Schools, teachers, curricula
What should be taught in school? How well are immigrant children integrated? What does school contribute to society and what impact does society have on school? Views from Europe's schools.
euro|topics-Dossier on education
Main focus of Friday, 30. November 2007
Two new studies have reignited the debate about educational standards in schools: » more
Two new studies have reignited the debate about educational standards in schools: the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and the OECD's Pisa study. How effective are the education systems of the different nations at educating their pupils?
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Schools in the EU member-states
Belgium
De Standaard - Belgium | Thursday, 13. July 2006
"Are teachers who wear a head scarf a danger to the students they teach ?", asks Peter Vandermeersch. "Those who want to outlaw the head ... » more
"Are teachers who wear a head scarf a danger to the students they teach ?", asks Peter Vandermeersch. "Those who want to outlaw the head scarf consider this piece of fabric to be a symbol of oppression against women and fear compromising the neutrality of education. In their view, it is a patent symbol against which one must take precautions in the face of an Islamic radicalisation that could make its way into our own classrooms. But a healthy multicultural society cannot, must not, outlaw the veil. It does not represent a danger to the education of our children. It is ideas that can be harmful. This is why we must see to it that ghetto schools are not relegated to Islamic teachers. The values of our democratic society and especially the equality of men and women must continue. Beyond this, it matters little whether or not women wear the veil."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » Integration, » Weltanschauung, » Belgium
All available articles from » Peter Vandermeersch
Bulgaria
Monitor - Bulgaria | Tuesday, 20. November 2007
Bulgarian teachers have decided to stage another major strike in the current school year. This time the goal will be not only higher salaries but also a rise in the entire education budget. The teachers' union considers the current 4.2 percent of the gross domestic product to be insufficient. Dolores Vitanova criticises the teachers for making too many mistakes in their first strike, which lasted 40 days: » more
Bulgarian teachers have decided to stage another major strike in the current school year. This time the goal will be not only higher salaries but also a rise in the entire education budget. The teachers' union considers the current 4.2 percent of the gross domestic product to be insufficient. Dolores Vitanova criticises the teachers for making too many mistakes in their first strike, which lasted 40 days: "First they wanted more money, but when they reached a compromise in the negotiations they realised that their calculations were wrong. Many teachers felt betrayed and some gave up on the strike. ... The problems in education are not new, but each government passes the reform on to the next like a hot potato. If the reform is postponed any longer we won't even be able to keep up with Romania."
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All available articles from » Dolores Vitanova
Sega - Bulgaria | Wednesday, 17. October 2007
Ljuben Obretenov tries to explain why, contrary to all expectations, the teachers' strike has now gone on for three weeks. "The similarities with the events ... » more
Ljuben Obretenov tries to explain why, contrary to all expectations, the teachers' strike has now gone on for three weeks. "The similarities with the events of ten years ago are striking. In 1997 they ended with the government's downfall. .... The striking teachers of today are the students of back then, jumping around and singing at protests. The older teachers cry with excitement because this is their first civic protest. The younger ones feel like fish in water. This is a new generation of teachers that is strong enough to act like yeast in the pastry of protest."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Liuben Obretenov
Sega - Bulgaria | Monday, 15. October 2007
Bulgaria's teachers have been on strike for three weeks now. Ivaylo Ditchev considers that fundamental issues are at stake: » more
Bulgaria's teachers have been on strike for three weeks now. Ivaylo Ditchev considers that fundamental issues are at stake: "The outcome of this conflict will decide whether we become a country of waiters and cleaners protected by a strong army, a tax paradise for European capital of dubious origin, or a European country with an educated population and a well-developed public sector. The dilemma lies in the conflict between short-term interests (tax cuts, social dumping) and long-term investments in the future (education, public order, infrastructure). ... Allegations that the protest has been politicised raise another question, namely what is politics other than the debate about what public money should be spent on: military technology and tax cuts for the rich, or education."
