Transcript Slide 1

Education in Estonia
May 2009, Funchal
Where is Estonia located?
Estonia is here!
Educational system
Basic Education
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Basic education can be acquired in primary schools (grades 1−6), basic schools
(grades 1−9) or upper secondary schools that have opened basic school
grades.
Basic school is divided into three stages of study:
stage I – grades 1−3;
stage II – grades 4−6;
stage III – grades 7−9.
121.405 pupils are acquiring basic education in the 2007/2008 academic year,
36.384 of them in stage I, 38.234 in stage II and 46,787 in stage III.
Basic education can be acquired on the basis of three national curricula: the
national basic school and upper secondary school curriculum, the simplified
national basic school curriculum and the national curriculum for students with
moderate and severe learning disabilities.
The maximum permitted weekly workload of pupils is as follows:
20 lessons in grade 1;
23 lessons in grade 2;
25 lessons in grades 3 and 4;
28 lessons in grade 5;
30 lessons in grades 6 and 7;
32 lessons in grade 8;
34 lessons in grade 9.
General Secondary Education
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Upper secondary education is provided pursuant to the national curriculum
which is used by each school as the basis of their own curriculum.
There are 35 study weeks in daytime study. One study week must include at
least 32 lessons.
Pupils in upper secondary schools can acquire extensive knowledge in certain
fields of study within the framework of elective subjects (in arts, science, natural
sciences, etc.) or learn a profession taught in vocational schools. At the end of
the three-year study period pupils take five graduation examinations, of which at
least three are state examinations.
33.666 pupils are studying in upper secondary schools in the 2007/2008
academic year. Approximately 6.300 pupils are acquiring basic and general
secondary education in the form of evening study and distance learning, 5.000
of them are acquiring general secondary education.
E-school
 All Estonian schools are connected to Internet. E-school
parents, students, teachers and school administrators can
connect via the Internet, making school information accessible
from home. With everything from grades to attendance records
available in one area, the work routine for teachers and school
management is less stressful and easier to manage. By
combining all day-to-day transactions and processes into one egovernment infrastructure, Estonia stands as a prime example
as to how smoothly a country can run when everyone is on the
same page.
The Essence of e-school
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E-school is a solution that allows parents (and students) to see schoolinformation concerning their child i.e grades, missed classes, home
assignments etc. securely over the Internet. It also improves parents’
communication with teachers via different Forums.
E-school is an infotechnological database and application based on a centrally hosted
server for storage of study-related information created in schools. It is available to
users over the Internet. E-school allows authorised persons role-based filtered viewing
(and administration) of the part of the information that they have the right to access.
E.g. a parent can view only the information related to his/her child while the teacher
is restricted to the information on just the classes and subjects he/she teaches while
nobody can access the data of another school, etc.
The primary objectives of e-school are:
To involve parents into the study process and school life more actively than
before by enabling them to consistently view what is going on in school and
communicate with the teacher;
To open up the school – to make school activities and the information that is
being created at school available to parents and students on a current basis;
To create an application that can be used practically in all schools and which is
applicable immediately as well as step-by-step in line with the readiness and
needs of each school. Joining the application has to be voluntary for schools
based on the wishes of interest groups (school management, teacher, parents).
Administration and management
model of Schools - Funding
 The majority of general education schools – 529 of 589 schools
in 2007 – are municipal schools. 31 schools are state schools
and 29 are private schools. 27 state schools are for pupils with
special needs and 4 are ordinary schools. This means that
general education schools are mainly funded from the budgets
of local governments. Local governments have the competence
to establish, reorganise and close general education schools
and to organise transport to take pupils to and from schools,
catering
during
study
periods,
etc.
Administration and management
model of Schools - Funding
 A new general education funding model for distribution of
education expenditures among local governments was
implemented in 2008. The model proceeds from the
circumstance that the cost of teaching each class is the same
regardless of the number of pupils in the class. This principle
guarantees local governments equal opportunities in the
provision of general education, because support from the state
budget is allocated for payment of teacher salaries and
investments not only on the basis of the number of students, but
also according to the number of classes and lessons.
The National Examinations and
Qualifications Centre -Teachers
Evaluation
 The Teachers’ Department:
 organises evaluation of teachers’ professional skills and issuing
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professional certificates;
organises the work of the national evaluation committee, provides
consultation to the evaluation committees of educational institutions;
evaluates the qualifications of teachers and makes prognosis for the
need for in-service training and retraining;
evaluates conformity of in-service training curricula to teaching
qualification requirements;
analyzes teachers’ professional preparation and teachers’ participation
in in-service training on the basis of the EHIS;
is competent to recognize teaching qualification acquired abroad.
Teachers working time and tasks
 In Estonia, the prerequisite for contracting an employment contract with
a teacher is the presence of the respective qualification. This is
governed in Estonia by two regulations by the Minister of Education:
"The Conditions and Policies for Teacher Evaluation" and "The
Qualification Requirements for Teachers". 4 grades apply to teachers in
Estonia and the grades are assigned to teachers by means of
evaluation: junior teacher - a teacher with higher professional
education who begins working as a teacher, teacher - a teacher with
higher professional education who has successfully worked for at least
1 year, senior teacher - a teacher with higher professional education
who has successfully worked as teacher for at least 3 years and has
met the additional requirements such as provided instruction for junior
teachers, written a teaching-related research paper etc, teachermethodologist - a teacher with higher professional education who has
successfully worked as senior teacher for at least 3 years and met the
additional requirements set forth.
Teachers working time and tasks
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The grades of junior teacher and teacher are assigned by the head of the
educational institution that the teacher works at; the grade of senior teacher is
assigned by the evaluating board at the educational institution. The grade of
teacher-methodologist is assigned by the national evaluating board established
by the Minister of Education and Research. It is voluntary for a teacher to apply
for the two higher ones of the grades - senior teacher and teachermethodologist. Evaluation is an opportunity for professional career for teachers
and their remuneration also depends directly on the grade since a minimum
salary rate set forth by the Government of the Republic corresponds to each of
the grades. This means that a teacher with the respective grade must not be
paid less than the minimum corresponding salary rate. As a result of the
negotiations between Estonian Education Personnel Union and the Government
of the Republic, during the last few years the salary rates have increased by 8 to
15 % yearly. A teacher's remuneration does not depend on his/her length of
employment. A teacher's retirement age is equal to all the other employees',
neither do teachers enjoy any other benefits related to social security. There are
considerable differences in the way teachers' working time is governed,
compared to other employees. The Working and Rest Time Act lays down a
reduced standard for working time for teachers.
Teachers working time and tasks
 The general standard for working time is 40 hours per week or 8
hours per day in Estonia. The reduced standard for working time
for teachers is 35 hours per week or 7 hours per day. A list of
posts that the reduced standard applies to has been laid down
by a regulation of the Government of the Republic. In addition,
the Government of the Republic has laid down the number of
lessons per week for a teacher that are mandatory if the teacher
works full-time and is paid the minimum salary rate for full
employment and according to the teacher's grade. The norm for
lessons is: 18 to 24 lessons per week in basic school and 18 to
22 lessons per week in secondary school.