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Eurydice

EACEA National Policies Platform:Eurydice
National reforms related to adult education and training

Slovenia

14.Ongoing reforms and policy developments

14.5National reforms related to adult education and training

Last update: 13 September 2024
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2024

Modernisation of adult education

In February 2024, a working group developed the draft National Education Programme for 2023–2033. See Chapter 14.2.

Other policy developments

In February 2024, the Ministry of Education issued the Public call for applications for selecting and co-funding professional training programmes for education staff for the 2024/2025 school year. See Chapter 14.2.

In February 2024, the Government adopted the Annual Adult Education Programme in the Republic of Slovenia for 2024. It follows the guidelines of the Resolution on the National Programme of Adult Education in the Republic of Slovenia for the period 2022–2030 and the amendments to the budget of the Republic of Slovenia for 2024. 

It defined the following objectives:

  • Increase adult participation in further education and training.
  • Raise the level of basic skills and improve the general education of adults.
  • Increase the educational level of adults.
  • Enhance the population's skills for successfully responding to labour market needs.
  • Strengthen development and research in adult education.
  • Improve and strengthen activities in the field of adult education.

The target groups of adults for the programmes and activities in the 2024 annual plan are:

  • Adults with low basic skills according to employment status, age, or other characteristics
  • Adults who need to improve general education for personal needs and community challenges
  • Adults in need of further vocational or professional development or training according to labour market needs
  • Young adults who leave early education and training and dropouts
  • The elderly (65+).
  • Adults with limited access to social, cultural, economic, and educational goods.

There are €92,502,916.75 allocated in the Slovenian state budget for the implementation of the 2024 action plan, of which €32,788,959.77 will be allocated from the budget of the Ministry of Education.

In January 2024, the Ministry of Education published draft rules on the educational qualification of teachers and other education staff in the adult education programmes for:

The draft rules define the fields of education qualification required for teachers and other education staff in the relevant education programmes which were approved by the minister responsible for education.

2023

In December 2023, the Ministry of Education published the Public call for applications for co-funding adult education programmes and activities in 2024. The aim is to increase participation in lifelong learning, targeted with special emphasis on adults with lower educational qualifications and other vulnerable groups.

The following sections are co-funded:

  • Study clubs
  • Programmed of intergenerational cooperation and learning of popular education universities
  • Learning parade – Day of learning communities
  • Coordination of subtractors and events of the Lifelong Learning Week 2024
  • Nationally significant activities in adult education

The provisional funds available is €979,754.60.

In December 2023, the Operation to raise awareness, provide information to various groups of public and promote participation in lifelong learning within the European Cohesion Policy programme 2021 2021–2027 was approved. The aim is to raise awareness about the significance of learning and thereby contribute to improving the participation of adults in lifelong learning, developing competences of adult learners for their functioning in society and responding to the technological, demographic and climate changes. The plan is to spread the positive attitude towards lifelong learning within the wider society, and thereby, facilitating progress in personal, social and work life, and improving cooperation between providers of adult education at national and local levels. The total of public funds allocated amounts to €5,732,500.00. The beneficiary is the Slovenian Institute for Adult Education.

In November 2023, the minister responsible for education issued two decrees on the adoption of adult education programmes, specifically "Initial Integration of Immigrants" and "Computer Literacy for Adults", replacing previous programmes of the same name.

In June 2023, the ministry responsible for family, social matters and equal opportunities laid before the Government the draft Resolution on the national programme for equal opportunities of women and men until 2030. See chapter 14.2.

In March 2023, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the draft Digital Slovenia 2030 strategy. See chapter 14.5.

In March 2023, the ministry responsible for labour, family, social matters and equal opportunities released to public consultation the draft Resolution on the national programme of prevention of domestic violence and violence against women. See chapter 14.2.

In March 2023, the ministry responsible for education advertised the Call for applications for co-funding salaries of organisers of adult education on staff in public adult education organisation and public upper secondary school in 2023. It involved a financial assistance to providers to secure funds for salaries of employees and to monitor planning the number of hours of educational activities, participants, employees and other capacities, and to monitor the realisation of educational activities performed. The indicative scope of funds available is €400,000.

