The quality assurance is the responsibility shared by

• Educational institutions
• Public research institutes
• Evaluation bodies and agencies
• Ministry responsible for education, and
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia.

There is external and internal quality assurance at all levels of education.

The basis for quality assessment and assurance in school education is self-evaluation.

Educational institutions must carry out self-evaluation every year. They must report on it to their own governing bodies.

The law does not specify the method of self-evaluation. The procedures are not the same at all levels of education.

In school education, one applies the following resources traditionally:

• annual analysis of learning outcomes
• the Education Inspectorate’s report, and
• analysis of outcomes of external assessment, as well as results of domestic and international research.

In the self-evaluation process, educational institutions can obtain information from external institutions (National Examinations Centre Slovenia, Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia, ...) and international surveys and assessments (PISA, PIRLS, TALIS, …)

The external evaluation of the regularity of the educational institution's operations is in the responsibility of the Education Inspectorate.

The common focus of external evaluation or inspection in school education is the operation of the system and the quality assurance for education programmes. The key elements of the external quality assurance in school education:

• National External Assessment of Knowledge as specified by law in Grades 3, 6 and 9 of the basic school
• matura and vocational matura: compulsory final examination at the end of upper secondary general and vocational education
• international assessment of learning outcomes in various areas supported by international research
• national evaluation studies under the coordination of the Quality and Evaluation Council
• reports on the introduction of innovations in kindergartens and schools that the public research institute in education develops, and
• accreditation of education programmes with the Council of Experts of the Republic of Slovenia for General Education and the Council of Experts of the Republic of Slovenia for Vocational Education.

The accreditation procedures, as well as internal and external evaluation procedures, are designed to ensure quality in short-cycle higher vocational and higher education. The Council of experts of the Republic of Slovenia for vocational education is competent in accreditation of short-cycle higher vocational programmes; the Slovenian quality assurance agency (SQAA) is responsible for quality assurance in higher education. It is competent in the external evaluation of short-cycle higher vocational and higher educational institutions. The internal evaluation procedures are in the domain of higher vocational colleges and higher educational institutions.

The same principles that apply to school education and individual areas of education also apply to quality assurance in adult education for the delivery of officially recognised programmes. Furthermore, the Slovenian Institute for Adult Education has been developing quality assurance approaches that adult education providers can voluntarily participate in. The Council of experts of the Republic of Slovenia for adult education is competent to accredit officially recognised adult education programmes.

The competent ministry responsible for education supports quality assurance activities, also through financial instruments and development projects. Among the most notable is the establishment of a national Analytical Centre, which connects data and various educational institutions and provides systematic support for quality assurance. It collects, analyses and interprets quality-related data, linking them with the experience and expertise of practitioners. In doing so, it promotes cooperation among kindergartens, schools, and other stakeholders and strengthens their capacity to use data effectively for self-evaluation. The aim of the centre is to develop common approaches, improve data use, and reinforce evidence-based decision-making, thereby contributing to a more equitable and effective education system.