Towards an invisible marginalisation of disadvantaged adult learners? Analysing the resource mobilisation strategies of the EU member states for achieving the European Education Area, 2025

Abstract

The EU policies about what to achieve and how to achieve through the education and training of adults have developed like norms for the EU member states which they find difficult to flout. With the declaration to achieve the European Education Area (EEA) by 2025 and its targets by 2025 and 2030, the EU has laid down a framework for developing the future education systems in the member states. The paper argues that in its present form, the unintended consequences of the EU EEA policy are not only enhancing the Matthew Effect but will also make the disadvantaged learners invisible in the long run. Therefore, by encouraging the member states to adopt a narrow approach of target achievement irrespective of the needs of the marginalised adult learners, and not including the concerns of these adult learners in its own policy, the EU appears to do the opposite of what it claims to promote through the EEA.