Promoting Entrepreneurial Education in Schools

The important role of education in promotion of entrepreneurship which shall start already in primary school is now widely recognised. Reinforcing entrepreneurial education in schools, vocational education institutions and universities has important impact on young generations: it encourages employability and self-employment, innovation and entrepreneurial skills are essential for social cohesion, personal development and active citizenship. The learning process in entrepreneurship education should foster the development of competencies of creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship, as this helps to develop the learner as an individual who recognizes opportunities, creatively solves problems and conflicts, accepts responsibility and risk decisions and takes initiatives. Entrepreneurship is not only related to economic activities and business creations, but more widely to all areas of life and society. Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship (in broader sense) is also one of the eight key competences, which are enshrined in the Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council of EU (report 2006). Through the Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan and the Rethinking Education Communication, the European Commission has emphasised the need to embed entrepreneurial learning in all sectors of education including non-formal learning. Both documents call on Member States to provide all young people with practical entrepreneurial experience before leaving compulsory education. In order to support entrepreneurial education, progress is mainly needed in the following areas: a.) that the entrepreneurship is better defined as learning outcome in curricula of primary and secondary school, b.) more work on teachers education, c.) promotion of subjects on entrepreneurship at university levels (elective courses on entrepreneurship). And what is the role of teachers in promoting entrepreneurial education? Teachers have important role in making the entrepreneurial education generally available and effective. It is important that teachers include entrepreneurship topics in their lectures and that they use innovative and creative teaching approaches (teaching in which experiential learning and project work have a main role, teachers do not provide students with answers but they help them to research and identify the right questions).