Education: a treasure within

"The level of education of the working-age population is one of the most important factors in growth and rising living standards."

A holistic, integrated vision of education

Former French politician Jacques Delors, a passionate advocate of European integration, passed away in 2023, and we take this opportunity to pay tribute to his memory by recalling a report whose commission he chaired, and which captures his ideas well.

"Education: The Treasure Within" is a report to UNESCO by the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-First Century. The 265-page report was published in 1996 at a time of intense internationalization. It proposes an integrated vision of education worldwide, and is considered an international benchmark in thinking about education and learning. It is credited with inspiring education policies in India and Latin America. It is based on a humanistic and holistic vision of the human development of nations, as opposed to an exclusively utilitarian and capitalist vision.

The title of the report is inspired by a quotation from Pliny the Elder, a Roman military tribune and scholar of the 1st century, who wrote a history of Germania, who said that "education is a treasure that follows its owner everywhere". This quote is often interpreted to mean that education is a valuable investment that can be used throughout life.

The report proposes a holistic approach to education, taking into account the economic, social, cultural and political dimensions of learning. The report also highlights the importance of education for personal and social development, as well as for international peace and understanding ¹. Finally, the report stresses that education must be accessible to all, regardless of gender, ethnic origin or economic status.

The 4 pillars of education

In the report he signs, Delors asserts that " Education must massively and efficiently transmit more and more evolving knowledge and know-how, adapted to cognitive civilization". Education is more than an accumulation of macro statistics, it's a quality of learning that can be identified in 4 pillars:

• Pillar 1 - Learning to understand the world
  

  Each individual is invited to perceive that he or she is a stakeholder in the world around them, and that the pleasure of discovery is one of the most powerful driving forces.
  " Learning to know means first of all learning to learn, by exercising attention, memory and thought. From childhood, especially in societies dominated by television images, young people must learn to focus their attention on things and people.
  
  The rapid succession of mediatized information and the frequent "zapping" of information are detrimental to the process of discovery, which implies duration and deepening of grasp. This apprenticeship in attention can take many forms, and make the most of many opportunities in life (games, internships, travel, practical science work , etc.)".
  
  For Delors, initial training must provide the impetus for a lifelong desire to learn, whether at work or elsewhere.
  
  
• Pillar 2 - Learning to do
  
  Learning is above all a means to action, and the two verbs are inseparable.
  
  " The aim is to acquire not only a professional qualification, but also, and more broadly, a skill that enables people to deal with a wide range of situations and work as part of a team.
  
  
• Pillar 3 - Learning to live together
  
  Delors perceived the crucial importance of otherness and the passage through others for society.
  
  " The mission of education is to teach simultaneously the diversity of the human species and an awareness of the similarities and interdependence between all human beings on the planet.
  
  The report shows the interdependence between self-knowledge as a child, teenager or adult, and the role of school and family in discovering one's potential and talents. This involves developing an aptitude for empathy, a behavior that will be mobilized throughout life. This empathy, this otherness, grows through joint projects, because action helps to erase differences.
  
  The teaching of cooperative projects is therefore essential, as is participation in social activities. At school, joint projects involving teachers and students are also a way of dealing with conflicts differently, resolving them and equipping students with valuable interpersonal skills for the future.
  
  
• Pillar 4 - Learning to be
  
  Education is all-encompassing, touching the body, the mind and the senses.
  
  " Every human being must be enabled, thanks in particular to the education he receives in his youth, to develop independent and critical thinking and to forge his own judgment, so that he can determine for himself what he thinks he should do in the different circumstances of life".
  
  Education provides reference points for one's life, a critical sense and the ability to situate oneself and behave as a responsible and just actor. At the same time, education develops freedom of thought and creative power, enabling each individual to take control of his or her own destiny, whatever the diversity of their personalities.
  
  The diversity of talents brought to fruition is a social and even civilizational challenge, enriching the aesthetic, artistic, scientific and cultural heritage of humanity. At the heart of this vision lies knowledge drawn from the experience of children and adults alike.

In summary

Education is centered on human development. The perspective of human development goes beyond the utilitarian view of learning and the objective of providing the economic world with qualified human resources.

This human development is part of a fundamentally humanist mission in which equity and respect for the human and natural environment, as well as for the diversity of traditions and cultures, are essential.

Source :

L'Éducation: un trésor est caché dedans; report to UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000115930.

L'Éducation: un trésor est caché dedans, what influence did the Delors report have?
https://cdeacf.ca/actualite/2013/04/16/leducation-tresor-cache-dedans-ete-linfluence-rapport-delors.

Jacques Delors' report to UNESCO: "L'éducation, un trésor est caché dedans.
https://www.ecoleperceval.org/rapport-de-jacques-delors-a-l-unesco-l-education-un-tresor-est-cache-dedans-ecole-perceval/.

L'Éducation: un tresor est cache dedans [Report: - ProQuest. https://www.proquest.com/docview/203622087?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true.

Revue française de pédagogie https://www.persee.fr/doc/rfp_0556-7807_1997_num_120_1_3006_t1_0172_0000_3

Wikipedia Pliny the Elder https://fr.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pline_l%27Ancien

Tawil, S., & Cougoureux, M. (2013). L'éducation: un trésor est caché dedans-N° 4-What was the influence of the 1996 Delors Report?". UNESCO.