Slovenia
Sources: OECD (2020[1]), TALIS 2018 Results (Volume II): Teachers and School Leaders as Valued Professionals, TALIS, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/19cf08df-en; OECD (2020[2]), "Learning remotely when schools close: How well are students and schools prepared? Insights from PISA", OECD Policy Responses to Coronavirus (COVID-19), OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/3bfda1f7-en; OECD (2019[3]), TALIS 2018 Results (Volume I): Teachers and School Leaders as Lifelong Learners, TALIS, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/1d0bc92a-en; OECD (2019[4]), PISA 2018 Results (Volume II): Where All Students Can Succeed, PISA, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/b5fd1b8f-en; OECD (2019[5]), PISA 2018 Results (Volume III): What School Life Means for Students’ Lives, PISA, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/acd78851-en.
Selected education policies for Slovenia
Career Centres at Higher Education Institutions (2010)
►. Level of resilience: System
Since 2010, public and private HEIs across Slovenia have been establishing career centres with the support of funding from the European Social Fund and Slovenian Ministry of Education, Science, and Sport. The Ministry has launched three public calls for tender since 2010, with the aim of expanding career guidance activities and smoothing learners’ transitions to the labour market. As well as providing individual career counselling, career centres have organised career camps focusing on job application skills, workplace visits, and speed-dating activities with employers. According to country-level data, some 88 000 students participated in these activities between 2015 and 2020, which connected them with around 1 900 potential employers from Slovenia and abroad (National Information provided to the OECD).
A 2015 evaluation notes the centres’ successes in connecting higher education staff and students with partners in the labour market, though points to some challenges in making the centres visible to employers. Students reported that they valued career counselling (MK Projekt, 2015[6]). Following recommendations from this report, subsequent calls for tender placed a particular emphasis on networking between careers professionals in different institutions, as well as with secondary education sector and labour market partners. The next round of funding aims to promote a more holistic approach with efforts to improve career guidance for students from vulnerable groups (e.g. those with SEN, those with care obligations or gifted students) including training opportunities for staff working with these groups. Other developments include supporting the analysis of local skills needs and monitoring equity issues in students’ transitions within and beyond higher education in the Eastern Cohesion Region (National Information provided to the OECD).
Further reading: MK Projekt (2015[6]), Review of Implementation of the Strategic Goals for Higher Education in the Republic of Slovenia, MK Projekt, https://www.gov.si/assets/ministrstva/MIZS/Dokumenti/Kohezijska-politika/Vrednotenja/Pregled-uresnicevanja-strateskih-ciljev-visokega-solstva.pdf.
Supporting teaching professionals in implementing distance learning (2020)
►. Level of resilience: Broader learning environment
Slovenia’s National Education Institute (ZRSS) and National Research and Education Network (ARNES) played a vital role in supporting teachers with distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The government charged both with organising professional learning activities for teachers. Those organised by ZRSS aimed to help teachers find and create engaging digital learning content and addressed aspects such as assessment and collaboration in the context of distance learning. During school closures in 2020, ZRSS also conducted a survey on distance education, involving teachers, school leaders, and 24 650 students across the country. This informed a detailed set of guidelines on implementing primary and secondary education in the context of COVID-19, published in September 2020 (National Education Institute of the Republic of Slovenia, 2020[7]). The guidelines shaped education delivery models for different pandemic scenarios, with guidance on teacher training and addressing learning gaps. ARNES maintained the Slovenian Education Network portal, which provided networking opportunities between teachers and advisors and became a platform for sharing best practices between schools. With the help of partners from other organisations, ARNES developed over 700 interactive workshops for teachers, 14 MOOCs, 21 short webinars and 2 national conferences to share expert advice and best practices.
Further reading: National Education Institute of the Republic of Slovenia (2020[8]), Vzgoja in izobraževanje v Republiki Sloveniji v razmerah, povezanih s Covid-19 [Education in the Republic of Slovenia in Conditions Related to Covid-19: Models and Recommendations], https://www.zrss.si/digitalnaknjiznica/Covid_19/ (accessed on 1 April 2021).
References
MK Projekt (2015), Review of Implementation of the Strategic Goals for Higher Education in the Republic of Slovenia, MK Projekt, https://www.gov.si/assets/ministrstva/MIZS/Dokumenti/Kohezijska-politika/Vrednotenja/Pregled-uresnicevanja-strateskih-ciljev-visokega-solstva.pdf. [6]
National Education Institute of the Republic of Slovenia (2020), Podpora ZRSŠ pri izvajanju pouka na daljavo [ZRSŠ support in the implementation of distance learning], https://www.zrss.si/novice/podpora-zrss-pri-izvajanju-pouka-na-daljavo/ (accessed on 1 April 2021). [8]
National Education Institute of the Republic of Slovenia (2020), Vzgoja in izobraževanje v Republiki Sloveniji v razmerah, povezanih s Covid-19 [Education in the Republic of Slovenia in Conditions Relate to Covid-19: Models and Recommendations], https://www.zrss.si/digitalnaknjiznica/Covid_19/ (accessed on 1 April 2021). [7]
OECD (2020), Learning remotely when schools close: How well are students and schools prepared? Insights from PISA, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/3bfda1f7-en. [2]
OECD (2020), TALIS 2018 Results (Volume II): Teachers and School Leaders as Valued Professionals, TALIS, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/19cf08df-en. [1]
OECD (2019), PISA 2018 Results (Volume II): Where All Students Can Succeed, PISA, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/b5fd1b8f-en. [4]
OECD (2019), PISA 2018 Results (Volume III): What School Life Means for Students’ Lives, PISA, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/acd78851-en. [5]
OECD (2019), TALIS 2018 Results (Volume I): Teachers and School Leaders as Lifelong Learners, TALIS, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/1d0bc92a-en. [3]