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All available articles from » Ivaylo Ditchev
Dnevnik - Bulgaria | Friday, 12. October 2007
Bulgaria's largest demonstration in ten years took place yesterday. Following three weeks of fruitless negotiations with the government, tens of thousands of teachers gathered to call for its resignation. Georgi Gospodinov reports that the governing Socialists resorted to massive security measures, for fear that the stormy events which precipitated the fall of the cabinet in 1997 could be repeated: » more
Bulgaria's largest demonstration in ten years took place yesterday. Following three weeks of fruitless negotiations with the government, tens of thousands of teachers gathered to call for its resignation. Georgi Gospodinov reports that the governing Socialists resorted to massive security measures, for fear that the stormy events which precipitated the fall of the cabinet in 1997 could be repeated: "It's a long time since I've seen the city centre in such a state. There were metal fences surrounding the entire parliament building, hoards of police and dozens of road blocks. It was like a film reconstruction of the events of ten years ago. ... Who are these 'dangerous elements' against whom these measures are directed? The teachers. The government describes their demands for the doubling of their 150 euro salaries as a threat that could exacerbate inflation. ... At a time when governments all over the world are investing in knowledge, the Bulgarian state is keeping its teachers at arm's length."
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All available articles from » Georgi Gospodinov
Kultura - Bulgaria | Tuesday, 9. October 2007
Teachers in Bulgaria are striking for better payment and better schools. Rumen Petrov concludes that without school reforms there can be no major changes within Bulgarian society: » more
Teachers in Bulgaria are striking for better payment and better schools. Rumen Petrov concludes that without school reforms there can be no major changes within Bulgarian society: "This is because interpersonal relationships are based on false foundations which favour only the totalitarian paradigm. There is no modern vision for schools. They have no influence over society. They also lack possibilities for self-administration, as well as skilled personnel and teaching methods based on the principles of cooperation, tolerance and support."
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All available articles from » Rumen Petrov
Dnevnik - Bulgaria | Friday, 5. October 2007
According to Georgi Gospodinov, the teachers' strike which has gone on for ten days now is about more than higher salaries and educational reforms: » more
According to Georgi Gospodinov, the teachers' strike which has gone on for ten days now is about more than higher salaries and educational reforms: "The teacher is on the dark side of Bulgarian society. His presence on the streets and the radicalisation of the strike is an attempt to step out of this life in the shadows. ... Because as far as light is concerned, there is another, parallel Bulgaria. These are people you never read about in the papers unless there's a fire, a flood or a crime. In this other Bulgaria dressmakers, cleaning ladies and museum staff work for tiny salaries without having any rights and with false insurance documents. ... The teachers' demands for better pay are a sign of their desire for respect."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Georgi Gospodinov
Dnevnik - Bulgaria | Wednesday, 26. September 2007
Bulgaria's teachers have been on strike since Monday in a bid to have their salaries doubled from an average of 170 euros per month. However the government insists on first implementing an education reform and then raising salaries. Boyko Pentschev comments: » more
Bulgaria's teachers have been on strike since Monday in a bid to have their salaries doubled from an average of 170 euros per month. However the government insists on first implementing an education reform and then raising salaries. Boyko Pentschev comments: "Every day the classic question: what came first, the chicken or the egg? is debated in the media. What should come first? A raise in teachers' salaries or the reform of the education system? Wouldn't it be better to deal with these two issues separately? The teachers' humiliatingly low salaries have resulted in fewer and fewer people choosing this profession. And incentives like new computers won't change this... No one is striking for a reform of the education system. People want more money and they're right to do so. After all, they live in an EU country with European prices."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Boiko Pentchev
Denmark
Politiken - Denmark | Tuesday, 5. June 2007
According to Danish studies, children of immigrants are particularly prone to problems with reading and spelling. Helle Thorning-Schmidt, leader of the Social Democrats, has therefore proposed a 25 % limit on the proportion of immigrants' children in kindergartens and school classes. The newspaper describes the proposal as "silly" and adds: » more
According to Danish studies, children of immigrants are particularly prone to problems with reading and spelling. Helle Thorning-Schmidt, leader of the Social Democrats, has therefore proposed a 25 % limit on the proportion of immigrants' children in kindergartens and school classes. The newspaper describes the proposal as "silly" and adds: "Screening at kindergartens and later on for schools should be done by means of 'colour-blind' tests. Those results should be the criteria for how to put together classes. A limit of 25 % for children with learning difficulties may be a sensible approach. And if it turns out that most of these children are the children of immigrants - well, the appropriate measures should be taken. But the Social Democrats are very much mistaken if they think ethnic segregation in the classroom is the solution."
