Pathways to School Success: EU member states adopt measures to ensure better educational outcomes for all

A new Council Recommendation on ‘Pathways to School Success’ aims to ensure better educational outcomes for all learners, regardless of background or situation, by lifting the performance in basic skills and reducing early leaving from education and training.

Pathways to School Success was adopted by EU member states today. Among other steps, it calls on EU countries to develop or, where appropriate, further strengthen an integrated, comprehensive strategy towards school success by 2025.

The Recommendation takes a holistic view of school success, looking at both educational achievement (i.e. competences and skills developed) and attainment (diplomas or certificate obtained after successfully completing a certain level of education), as well as well-being at school.

Steps to better school success

As part of an integrated strategy, the Recommendation calls on EU member states to

work on strengthening data collection and monitoring systems
combine a wide range of measures which put learner’s needs at the centre
support leaders, teachers, trainers and other staff to work with all learners, including those at risk of exclusion, underachievement and early leaving
support schools to develop “whole school approaches” based on collaboration in and around schools
introduce system-level actions to make education and training more inclusive
optimise how national and EU resources are used to invest in infrastructure and training, according to need

The Recommendation proposes a new policy framework describing a systemic approach for improving success at school.

This framework

serves as a reference tool for national, regional and local policy makers and practitioners in education and training in their action towards school success
outlines overarching conditions for effective action and a set of key measures to be promoted at school and at system level
enumerates specific actions to support school leaders, teachers and trainers and other educational staff
details the conditions for learners’ success

Policy background

The new Council Recommendation is based on a 30 June 2022 Commission proposal.

It repeals and replaces the 2011 Council Recommendation on policies to reduce early school leaving.

Next steps

The European Commission will work with and support EU member states to implement the recommendation, using

the EU Working Group on Schools
financing instruments including Erasmus+
guidance materials and repositories of resources such as the European Toolkit for Schools

In early 2023 it will also set up a dedicated Expert Group on strategies for creating supportive learning environments for groups at risk of underachievement and for supporting well-being at school, to be set up early in 2023. This group will focus and raise awareness on wellbeing and mental health at school.