The European Educational Research Association (EERA) and their most important conference (ECER) are dominated by researchers with West-European origin. This applies also to our network 2 (VETNET); but a certain origin doesn’t imply ignorance for countries with another history – in the contrary. Whilst preparing the opening session for VETNET/ECER 2025 in Belgrade, which is due to traditional and convincing reasons devoted to the hosting country Serbia, many VETNET members declared that they are interested in learning more about the situation in other Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. In 2022, Tütlys et al. published a book on “Skill Formation in Central and Eastern Europe”, that gave an impressive insight into the disruptive and divergent developments in VET in the former socialist countries after the implosion of the Soviet area. This symposium would highlight the situations in Poland, Hungary, Lithuania and the Ukraine.
Colleagues from the four countries would give short inputs (~10 min) about the various development stages since 1990 and the current challenges. Then the floor will be opened for discussions; focussing on options for mutual learning, both from other CEE countries that had till 1990 comparable VET-systems and developed divergent – and from countries with established and stable VET-systems like the German speaking countries.

Tütlys et al. (2022): Vidmantas Tūtlys, Jörg Markowitsch, Jonathan Winterton, Samo Pavlin (eds.), Skill formation in Central and Eastern Europe: a search for patterns and directions of development. Berlin, Peter Lang.