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More from the press review on the subject » Denmark
Politiken - Denmark | Thursday, 10. August 2006
A row has broken out at the beginning of the school year in Denmark. A Copenhagen school wanted to introduce separate classes for the children ... » more
A row has broken out at the beginning of the school year in Denmark. A Copenhagen school wanted to introduce separate classes for the children of Danish families and the children of foreigners – allegedly to improve integration. Bertel Haarder, Denmark's minister for education, welcomed the proposal but the newspaper is appalled. "No one can doubt that the task of integrating children from families where Danish is not spoken and where the children grow up with a different culture is an enormous challenge for schools. But this challenge must be met with a professional approach. A professional approach entails making schools more attractive for all parents. That means smaller classes, more lessons with two teachers in attendance, and in-service training for teachers. This all costs money, and communities with a higher proportion of foreigners probably won't be able to carry the costs alone. But when you consider how much school and university drop-outs cost society it's obvious how important it is to come up with the necessary funding."
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Germany
Süddeutsche Zeitung - Germany | Wednesday, 5. April 2006
Heribert Prantl is deeply concerned about the debate about the integration of immigrant children in German schools after a school in Berlin felt compelled to surrender to the violence of the pupils: » more
Heribert Prantl is deeply concerned about the debate about the integration of immigrant children in German schools after a school in Berlin felt compelled to surrender to the violence of the pupils: "There are ten rules which must be observed to prevent the successful integration of foreigners in German society. Since the scandal broke out about conditions at the Rütli School in Berlin, politicians have managed to follow a number of them," Prantl writes, citing threats to use repressive measures and even deport "integration-resistant" immigrants as an example. "This aggressive approach will achieve only one thing, namely that minorities increasingly take refuge in their otherness. Integration is still a new word – both for the old and the new citizens of Germany... There's a lot at stake. This is about a second German reunification, this time between old and new German citizens, or in other words, between German citizens and citizens of foreign origin."
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All available articles from » Heribert Prantl
Neue Zürcher Zeitung - Switzerland | Monday, 3. April 2006
Correspondent Eric Gujer examines the debate on the integration of children of immigrants in schools, an issue which is currently the subject of heated discussion ... » more
Correspondent Eric Gujer examines the debate on the integration of children of immigrants in schools, an issue which is currently the subject of heated discussion across Germany. "The current debate is not about money, more teachers or more social workers, it's about an educational approach that places too little emphasis on authority and discipline and doesn't show children where the limits are. However, if this is done and teachers are really committed, a positive learning environment can be created even in schools where the general conditions are unfavourable. Recently, a school in Berlin made the headlines because it introduced a house rule according to which pupils are to speak German even during their break."
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All available articles from » Eric Gujer
Die Zeit - Germany | Thursday, 26. January 2006
A school in Berlin has made headlines in the debate about the integration of immigrants, because it made speaking German on the playground compulsory. "The ... » more
A school in Berlin has made headlines in the debate about the integration of immigrants, because it made speaking German on the playground compulsory. "The routine zealous outrage from critics stands in stark contrast to the pragmatism of those most affected by the new rule," writes Jörg Lau. "In actual fact, both pupils and parents at the Hoover School were involved in drawing up this allegedly discriminatory rule. Moreover, the school committee, in which members of all groups involved in school life are represented, discussed the rule over a year ago and gave its approval. People at the school have got along fine with the German language rule so far."
