In my poster presentation I would like to survey the topic of the validation of previously acquired knowledge. This topic is of high importance to deal with because the enforcement of learning achievements gained in informal environment can contribute to the increase of both employability and mobility, and they can mean the decrease of unemployment and the increase of economic competitiveness in the long run.

My research questions are the following:

How does the question of the validation of previously acquired knowledge appear in the documents of the Eurpoean Union and on the level of the individual states?

What are the most important functions of validation, what kind of aims does the validation procedure serve?

What kind of circumstances influence the development of the individual national validation systems?

Preliminary knowledge appeared first in the theory of teaching and learning as a necessary condition, then another function of preliminary knowledge survey opposed to this came to the foreground, the knowledge surplus detecting function. As the knowledge of the students can derive from several sources out of school, it can happen often that they already possess part of the knowledge at the beginning of their studies which the teaching process aims at. There can be considerable overlaps between preliminary and achievable knowledge (Csapó 2006).

Different social, economic, political and ideological factors play a role in the development and maintenance of the systems assuring the validation of preliminary knowledge beyond the principles of rational educational organization. According to this, the validation of preliminary knowledge is not the denomination of a single unified process, but a collective term of several, more or less similar educational, pedagogical evaluation activities.

Several different concepts have been spread about preliminary knowledge. Their abbreviations identify the suitable systems as logos. I am going to survey the most widespread ones, which are the following: APL – Accreditation of Prior Learning; APEL – Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning; APFL – Accreditation of Prior Formal Learning; PLA – Prior Learning Assessment; PLAR – Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition; RNFIL - Recognition of Non-formal and Informal Learning.

As years passed, the notion system of the procedure discussed was going through continuous changes, by this time the expression ’recognition’ lost its ruling position against ’validation’ mainly in the European Union policy because CEDEFOP had already formulated the guiding principles of the validation of non-formal and informal learning in 2009. This row was supplemented by another notion, the definition of learning achievement, which shows what the student has acquired, taken up from the things taught for him/her and which he/she can show at the completion of the learning activity.

The different organizations and committees of the European Union have formulated several recommendations in connection with life-long learning, adult education, informal and non-formal learning. In one of the recommendations of one of the workteams of the European Union in 2003 the problem of preliminary knowledge appears as the validation of formal and informal learning. The recognition of formal and informal learning had already been mentioned by the Copenhagen Declaration in 2002, and in the Maastricht Resolution in 2004 it appeared in the first place in the list of priorities closely connected to the question of interoperability among professional training systems and to the claim to accept the common references and principles. The strategy named Rethinking Education launched in 2012 encourages the member states in the reform of the educational systems. Over and above the respect for the subsidiary principle the member states are expected to take the necessary steps to validate the results of formal and informal learning achievements by the year 2018 at the latest.

CEDEFOP (2007): Recognition and validation of non-formal and informal learning for VET teachers and trainers in the EU Member States. In: file:///C:/Users/Hp/Downloads/5174_en.pdf CEDEFOP (2009): The shift of the learning outcomes http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/Files/3054_en.pdf CEDEFOP (2014): European guidelines for validating non formal and informal learning http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/Files/4054_en.pdf CEDEFOP (2014): European Inventory of Validation of Non-formal and Informal Learning. In: http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/events-and-projects/projects/validation-non-formal-and-informal-learning/european-inventory Colardyn, Danielle & Bjornavold, Jens (2004): Validation of Formal, Non-Formal and Informal Learning: policy and practices in EU Member States. European Journal of Education, Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 69-89 Colley, Helen – Hodkinson, Phil – Malcom, Janice (2003): Informality and formality in learning: a report for the Learning and Skills Research Centre. Lifelong Learning Institute. University of Leeds Council of the European Union (2006): Council Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council, on the recognition of the value of non-formal and informal learning within the European youth field (2006/C 168/01) Csapó, Benő (2006): A formális és nem-formális tanulás során szerzett tudás integrálása Az elõzetes tudás felmérése és elismerése. [Recognition of outcomes of prior formal and non-formal learning] In. Iskolakultúra, No.2.pp. 1-16 Declan, Kennedy (2007): Writing and Using Learning Outcomes: a Practical Guide. Quality Promotion Unit, University College Cork In: http://reforma.fen.uchile.cl/Papers/Writing%20and%20Using%20Learning%20Outcomes%20-%20Kennedy,%20Hyland,%20Ryan.pdf Delors, Jacques (1996): Learning the Treasure Within, Párizs: UNESCO http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0010/001095/109590eo.pdf European Commission (2012): Rethinking Education. Strasbourg http://eurlex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52012DC0669&from=EN European Parliament And the Council (2009): Recommendation on the establishment of a European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET) Evans, N. (2001): Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education; Institutions, Academics, & Assessment of Prior Experiential Learning. Routledge, New York. OECD (2010): recognising non-formal and informal learning: outcomes, policies and practices. In: http://www.oecd.org/edu/innovation-education/45007044.pdf Otero, Manuel Souto – Hawley, Jo and Nevala, Anne-Mari (2007) (eds): European Inventory on Validation of Informal and Non-formal Learning. 2007 Update. A final report to DG Education and Culture of the European Commission. Ecotec (2007) The Council (Education, Youth and Culture) (2002): Maastricht Communiqué on the Future Priorities of Enhanced European Cooperation in Vocational Education and Training (VET). In: http://www.tvet.ro/Anexe/2.Anexe/Maastricht_en.pdf