Ongoing reforms and policy developments

14.Ongoing reforms and policy developments

Last update: 27 November 2023

Overall national education strategies and key objectives

The continuous development of the system of education in the Republic of Slovenia is specified in national programmes and other documents related to one or several levels or areas of education.

The Organisation and Financing of Education Act specified the main goals of the education system up to higher education. It specified 19 education goals, including:

Providing the optimal development of the individual, irrespective of personal circumstances
Assuring quality education
Fostering inquisitiveness, a spirit of enquiry, imagination and intuition, and
Fostering the development of independent thinking
Allowing as many people as possible to achieve the highest possible level of education while maintaining the level of difficulty, and
Allowing as many people as possible to develop the highest possible level of creativity.

White paper on education in the Republic of Slovenia

The Paper is a systemic expert reflection about the structure and operating of the system. In includes solutions for assuring quality of operations in preschool education, basic school education, upper secondary education, adult education, and music education.

Resolution on the national programme of higher education 2030

The key strategic objectives of the Resolution are:

Raising the level and quality of the higher educational qualification in Slovenia
Providing quality in education and research excellence
Improving the responsiveness, flexibility and attractiveness of the higher education system irrespective of economic demands, non-economic requirements and expectations of the society
Accelerating its integration internationally
Improving the accessibility of education
Opening up opportunities for continuous education and lifelong learning in higher education, all over Slovenia
Increasing the intensity of research and innovation, and
Facilitating the transfer of knowledge to the societal environment.

Strategy of the Republic of Slovenia for short-cycle higher vocational education 2020–2030

The Strategy introduced the short-cycle higher vocational education as a flexible part of tertiary education, practice focused studies able to respond to the demands of economy and/or society in a short time.

It is renowned for quality programmes, programme flexibility to the demands of the economy and/or society, and very good employability of graduates. Achieving the vision within the specified period is subject to the following strategic goals:

Financially stable operations of higher vocational colleges
Overall quality of short-cycle higher vocational education
Flexibility to meet the demands of the economy and/or society, and
Great employability of higher vocational college graduates.

Resolution on the national programme of adult education 2020–2030

The vision of the Resolution is for all adult residents of Slovenia to have equal opportunities and incentives to acquire quality learning and education for all-round development and sustainable living through their lifespan.

Objectives of the resolution are:

More adults in lifelong learning
Improving basic skills and knowledge of adults
Raising the level of educational qualification
Improving the skills of citizens for a successful responding to the labour market demands
Facilitating the development and research in adult education, and
Improving and strengthen the activity of adult education.

Resolution on the national programme for language policy 2021–2025

The universal goal of the language policy is to provide quality language life for in the relevant period of time.

National strategy for the development of reading literacy 2019–2030

The Strategy’s focus is on the reading literacy being the cornerstone of other literacies.

Its aim is to enable each and every one in Slovenia to develop the level of literacy, reading related skills, attitude and knowledge needed for them to live a healthy, environmentally and socially responsible, and creative professional and social life.

Other

Each coalition that constitutes the Slovenian government highlights also programme priorities related to education in the relevant co-operation agreement.

On 1 June 2022, the leader of the Freedom Movement, dr. Robert Golob took office as the prime minister of the 15^th government which was confirmed. Other parties of the governing coalition are Social Democrats (SD) and The Left. Dr. Igor Papič was appointed as the Minister of Education, Science and Sport.

In January 2023, the restructuring of the government took place. Among other, the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport was dissolved into the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation and the Ministry of Education. Dr. Darjo Felda was appointed at the Minister of Education became and dr. Igor Papič as the Minister for Higher Education, Science and Innovation. Sports came within the realm of the Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport.

The coalition parties agreed to introduce several measures linked to the system of education in the period 2022 to 2026. The measures include:

Providing free meals in basic school
Considering the possibility of state funding the last year of kindergarten and free kindergarten for all
Teaching transversal competences such as sustainable development, digital literacy, innovativeness, creativity, artistic expression, critical thinking, plurilingualism, inter-cultural competence, solidarity
Amending the enrolment cap criteria, namely to make the national assessment results high-stake
Voicing greater concern for talented students (systemic layout)
Focusing more on students with special educational needs
Introducing new pilot models of vocational and technical education within the centres of vocational excellence and the inter-company educational and training centres, and set up modern demonstration prototyping laboratories
Defining a public service in higher education and include all three levels of studying
Establishing equal and constructive connection between high-tech economy and higher education system
Making an effort to expedite the completion of studies
Modernizing the concept of study policies so to make it possible for higher education students from disadvantaged backgrounds to study and to support talented higher education students, and
Amending the area of concessions to better define the association between public and private schools, and to grant them only to higher education institutions that provide unique study programmes that cannot be compared to programmes of public institutions.

Overview of the education reform process and drivers

In the Republic of Slovenia, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia as the executive authority and top body of public administration develops legislation and other instruments with statutory authority, national programmes and other common documents that specify the principle and long-term political guidelines for specific areas (or individual members of the parliament, the National council of the Republic of Slovenia or a group of at least five thousand members of electorate). The National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia has the authority to adopt or pass those draft instruments.

The National Assembly is the highest representative and legislative authority of the Republic of Slovenia. Its carries out the legislative function under which deputies adopt the most important national legislation. Laws are passed in a legislative procedure of several phases: from submitting draft law through tabling amendments to voting on the enactment or rejection, promulgating the law by the President of the Republic of Slovenia to publishing it in the official gazette.

The National Assembly has the authority to adopt new legislation that specify anew separate social areas or it may pass new laws to amend the social relation already established under law. The legislative procedure is regulated by the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia (en) and the Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly.

The instruments enacted by the executive branch of government (Government, ministers) include decrees, ordinances, rules, orders, and instructions.

Support public institutes in education instituted by the state according to the Organisation and Financing of Education Act have an important role to play in the reform processes.

Their responsibilities and duties include:

development of platforms for informed decision-making
development, implementation and monitoring, as well as evaluation of the programme
other activities and projects to further development
professional support
assessing and assuring quality, and evaluation of changes introduced
counselling and organisation of training, and
other support activities.

In July 2021, the National school for leadership in education instituted in 1995 as an independent public institute for education and training of head-teachers became part of the National education institute Slovenia. The basic premise for the merger was the goal agreed with the coalition contract of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia 2020–2022. It encapsulates the idea of intensifying the role of the umbrella national institute in school education by merging other national institutions and thereby setting up an efficient, quality and comprehensive support system in education.

The other public institutes in education are Centre of the Republic of Slovenia for vocational education and training, Slovenian institute for adult education, Centre of the Republic of Slovenia for mobility and European education and training programmes, and the Slovenian school museum.

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