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All available articles from » Jörg Lau
Finland
Hufvudstadsbladet - Finland | Wednesday, 5. December 2007
Once again Finland occupied a top position in the Pisa study. Johanna Westman reflects on how the country can maintain its ranking: » more
Once again Finland occupied a top position in the Pisa study. Johanna Westman reflects on how the country can maintain its ranking: "One of the weak points is the great gap between boys and girls. In addition, one in ten of Finland's 15-year-olds is unhappy at school - that's twice as many as in Sweden. This minority manages to struggle on, but it lacks motivation, and this is a serious shortcoming in a society in which life-long learning is a prerequisite for a successful career. ... What's more, Finland could drop behind if immigration increases and more children of foreign extraction enter its primary schools, approaching conditions in Sweden or Denmark. If primary schools are unprepared, Finland's performance could suffer dramatically."
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More from the press review on the subject » Finland, » Denmark, » Sweden
All available articles from » Johanna Westman
France
Le Nouvel Observateur - France | Thursday, 27. September 2007
Jean Daniel, chief editor of the weekly, considers that "France would never have bcome the most marvellous machine in the world for fabricating French people from elsewhere without the Catholic Church, that took these immigrants of the same faith under its wing, and above all without the republican, secular obligatory school system. In bygone days no family was without a happy memory of a school teacher. Often, when reading the biography of a writer or artist, one finds the same remark: » more
Jean Daniel, chief editor of the weekly, considers that "France would never have bcome the most marvellous machine in the world for fabricating French people from elsewhere without the Catholic Church, that took these immigrants of the same faith under its wing, and above all without the republican, secular obligatory school system. In bygone days no family was without a happy memory of a school teacher. Often, when reading the biography of a writer or artist, one finds the same remark: 'At the age of 10 or 12, a teacher singled me out and helped me out' ... . What was the black smock that Jules Ferry wanted us all to wear everywhere in France? It was the exact opposite of the veil. It was a way of imposing equality on all children, of effacing the distinction between rich and poor and children of different races and religions.”
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Integration, » History, » France
All available articles from » Jean Daniel
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung - Germany | Monday, 22. October 2007
As of today, the farewell letter written by the young resistance fighter Guy Môquet will be required reading at French schools. In an interview with Michaela Wiegel, historian Max Gallo explains why interpretations of the past should not be imposed from above in schools. "In my opinion there should be no penalties if a teacher decides not to include Guy Môquet's letter in his reading list. It should be left to him to exercise his freedom of opinion and decide at his own discretion. By the same token, all teachers should be free to comment on how they see the letter in a historical context. There should be debate rather than uniform categorisation." Gallo explains why the letter is still important for France today: » more
As of today, the farewell letter written by the young resistance fighter Guy Môquet will be required reading at French schools. In an interview with Michaela Wiegel, historian Max Gallo explains why interpretations of the past should not be imposed from above in schools. "In my opinion there should be no penalties if a teacher decides not to include Guy Môquet's letter in his reading list. It should be left to him to exercise his freedom of opinion and decide at his own discretion. By the same token, all teachers should be free to comment on how they see the letter in a historical context. There should be debate rather than uniform categorisation." Gallo explains why the letter is still important for France today: "The Second World War is still the reference point for all political debate, such as the current debate about DNA testing for immigrants. It's a past that refuses to be left behind."
