_report.pdf. To obtain a hard copy, e-mail a request with postal details to esm@cedefop.eu.int