The matter of significant national importance ?The Development of the Estonian Education System ? Problems and Solutions? was deliberated in the Riigikogu.

The deliberation was opened by the Chairman of the Cultural Affairs Committee Olav Aarna, highlighting the most important education problems, specified by the Committee. They are the following: the content of study does not correspond to the needs of students, society and labour market, the inequality of opportunities of education, the competence of the bodies forming the education policy in running education processes, and the professionalism of teachers and the valuing of their work. Mr. Aarna stressed that in planning the development of the education system one cannot deal only with problems, but the vision would have to be clear.?To create conditions for the lifelong development of talent and creativity of each human being should be the mission of the education system?, he stressed.

Analogous problems in the field of education were also raised by representatives of factions in their comments. It was admitted that there was a need for major innovations in the content of studies, egalitarian education system and in the development of human resources. A number of principles were formulated, proposals made and theses proposed for the formation of the education policy, stressing in such a way the importance of integer solution by the state as well as individual approach in the teaching process.

Minister of Education and Research Toivo Maimets mentioned in his speech that in reforming the education it was not possible to find solutions accepted by everyone. ?There are considerable differences in understandings, e.g. what would be the most suitable model for the implementation of the Estonian education policy, what should be preferred in solving the education problems – the centralised or school-centred approach.? The Minister also stressed that changes in the organisation of the educational life can only be systematic, preceded by the analysis, involving all the aspects of the process.

The sitting ended at 13.08.

The Riigikogu Press Service