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All available articles from » Michaela Wiegel, » Max Gallo
Le Soir - Belgium | Thursday, 12. January 2006
Albert Jacquard, a geneticist and philosopher, gives an interview led by William Bourton in which he stresses the importance of philosophy in school curricula. "In one of my more extreme proposals for French schools, I suggested that there should be a philosophy teacher seated in the back of every class, whose job would be to raise his hand in the middle of the lesson and ask: » more
Albert Jacquard, a geneticist and philosopher, gives an interview led by William Bourton in which he stresses the importance of philosophy in school curricula. "In one of my more extreme proposals for French schools, I suggested that there should be a philosophy teacher seated in the back of every class, whose job would be to raise his hand in the middle of the lesson and ask: 'One moment, please, but just what does that mean?' Asking questions is the role of the philosopher. This is true whether we are talking about history, geography or biology. We must not allow ourselves to learn about procreation, for example, with gametes, ovums and spermatozoids without also wondering: 'What is the significance of this adventure?' (...) Descriptions of the concrete world are only interesting if we look beyond them and ask questions."
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More from the press review on the subject » Philosophy, » Global
All available articles from » Albert Jacquard
Greece
Ta Nea - Greece | Wednesday, 24. October 2007
The daily notes how Greek school teenagers are not taking part in the traditional national holiday celebrations this coming October 28th. "They no longer see much of a point and are too busy ... occupying the schools. In Patras in Crete, in Thessalonika in Athens, over 130 schools have been occupied since last week and the number is due to increase over the coming days. The demands are simple: » more
The daily notes how Greek school teenagers are not taking part in the traditional national holiday celebrations this coming October 28th. "They no longer see much of a point and are too busy ... occupying the schools. In Patras in Crete, in Thessalonika in Athens, over 130 schools have been occupied since last week and the number is due to increase over the coming days. The demands are simple: the lack of text books must be resolved and public teaching conditions improved. Secondary school pupils are also protesting like last year against the reform of article 16 of the Constitution [guaranteeing the free and public education for all Greek citizens]. Numerous demands thus herald a tense winter for the national education system."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Greece
Neue Zürcher Zeitung - Switzerland | Thursday, 26. October 2006
Amalia van Gent, the newspaper's correspondent in Greece, reports on the current crisis affecting Greece's entire education system – with demonstrations, strikes and the occupation ... » more
Amalia van Gent, the newspaper's correspondent in Greece, reports on the current crisis affecting Greece's entire education system – with demonstrations, strikes and the occupation of school buildings. "University professors protesting against the government's higher education reform programme have now joined the school teachers' protest. Meanwhile, the student protests involving the occupation of school buildings, appear to have spiralled completely out of control." Van Gent points out that education is very expensive in Greece. "The chronic crisis in the public education sector has created a 'shadow education system' that is worsening the situation. School teachers supplement their low salaries by giving private lessons. As a result the quality of education in state schools has suffered. Parents who can afford it send their children to private classes in foreign languages, music, maths, history and physics to compensate for the shortcomings of the state schools."
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More from the press review on the subject » Social movements, » Greece
All available articles from » Amalia van Gent
To Vima Online - Greece | Thursday, 7. September 2006
"The Ministry of Education and Religion's bill asking for confession in school to be dropped is causing an uproar, under-lines the daily." This announcement has ... » more
"The Ministry of Education and Religion's bill asking for confession in school to be dropped is causing an uproar, under-lines the daily." This announcement has indeed provoked the wraith of the Greek Church during the tumultuous beginning of this new school year. It refuses the implementation of such a bill and is asking the government to receive its own copy. The Church, not separated from the State, is counting on its powers of persuasion, but the ministry does not intend to give in. Is the Minister [Marietta Giannakou] not for once right in wanting to bring some order to schools? If we follow the Church's logic, the recent wave of immigration has as a consequence made an imam available to pupils, along with a Catholic priest, a pastor and even a lama! Confession is a sacred and personal act which no longer has its place in school".
