The project Tuning Educational Structures in Europe focuses on the Bologna - Prague - Berlin - Bergen process. It is one of the few projects in Europe that actually links the political objectives set in the Bologna Declaration of 1999 to the higher education sector. Tuning is a project developed by and meant for higher education institutions. The Tuning project focuses not on educational systems, but on educational structures and content of studies. Whereas educational systems are primarily the responsibility of governments, educational structures and content are that of higher education institutions. As a result of the Bologna Declaration the educational systems in all European countries are in the process of reforming. This is the direct effect of the political decision to converge the different national systems in Europe. For Higher Education institutions these reforms mean the actual starting point for an other discussion: the comparability of curricula in terms of structures, programmes and actual teaching. In this reform process the required academic and professional profiles and needs of society (should) play an important role. Education science is based on theory combined with rigorous scientifically-based quantitative, qualitative or mixed-method research. It involves the research and analysis of statistics and/or qualitative data on education at all levels of the education system, including pre-school, primary, second-level, further, higher and adult education levels. In Europe pedagogy (or pedagogical practice) and didactics (or the methodology of teaching and learning) are important elements of the field. Education science includes critical policy analysis and evaluations of government or other educational programmes. It includes curriculum development in non-vocational and vocational subjects. Educational assessment, testing and measurement are also incorporated within the remit of education science, as are the synthesis and dissemination of educational research. In recent times there have been vigorous debates on the nature and role of education science. The work of thew Education Sciences Working Group has been to draw together the experiences in fifteen European countries and to apply the Tuning methodology (see below) in the analysis. As regards programmes in higher education, there is considerable diversity in education science courses at first cycle level. Nevertheless, all involve the intellectually rigorous study of educational processes, systems and approaches, and the cultural, societal, political and historical contexts within which they are embedded. Notwithstanding the diversity of programmes, across Europe there is a broad similarity in content and focus of the core components of education science first degrees, taking into account that the particular content and focus of any given programme will vary according to its stated aims and rationale, but will be demonstrably appropriate to the needs of the students. Education science programmes have also been well embedded at second cycle in most countries for many years. Second cycle programmes in education science may vary in the level of emphasis they give to the ‘research’ or ‘taught’ components but most have a very strong research focus. At third cycle, doctoral studies are an important growth area in education science. The final phase of the Tuning project involves the dissemination of the results of the results in all of the subject areas included in the project, of which Education is one. This Round Table proposal would provide a valuable opportunity to engage with colleagues in the research community and would provide a very valuable forum for the discussion of the project outcomes. Members of the Working Group will present different dimensions of the findings. It is hoped that a booklet on Education developed by the project will be available for circulation at the Round Table.

In the framework of the Tuning project a methodology has been designed to understand curricula and to make them comparable. Five lines of approach have been distinguished to organize the discussions in the subject areas: 1. generic (general academic) competences, 2. subject-specific competences, 3. the role of ECTS as an accumulation system 4. approaches to learning, teaching, and assessment and 5. the role of quality enhancement in the educational process (emphasizing systems based on internal institutional quality culture). In the first phase of the Tuning project the emphasis was on the first three lines. The fourth and fifth lines received less attention due to time constraints, but they had a central place in the second phase of the project (2003-2004). Each line has been developed according to a pre-defined process. The starting point was updated information about the state of the art at European level. This information was then reflected upon and discussed by teams of experts in the now nine subject related areas. It is the work of these teams, validated by the respective European networks, that has provided understanding, context and conclusions which can be considered valid at European level. All together, the five lines of approach allow universities to “ tune ” their curricula without losing their autonomy and at the same time stimulate their capacity to innovate.

The main aim and objective of the project is to contribute significantly to the elaboration of a framework of comparable and compatible qualifications in each of the (potential) signatory countries of the Bologna process, which should be described in terms of workload, level, learning outcomes, competences and profile.