3s presented at the ECER Conference `Leading Education: The Distinct Contributions of Educational Research and Researchers` in Dublin, Ireland.

This year’s ECER conference took place from 22 to 28 August 2016 in Dublin. The aim of the ‘European Conference on Educational Research’ is to create a platform for initiating, reporting, discussing and promoting high quality educational research.

Karin Luomi-Messerer (3s) presented a paper on ‘Higher VET – An Emerging Sub-system of Education and Training in European Countries?’. It was based on a recent study, commissioned by the European Commission, to which 3s contributed extensively.

Janine Wulz (3s) addressed the topic ‘The Contribution of the Learning Outcomes Approach to Improved Quality Assessment Procedures in Vocational Education and Training’(with the contribution of Monika Auzinger (3s) and Mariya Dzhengozova (3s)). This paper was based on a study, carried out on behalf of Cedefop*, which 3s did in cooperation with ARQA-VET (http://www.arqa-vet.at/).

On this year’s conference topic: There is a particular challenge for educational researchers within a policy environment that increasingly requires knowledge on ‘what works’. In times of increased tendencies of privatisation and commercialisation, questions arise on who and what can and should lead educational research, as a contribution to a quality education for all and at all levels.

Link to ECER conference

Conference presentations will be available from October on vetnetsite.org/

*Cedefop ist the ‘European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training’.