2022

Adopted Act on Adult Education

In December 2021, the Croatian Parliament adopted a new Act on Adult Education.

According to the new legislation, adult education will include the implementation of formal adult education programs/curricula for the acquisition of qualifications at levels 1; 2; 3; 4; 5 of the Croatian Qualifications Framework, and the implementation of formal programs for the evaluation of sets of learning outcomes and the award of qualifications at levels 1; 2; 3; 4; 5 of the Croatian Qualifications Framework, which were acquired through formal and non-formal education and formal learning.

The goal of formal adult education for acquiring the competencies needed for work is to harmonize supply and demand in the labor market and contribute to the development of the economy.

Qualification standards (is the content and structure of a particular qualification. Includes all data needed to determine the level, scope and profile of qualifications and data needed to ensure and improve the quality of qualification standards. Agency for Vocational and Adult Education will issue an expert opinion on the compliance program with a qualification standard, and the decision on the implementation of the program will be made by the Minister responsible for education.
 

Updated Register of business entities involved in the implementation of the dual education model

As part of the implementation of dual education, the Ministry of Science and Education published an updated Register of business entities involved in the implementation of the dual education model for the acquisition of the following qualifications: glass-maker, chimney sweep, salesman, painter-decorator, cook, waiter, CNC operator, hairdresser and beautician in the Republic of Croatia.

The Act on amending and supplementing the Vocational Education and Training Act adopted

In June 2022, the Croatian Parliament passed the Act on amending and supplementing the Vocational Education and Training Act with the aim of ensuring efficient acquisition of necessary competencies and improving the learning outcomes of learners in the vocational education system and providing the basis for establishing mechanisms supporting employers and schools. The amendments to the Act introduce a significant novelty regarding the strengthening of work-based learning through connecting schools and employers. With the aim of better integration in the labour market and obtaining practical knowledge in vocational schools, besides defining work-based learning, the place where it can take place – at school, with employers or at the regional centre of competence – is also mentioned. The amendments also introduce professional supervision of the performance of work-based learning with employers.

The second set of novelties introduced by the amendments to the Act relate to the improvement of quality assurance systems and the establishment of mechanisms and criteria for encouraging learners to select qualifications relevant to the labour market. The above mentioned amendments aim to achieve better alignment of the education system with the labour market, i.e., the acquisition of skills with which each learner can successfully access the labour market, make progress and participate in the development of the society.

2021

The Government accepted the Draft of the Act on Adult Education

In July 2021, the Government adopted a Draft of the Adult Education Act, which will introduce significant changes in the adult education system, especially in harmonizing educational programs with the needs of the labor market.

The new Act enables the recognition of non-formally and informally acquired knowledge and skills, financing of lifelong learning by the Croatian Qualifications Framework Act with the aim of raising the quality and relevance of education programs. A total of 300 million HRK is planned for the education of 30,000 adults by 2026. The goal is to reach the EU average in adult education by 2030, as Croatia is now at 3.5 %, and the EU average is 10.8 %.

2020

Ordinance on amendments to the Ordinance on the Manner of Organizing and Teaching in Vocational Schools 

In December 2020 the Ministry of Science and Education announced that the Ordinance on Amendments to the Ordinance on the Manner of Organizing and Teaching in Vocational Schools has been published in the Official Gazette, No. 130/2020. The amended ordinance puts more emphasis on work-based learning. 

Public consultations on the Draft of Amendments to the Ordinance on the Manner of Organizing and Teaching in Vocational Schools 

In August 2020 the Ministry of Science and Education opened public consultations on the Draft of Amendments to the Ordinance on the Manner of Organizing and Teaching in Vocational Schools. These Amendments put more emphasis on work-based learning. Moreover, the role of supervising mentors in companies and VET teachers is further defined, as well as payment of student monthly rewards during the apprenticeship program.

ESF project Development of Quality Assurance System in Adult Education

On 18 June 2020 the Ministry of Science and Education signed a grant agreement for the implementation of a project Development of a Quality Assurance System in Adult Education co-financed by the Operational Program Effective Human Resources 2014-2020. The total value of the project is 17 838 099.66 HRK which is carried out by the Agency for Vocational Education and Training and Adult Education (AVETAE).

The project aims at improving the quality of the adult education system through the development of a model of self-evaluation and external evaluation of adult education institutions in order to improve adult education based on relevant research data. Croatia will participate in the largest survey of adult competencies in the world - the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) - an international survey of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Participation in the PIAAC is of strategic importance for strengthening the quality of education in Croatia, which for the first time will have the opportunity to reliably determine the level of adult competencies in the business and wider social environment.

Decisions on new curriculum documents

In April the curriculum for the subject road technician was published in the Official Gazette (41/2020). 

Furthermore, in June the Ministry of Science and Education published Decisions on the introduction of vocational curricula for acquiring the qualifications of salesperson, glazier, chimney sweeper and beautician (Official Gazette 71/2020) in the dual education model. The published curriculum will be implemented from the school year 2020/2021.

Evaluation of the Experimental Program Dual Education

In March 2020, the Ministry of Science and Education presented an evaluation of the experimental implementation of the dual education model in the school year 2019/2020. A total of 446 students from 19 vocational schools and 191 employers participated in the implementation. 

The evaluation aims were to:

• examine schools’ and employers’ readiness to implement an experimental program
• examine the satisfaction and attitudes of students, employers and teachers 
• monitor the effects of the implementation of the experimental programs and identify recommendations for further developments. 

The evaluation results indicated that more than 70% of students, employers and teachers were satisfied with the one-year implementation of the experimental program, and more than 90% of the students achieved the planned learning outcomes. 

Experimental implementation is based on the Model of Croatian dual education which defines main principles and aims, organisation of education process, financing, participants and their roles, access to and completion of programmes and stakeholder partnerships.

More than 1.3 billion HRK has been allocated for vocational education and training reform from EU funding programmes.

New regional competence centres

Within a call ‘Establishment of the infrastructure of regional centers of competence in vocational education to support the process of vocational education and training reform’ the Ministry of Science and Education established additional four regional competence centres in December 2019. A total amount of 105 million HRK was allocated to the centers of competence at the Koprivnica School of Crafts, two centers at the Karlovac Technical School and one at the Catering School in Opatija.