2025
The Government has prepared amendments to the Law on Vocational Education. The Law proposal have been submitted to the Parliament, but the amendments to the law have not been yet adopted. The amendments to the Law on Vocational Education, among other things, plans to introduce the Fund for Support of Dual Education as a support for work-based learning. The role of the organizer of practical education has also been defined.
At the session of 14 February 2025, the Government of Montenegro adopted the Proposal to the Law on National Professional Qualifications and Proposal to the Law on Adult Education. The laws are currently in the Parliamentary procedure.
2024
In accordance with the Strategy for the Development of VET 2020-2024, the Action Plan for the implementation of the Strategy for the Development of VET 2020-2024 for the year 2024 was adopted. The Action Plan defines measures and activities for implementing operational goals: 1) Vocational education that enables skills, competences and qualifications for employability, lifelong learning, inclusiveness, personal development and active citizenship of individuals; 2) Vocational education that is relevant for the individual, the labour market and society, and which is accessible and innovative; 3) Comprehensive, quality and effective vocational education, with management and funding that encourages excellence and efficiency. In addition, the Action Plan defines deadlines for implementation, indicators of results and performance, means for the implementation of activities, sources of financing and competent institutions for the implementation of individual activities for the year 2024.
In order to improve vocational education, a decision was prepared on the adoption of new curricula, adopted by the National Council for Education (modularized teaching of 17 publicly valid curricula), as well as a decision on licensing secondary schools for the implementation of curricula that will be implemented for the first time in the 2023/2024 school year.
In addition, the Ministry participated in the preparation of the Guide for organizers of practical education, in cooperation with Agency for Education and Internationalization OEAD, Austria. A committee was formed to amend the Rulebook on matura and professional exams.
The Rulebook on the method, procedure and time of taking the matriculation exam in high school and the Rulebook on the method and procedure of taking the professional exam for students continuing their education have been adopted. The provisions of these regulations have been mutually agreed upon and improved in the area of jurisdiction for the legal implementation of external matriculation and professional examinations.
Amendments to these regulations stipulate that the school director, who is the president of the preparation committee, is responsible for the legality of conducting exams in the school. The president of the preparation committee collects the exam material from the Examination Center and is responsible for keeping it until it is handed over to the school coordinator. The exam, with the approval of the Examination Center, can be organized outside the school. In the exam room where the exam is taken, there are two teachers, the main test administrator and the test administrator. The main test administrator and test administrator, on the proposal of the school principal, are appointed by the Examination Center from among teachers, professional associates and assistant principals of another school, and they cannot be teachers of the subjects being taken.
The main test administrator and the test administrator are responsible for ensuring compliance with the rules of examination in the examination room, who should be present in the examination room during the entire duration of the examination. An authorized representative of the Examination Center can also attend the exam. The test administrator distributes the tests to the students, the main test administrator ensures that the students do not open the test before the exam begins.
Amendments to the Rulebook on the manner, procedure and time of taking the high school matriculation exam and the Rulebook on the manner and procedure of taking the professional exam for students continuing their education improved the provisions related to disruption of order during the exam by students.
The provisions of these regulations stipulate that a student who disrupts the order of the exam in a way that disturbs another candidate, looks back, talks, etc. or does not comply with the instructions of the main test administrator and test administrator, will be warned and the warning will be recorded. If the student is warned again or if he disrupts the order of the exam by trying to interrupt the exam, disrupts the course of the exam, if he possesses illegal means (paper, textbook, mobile phone or other electronic device, etc.), if he violates the secrecy of the candidate's identity by signing with his full name and surname or in another way, if he copies from another candidate and if he allows another candidate to copy, will be withdrawn from the exam in that exam period and is considered to have failed that subject.
The student loses the right to take the exam in that exam period when, during the exam, i.e. assessment, it is determined that he used illegal means, that he copied someone else's assignment or that he gave his assignment to someone else.
2023
Upon accepting the objectives of the Osnabruck Declaration on vocational education and training and in accordance with it, the Ministry of Education undertook to work on the National Implementation Plan.
The general objectives of the National Implementation Plan until 2025 are: Strengthening of quality assurance in VET with focus on WBL in all its forms, VET from lifelong learning perspective, Harmonization of VET provision with labour market needs, Digitalization of VET - digital schools.
The following strategic documents are being prepared:
Lifelong Career Development Program (guidance) (2023-2025)
General Secondary Education Development Program (2023-2025)
Action Plan of the Strategy for the Development of Vocational Education in Montenegro (2023-2024).
In the previous period, 18 occupational standards, 24 professional qualification standards, 10 education level qualification standards and 10 educational programs were developed and adopted. All working groups were trained for the preparation of documents for the development of qualifications in the fields of: mechanical engineering and metalworking, healthcare, metallurgy, graphic technology, catering, agriculture, road traffic, ballet art, railway traffic, environmental protection, graphic design, electrical engineering.
Round tables "Supporting the economy in the development of new qualifications required by the labor market" were organized in the fields of ballet art, graphic design, security, railway traffic, environmental protection, mechanical engineering and metalworking, etc. Regular trainings were held for teachers, coordinators for monitoring the implementation of modularized educational programs, pedagogues/psychologists, teachers of general education subjects. 162 teachers, 43 new coordinators, 14 pedagogues/psychologists and 115 teachers of general education subjects from secondary vocational and mixed schools from all cities of Montenegro were trained.
Representatives of the VET Center, within their competences, organized regular monitoring and support activities schools in working with gifted students and students with special educational needs (a workshop was held for 35 representatives of primary and secondary schools, which provided for the possibilities that students have when they are included in the professional education program in relation to their capabilities, potential and interests). Schools were provided with support, according to the requirements, in the preparation of IROP and ITP2. Representatives of the VET Center organized regular activities of advisory support to schools in the implementation of modularized educational programs and the organization and implementation of the final exam.