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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Weltanschauung, » Greece
Kathimerini - Greece | Wednesday, 30. August 2006
"Greece's education system has been in crisis, much in the manner of the naked emperor: » more
"Greece's education system has been in crisis, much in the manner of the naked emperor: Everyone could see the crisis was coming, but no one pointed a finger," complains Nikos Xydakis in the Greek daily. "The education system has since the 1990s, if not earlier, been stripped of all sense of vision and direction. The only consistent program has been the one setting up departments which offer exotic specializations with no career prospects. Poor, inconsistent and flawed, our education policy has been reduced to a lifeless mish-mash consisting of political self-interest and public expectation - served with a weak and directionless production base. The failure of our education policy is a political failure to lead the country into the future and, above all, a failure to grasp the significance of knowledge capital today."
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All available articles from » Nikos Xydakis
Neue Zürcher Zeitung - Switzerland | Thursday, 12. April 2007
Amalia van Gent reports that a new history textbook brought out by the Greek Ministry of Education is causing a stir. The Orthodox Church has accused the initiators of the textbook, which was published by historian Maria Repousi and is intended for sixth graders, of embellishing the details of Greek-Turkish relations for reasons of political correctness and of undermining the role of the Orthodox Church. According to van Gent, this is intentional: » more
Amalia van Gent reports that a new history textbook brought out by the Greek Ministry of Education is causing a stir. The Orthodox Church has accused the initiators of the textbook, which was published by historian Maria Repousi and is intended for sixth graders, of embellishing the details of Greek-Turkish relations for reasons of political correctness and of undermining the role of the Orthodox Church. According to van Gent, this is intentional: "Maria Repousi and her group decided to ignore the legend of the 'secret school' in the new book, for example. According to the legend, which originated in the 19th century, the Greek language and culture only survived thanks to the efforts of Orthodox priests who resisted a ban imposed by the Ottoman Empire and secretly taught children in churches and monasteries. The picture by the famous painter Nicolaos Gyzis, showing a white-bearded Pope reading to a group of girls and boys by candlelight, has influenced generations of Greeks, but it has little to do with historical reality. The fact is Greek schools were not forbidden under the Ottoman Empire."
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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » History, » Weltanschauung, » Greece, » Turkey
All available articles from » Amalia van Gent
Britain
The Times - United Kingdom | Tuesday, 10. July 2007
Libby Purves lauds the announcement that 'economic wellbeing and financial capability' will be introduced into British mathematics curricula. "New Labour has spent ten years presiding over an avalanche of unprecedented personal debt: » more
Libby Purves lauds the announcement that 'economic wellbeing and financial capability' will be introduced into British mathematics curricula. "New Labour has spent ten years presiding over an avalanche of unprecedented personal debt: fuelling the economy with consumer madness, teaching 18-year-olds that owing tens of thousands is cool, making insolvency easy, promoting lotteries and casinos, sucking up to the super-rich and forgiving its friends for financial sins. Now the goddess Prudence rises, roaring, from the depths to smite the feckless. Teenagers will be taught interest, mortgages, pensions, taxes, money management. They'll get the hard financial facts of life again. Good. ... We tolerate[d] a smoke-and-mirrors financial illusion, and generations will pay the price of thinking, momentarily, that there is such a thing as free money."
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More from the press review on the subject » Consumers, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » Libby Purves
Italy
La Repubblica - Italy | Thursday, 6. September 2007
The professor of Law History, Aldo Schiavone reflects on the role of school in Italy. "The real problem with education in Italy is the conflict ... » more
The professor of Law History, Aldo Schiavone reflects on the role of school in Italy. "The real problem with education in Italy is the conflict between the social function of school and the early identification of the most gifted children. School was long considered a tool for the homogenous spreading of knowledge guaranteeing the solidarity and equality of social classes. ... From the 1970s, the system changed the egalitarian practice of dumbing-down when pervasive union control along with distrust of the marking system over-turned this model. ... These days, the economic and social growth of the country has no choice but to evaluate talent. It is no longer democracy that should be taken into schools, but on the contrary, school that should guarantee the very existence of democracy, which necessitates knowledge, diversity and critical analysis."
