By adopting the holistic concept of ‘Bildung’ rather than ‘education’ and exploring its political and practical potential for adult learning and education (ALE) systems in Europe, this project will contribute to innovation in the sector and promote social inclusion as well as address key challenges for European society. New developments - be it in terms of new technologies or dealing with a changing climate, among many others - leave many people feeling overwhelmed and uncertain. In many European countries, traditional education prioritises labour-related competencies and skills over other important aspects of life, namely striving to unfold one’s unique potential and taking responsibility as an active and empowered citizen. ALE, based on Bildung, has the power to help people navigate increasingly complex environments and the unknown future as well as stimulate tolerance, curiosity and promote interpersonal and civic skills. BILDUNG will contribute to a holistic provision of ALE in Europe by providing civil society-led research on the relevance of Bildung to current ALE provision, by exploring more in-depth four critical themes, namely democracy, sustainability, digitisation and basic skills, and by providing a political and practical roadmap for the implementation of Bildung in ALE systems in Europe. In the understanding of this project, Bildung is learner-centred learning that is not only transmitting skills and knowledge, but is, first and foremost, an empowering approach that enables people to steer their personal development and to become active members of their communities and society. Bildung is a concept that is not only relevant for the development of ALE as such, but, when implemented, also has a deep impact on a large number of other policy sectors and fields. This makes it highly topical within the current political context in Europe.
The project has a critical look at a historical concept from a modern viewpoint and puts it in very pragmatic contexts. While including academics in our work on the papers, we also updated our own and the project’s understanding of the Bildung concept, without getting lost in ivory tower discussion. After having finalised the first paper “What is Bildung” with the extensive support of Lene Anderson, the consortium was equipped to discuss Bildung within several foci points and thus, not only embed the concept within a current frame of Digitalisation, Basic Skills, Democracy, and Sustainability but also tie those insights onto concrete praxis examples, which then allowed for the development of concrete policy recommendations. In that, the project not only contributed to the important and very potent discussion around the concept and educated practitioners on Bildung, but also provided a necessary counterweight to the currently one-sided European discussion on education and especially the view on ALE
With traditional education systems in many European countries prioritising labour-related competencies, while neglecting other essential aspects of life, adult learning and education (ALE) holds the potential to help individuals navigate complex environments. In the opinion of the consortium, Folkbildning and Bildung are approaches to support the right to knowledge and development for everyone. Especially with continuous education yet not being equally accessible to all individuals, most notably for adults with limited formal education, the project wanted to address the need to shift the European view on education. Instead of an increasingly instrumentalised view on education and learning, the project saw the need to open and democratise the view on ALE. The need to further discuss this approach has also been supported by the recent resurgence of research on Bildung and its presence in political debates, as well as an increase in academic discussions. Seeing the need for ALE practitioners for more concrete links and connections of the concept to their praxis, and the need for politicians to understand and view the concept of Bildung more concretely.