Sport
Supporting fair play and cooperation in sport
Sporting organisations and educational institutions can benefit greatly by working together to promote greater participation in sport. Through sporting activities, young people can learn to be part of a team and accept the principle of fair play, as well as establish healthy behaviours and lifestyles.
This kind of collaboration also helps to increase the numbers of qualified coaches and professionals in the sector.
The European Commission has acknowledged that the quality of physical education programmes and the qualifications of the teachers and trainers involved are a concern in a number of Member States.
More extensive interaction between sport and education across Europe is needed to promote the mutual sharing of best practice and help to:
The EU published Developing the European Dimension in Sport in 2011, which underlined attempts to modernise teacher training, improve health-enhancing physical activity at school, and increase the inclusion of students with a disability in mainstream physical education.
Two EU-wide studies, addressing the training of young sportsmen and sportswomen in Europe and the education of young sportspeople, were commissioned to provide young sportspeople with information on how they could prepare for a new career once they retired from professional sports.
The EU Expert Group on Education and Training in Sport explores ways of promoting qualifications gained by coaches, volunteers, and elite athletes through non-formal (sport-specific courses by federations) and informal (learning in practice) methods, leading to the European Qualification Framework (EQF).
From 2014-2020, the EU will support sport through the Erasmus+ programme.