In March 2023, the ministry responsible for education advertised the Call for applications for co-funding activities in adult education. It aimed at increasing the participation in adult learning, in particular, targeted at low-skilled adults and other volnerable groups. The co-funding covered study courses, the Learning parade –  a day of learning communities, coordination of subcontractors and events in the Lifelong learning week 2023, and nationally relevant activities in adult education. The indicate scope of funds available was €750,000.

In January 2023, the minister responsible for education adopted the new Rules on standards and norms for funding and provision of programmes and activities for adults. It specified norms and standards for placing value on officially recognised education programmes for adults which do not lead to officially recognised educational qualification; non-formal education programmes for adults, study programmes for training and continuous education, methodology for placing value to other activities as specified by the Adult Education Act, and standards for rooms and equipment for the provision of officially recognised programmes for adults which lead to officially recognised educational qualifications. The Rules specified the up to now undetermined field of funding the programmes and activities of adult education when it goes for public funding.

2022

Modernisation of adult education

In May 2022, the minister responsible for education signed the decision to approve the “Financial literacy for adults” project. It runs in the scope of the Economic recovery plan. The project aims to analyse the situations in adult education and develop two new officially recognised programmes of financial literacy for adults that would become the cornerstones for the provision of financial literacy for adults.

In April 2022, the minister responsible for education signed the decision to approve the “Modernisation of education programmes by modernising the key programme documents (kindergarten curriculum, subject-curricula, and knowledge catalogues)” project. It runs on the recovery and resilience plan. The purpose of the project is the modernisation of kindergarten curriculum, basic school and gimnazija subject-curricula, and knowledge catalogues for general subjects of upper-secondary vocational and technical education so as to include reasonably the digital competences and basic content of computer science and informatics, and sustainable development competences and financial literacy. It will include the modernisation of basic school programme for adults. In April, one appointed the curricular council to monitor and steer the modernisation. It met for the first time in August 2022. There is a total of roughly €4 m planned for the implementation in the scope of the recovery and resilience plan for the period of 2022 to 2025. The project operator is the National Education Institute Slovenia.

In March 2022, the National Assembly adopted the new Resolution on the National Programme of Adult Education in the Republic of Slovenia 2021–2030.
It articulates the vision of all adult citizens of Slovenia in all lifecycles having the same opportunities and incentives for quality learning and education for full development and sustainable living.

Objectives of the resolution are:

  • More adults in lifelong learning
  • Improve basic skills and knowledge of adults
  • Raise the level of educational qualification
  • Improve the skills of citizens for a successful responding to the labour market demands
  • Facilitate the development and research in adult education, and
  • Improve and strengthen the activity in adult education (guidance in adult education, assessment and recognition of knowledge of adults, training and upskilling of education staff and trainers for adults, auditing and developing quality, raising awareness, providing information, and promoting inclusion of adults in lifelong learning, as well as information activity).

Other policy developments

In December 2022, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the annual adult education programme 2023. It is accordant with the Resolution on the National programme of adult education in the Republic of Slovenia for 2022 to 2030. It determined the goals and indicators of the national programmes, priority areas, actions for providing adult education, the provisional scope of relevant public funds, and ministries responsible for individual actions. It also determined the monitoring and supervision. The annual programmes for 2023 foresaw €48,897,252.02 of which €11.7 mio funds of the ministry responsible for education. Groups of adults targeted by the annual programme:

  • Adults with low basic skills in terms of employability, age or other characteristics
  • Adults who need to improve their general education for personal needs and respond to the challenges of the community
  • Adults who need to continue vocational or professional education and training in line with the labour market needs
  • Young adults who leave education and training early or dropouts
  • Adults over 65 years of age
  • Adults with limited access to social, cultural, economic and educational goods.

In August 2022, the minister responsible for education issued several orders to adopt adult education programmes, namely:

In the officially recognised education programmes for adults, learners acquire and improve literacy and basic skills, as well as improve general knowledge.