The institutional conditions of adapting to future challenges in the Slovak education system

A Slovakian country study is published on the national education system by Ondrej Kascak, head of the department of School Pedagogy at Trnava university, Slovakia, in the framework of the Future Challenges to Education Systems in Central Eastern European Context (EDUC) project.

Abstract

The main aim of the report is to describe and analyse the extent to which the Slovak education system is capable of adapting to future (foreseeable) societal and educational challenges, drawing on national data. The report compiles and summarizes basic data on the Slovak education system and education outcomes. In an effort to obtain a comprehensive view of Slovak education, a broad spectrum of relevant data of both a quantitative and qualitative nature was collected. Much of the national data is taken from analyses and reports by the state agencies within the orbit of the education ministry, but a substantial part comes from analyses by non-governmental organizations and independent reform initiatives. Slovak academic research provided another important source. International comparative studies (PIRLS, TIMMS, PISA, TALIS) and OECD and EU comparative analyses are also among the key sources used in this report. The results of the analysis provide worrying findings. Inefficient administration hinders school autonomy in Slovakia. The level of teacher engagement and the student engagement in education are low. Collaborative professional learning among teachers is one of the lowest. Pupils' learning cultures are traditional, without collaborative elements. Slovak students also lag behind in key educational areas. Moreover, young Slovaks are among the least engaged in leisure pursuits in Europe and are least likely to be actively involved in civic engagement and in preventing climate change.

The institutional conditions of adapting to future challenges in the Slovak education system (Download)