History of „Symposion“ 

Description of the network „Symposion“

This European teacher education network was formally established at two meetings in 1992 (in June in Aarhus and in September in Växjö). The participating institutions - Växjö Universitet, Aarhus Dag - og Aftenseminarium, Universität Potsdam, University College Northampton, Hogeschool Drenthe and Hogskolen i Agder - agreed on sending an application for a new network (ICP) to the ERASMUS Bureau in Brussels. The application was accepted and in April 1993 ‘ICP S 3004/05 Teacher Training’ was a formal financial reality, since it was supported within the ERASMUS programme. During the following years new members were accepted and as long as the old ERASMUS programme was going the ICP was co-financed by the European Union. Formal meetings were during this time held two times per year.

Since networks cannot be financed in the SOCRATES programme we decided to go on working as an informal network where all participating institutions have to pay for themselves -the network has no money at all (we don’t charge any membership fee or other fees). Meetings are now held once a year at one of the member institutions. 

The name of the network

The network was named ‘Symposion’ at a meeting in Weingarten 1998. The name was proposed in order to emphasize the main characteristics of the network: The interchange of educational concepts meeting future challenges in our diverse society made possible by strong personal relationships among the members.

Founders of the network: 

Nils Larsson, Växjö universitet

Bjorn Monstad, Hogskolen i Agder

List of meetings

1991: Meppel preparation and Växjötime

1992: Århus?

1993: Meppel

1994: Kristiansand

1995: Potsdam and Vordingborg

1996: Caen and Alta

1997: Cardiff and Weingarten

1998: Arnhem and Växjö (additional)

1999: Belfast

2000: Caceres

2001: Lublin

2002: Aarhus

2003: Weingarten

2004: Meppel

2005: Växjö

2006: Aarhus

2007: Potsdam

2008: Lublin

2009: Nijmegen

2010: Weingarten

2011: Vordingborg

2012: Kreuzlingen

2013: Orléans

2014: Kristiansand

2015: Hasselt

2016: Northampton

2017: Barcelona

2018: Linz 

2019: Dublin 

2021: Meppel 

2022: Ostrava 

2023: Orleans