We live in a world where developing responsible and democratic citizens who share democratic values and are able to embrace and practice a democratic culture is more important than ever. Education plays a central role in this process across all education sectors; early childhood, general education, higher education, adult education, and vocational education and training (VET). This development must begin at an early age and continue throughout an individual’s education, work, and life journey. In 2022, the Council of Europe launched a project on the implementation of the Reference Framework for Competencies for Democratic Culture (CDC) in VET. Its broad aim is to support the CoE’s member states to develop a culture of democracy in their VET systems.
This has been a significant step as on average, about 50% of young people aged 15–19 in the EU participate in VET. In addition, there are a considerable number of adults who engage in upskilling and re-skilling through VET. Yet, the European Commission's 2017 report [1]reveals that local policymakers and authorities often neglect citizenship education in initial vocational education and training (IVET) compared to general education. Further, it has also been argued by Hoskins et.al. (2019)[2] that especially IVET learners have lower political efficacy and lower probability of voting or participating through other types of democratic engagement. How to support the development of CDC for all VET learners in the Member States of the CoE is not without challenges. VET is very diverse across Europe. VET have specificities, for example, it is complex with its learning venues, including VET schools, training centres and workplaces. VET is also closely linked to the world of work
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The development of CDC for IVET learners has to be a joint effort by all those stakeholders – VET teachers, trainers, employers and other social partners. Learning democracy – developing CDC for VET learners - is more than a stand alone subject, such as ‘citizenship education’. It has to be built in systematically into structures, processes and approaches. The Council of Europe’s project led to the development of the Guidance Document (GD) in 2024.
The latest publication is Learning Democracy in Vocational Education and Training in Europe: An Anthology (October 2025), a collection of essays examining issues that contribute to the effective development of democratic competences among VET learners leading to democratic citizens.
It aims to further strengthen democratic values and practices, and to promote a culture of democracy in VET. The chapters are written by distinguished researchers, academics and practitioners. Edge are publishing a series of blogs based on the chapters in the Anthology, written by the authors.
Written by
Dr Andrea Laczik, Director of Research, Edge Foundation. Andrea studied at Oxford University achieving an MSC in Research Methodology and a DPhil in Comparative and International Education; she went on to teach and lead research at Oxford's Department of Education and at Warwick University.
Footnotes
[1] European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice, (2017). Citizenship Education at School in Europe – 2017. Eurydice Report. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
[2] Hoskins, B., & Janmaat, J. G. (2019). Access to Forms of Political Learning. I B. Hoskins & J. G. Janmaat (Red.), Education, Democracy and Inequality: Political Engagement and Citizenship Education in Europe (s. 45–67). Palgrave Macmillan UK. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-48976-0_3