New Publication: Learning Democracy in Vocational Education and Training in Europe

A new Council of Europe anthology explores how Vocational Education and Training (VET) can foster democratic competences – with a contribution by Jörg Markowitsch.

On 12 November 2025, the Education Department of the Council of Europe released its new anthology Learning Democracy in Vocational Education and Training in Europe. The publi­ca­ti­on high­lights the vital role of Vocational Education and Training (VET) not only in driving economic growth and employa­bi­li­ty, but also in preparing learners to par­ti­ci­pa­te actively in demo­cra­tic societies.

Building on the Council of Europe’s RFCDC Guidance Document for Vocational Education and Training (2024) and aligned with the Education Strategy 2024–2030, “Learners First”, the anthology explores how com­pe­ten­ces for demo­cra­tic culture can be effec­tively inte­gra­ted into VET systems across Europe. It presents a rich coll­ec­tion of policy approa­ches, insti­tu­tio­nal practices and case studies from various countries, covering topics such as cur­ri­cu­lum design, assess­ment, in-company training, teacher education, inclusion, and learners’ participation.

Jörg Markowitsch together with Stefan Schmid-Heher (University College of Teacher Education Vienna) con­tri­bu­ted a chapter on “Fostering CDC in VET teacher training”. Contrary to common assump­ti­ons, Vocational Education and Training (VET) offers signi­fi­cant potential for fostering com­pe­ten­ces for demo­cra­tic culture (CDC), as its voca­tio­nal contexts enable teachers to address social issues from multiple per­spec­ti­ves. Strengthening CDC in VET teacher education requires dedicated concepts of democracy and politics, an emphasis on handling con­tra­dic­tions, and fostering teachers’ capacity for political and pro­fes­sio­nal self-reflec­tion — paving the way for further inter­na­tio­nal research in this field.