The Role of the European Education Area in European Union Integration in Times of Crises

Abstract

The European Union has faced many crises, such as populism, xenophobia, economic and political challenges, to name a few. This has resulted in some questioning whether the EU will survive. Herein, the neo-institutionalist perspective on crises in EU integration frames an original and timely inquiry into the role of a new EU initiative – the European Education Area – in supporting EU integration in these challenging times. This inquiry relies on a thematic analysis of relevant key policy materials. The findings highlight that while it is not surprising that the EEA is an example of an education convergence project in the EU, the novelty of other findings is striking. It appears that the crises in the EU inspired the authors of the EEA to utilize its education as a tool for EU deepening, which is an aspect of EU integration related to the strengthening of the relationships amongst its Member States. Specifically, the EEA has been a driver in the development of a common European identity and European economy, the EU as a socially-just society and the continent of progress. These findings address important gaps of our knowledge about the role of education in driving EU integration.

Resisting Europeanisation: Poland’s education policy and its impact on the European Education Area

“…One example of such integration is the e-learning policy (Salajan, 2013), another adult education (Milana et al, 2020) where Europeanisation can be observed in polices as well as through formal and informal measures and activities. Indeed, the new EEA 2025, for example, is seen as an instrument for deepening integration as it acts as a tool for structuring and strengthening of the relationships amongst member states (Kushnir, 2022). These changes have been made possible through the ‘open method of coordination’ (OMC) process which does not lead to binding EU legislative measures nor does it require member states to change their law, but it uses a number of soft policy instruments such as standards, benchmarking, peer pressure etc.…”

Motives underlying the intentions of youth to get involved in bribery: evidence from Lithuania

“…This created a mentality which sees an everyday low-level corruption as unavoidable, thus people are relatively tolerant to it and sometimes even do not recognise the manifestations of various types of corruption/bribery considering it "business as usual" (Karklins, 2005). The habit of engaging in shadow activities, primarily bribery, was entrenched in post-Soviet societies and it is now one of the focal factors hindering the value congruence between old and new EU member states which, in turn, is acknowledged as one of the factors obstructing a multifaceted convergence within the EU (Kushnir, 2022).…”

Integración educativa de personas desplazadas forzadamente en los países de la UE

“…And the acquisition of higher education, the recognition of qualifications obtained in the country of origin of refugees and their overcoming of language barriers increase their potential and contribution to the socio-economic development of the host country. Education stimulates integration (Kushnir, 2022) and is its tool (Martin & Stulgaitis, 2022). Lack of education, or Revista de Investigación Apuntes Universitarios 2023: 13(1), 301 -318 education acquired in the country of origin, but not recognized by the host country, results in the employment of skilled refugee workers in low-paying non-professional jobs (Santini et al, 2022).…”