CONSTRUCTING LEARNING OUTCOMES IN EUROPE: A MULTI-LEVEL ANALYSIS OF (UNDER)ACHIEVEMENT IN THE LIFE COURSE (CLEAR)

The project Constructing Learning Outcomes in Europe. A Multi-Level Analysis of (Under-)Achievement in the Life Course (CLEAR) is committed to better understanding the factors that affect the quality of learning outcomes (LOs) across European regions and intents to spark innovative policy approaches to tackle underachievement and increase social upward mobility for young people. It focuses the processes of constructing learning outcomes as the result of manifold intersecting institutional arrangements, spatial and socio-economic determinants, discursive and socio-cultural influences, as well as individual experiences, dispositions, cognitive and psycho-emotional abilities. The overall aim is to examine the combination of multiple factors shaping LOs and thus affecting their quality. Based on a better understanding of the processes of constructing LOs, CLEAR inquiries into the impact of policies to boost achievement and tackle underachievement, and designs participative activities at local level to spark innovative policy solutions. It conducts comparative, multi-level analyses in 8 EU countries – Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain – by means of quantitative and institutional analyses, expert surveys at national and regional levels, qualitative analyses and innovative participatory strategies at local level. Special attention is given to groups that are multi-disadvantaged and/or in vulnerable situations. Dynamic and relational concepts – Life Course, Intersectionality, Spatial Justice – help explore the several mutually intersecting dimensions of the issue – individual, institutional, structural, relational, and spatial. In line with Open Science, the project adopts an innovative transversal participatory approach, enabling young people and other stakeholders to proactively shape educational policymaking and contribute with their views, ideas, and experience-based knowledge, thus enhancing the impact of the project.