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All available articles from » Aldo Schiavone
La Repubblica - Italy | Tuesday, 3. July 2007
Columnist Pietro Citati remembers that during his childhood teachers weren't very rich. Their instruction, on the other hand, was irreproachable, thanks to an education system ... » more
Columnist Pietro Citati remembers that during his childhood teachers weren't very rich. Their instruction, on the other hand, was irreproachable, thanks to an education system whose emphasis on a solid foundation in the humanities engaged the students. He regrets the fact that "fifty years ago they were respected for their role, and they lived in a decent manner. School reform, nepotism and miserable salaries have produced an under-class today, a sort of under-proletariat who have just enough money to feed and clothe themselves, and definitely not enough to buy books. The future of western civilisation depends on specialisation, learned in school, and for this reason teachers must become an elite once again."
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All available articles from » Pietro Citati
Malta
Times of Malta - Malta | Wednesday, 5. December 2007
Henry Frendo, a Maltese professor of History, presents the case for introducing Maltese studies into national education as a means of better establishing Maltese identity: » more
Henry Frendo, a Maltese professor of History, presents the case for introducing Maltese studies into national education as a means of better establishing Maltese identity: "Maltese history is still not an obligatory subject in schools; it is not always even on offer as an option. Maltese history is not primarily about dates, just as Maltese studies should not be simply or solely about language. The quality of being Maltese, so far as it can be distilled and incapsulated in time and space, goes well beyond language, although languages as culture carriers remain a core component of it. ... I say the time is ripe for structured holistic courses in Maltese studies, not bits and pieces on the loose. Let's give pause to the surface trivia and partisan polemic and ask meaningfully who we are, what we are and have been and are becoming, fingers on the pulse as it still beats, testing the throbbings of heart and soul, so long as these survive."
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Austria
Der Standard - Austria | Wednesday, 5. December 2007
While Austria still occupies a middling position in the Pisa study, Poland has leapt from the bottom of the ranking to a leading position as far as the reading skills of 15-year-olds are concerned. According to Alexandra Föderl-Schmid, Austria should follow Poland's example: » more
While Austria still occupies a middling position in the Pisa study, Poland has leapt from the bottom of the ranking to a leading position as far as the reading skills of 15-year-olds are concerned. According to Alexandra Föderl-Schmid, Austria should follow Poland's example: "Poland implemented an education reform in 2000. One element was that the age at which students are allocated to different types of school was raised from 15 to 16 years. ... This should provide food for thought to all those who strongly oppose the idea of the Neue Mittelschule (standardised school). The Pisa study provides a further argument: the international comparison demonstrates once more that parents play a key role in the performance of their children. The children of university graduates tend to perform better. With regards to Austria, the OECD points to the fact that the sooner children are sent to different types of schools, the greater impact family background has on a pupil's performance. This is another reason to at least try out the Neue Mittelschule concept."
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All available articles from » Alexandra Föderl-Schmid
Poland
Dziennik Gazeta Prawna - Poland | Thursday, 30. August 2007
Poland is introducing the compulsory use of school uniforms as of September 3, the first day of the new school year. TV journalist Dorota Gawryluk ... » more
Poland is introducing the compulsory use of school uniforms as of September 3, the first day of the new school year. TV journalist Dorota Gawryluk hopes this will mark a return to increased discipline at schools. She says that the compulsory school uniforms could only be criticised by journalists "who have never faced the problem of a child who's crying because one of his classmates wears better trousers or shoes. Uniforms don't just solve practical problems, they also promote education. They are a first step towards reintroducing normality in schools. The liberal approach to education which spurns fixed rules and principles and which has become popular at schools has proved a failure."
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All available articles from » Dorota Gawryluk
Gazeta Wyborcza - Poland | Wednesday, 25. July 2007
Poland's ruling coalition has been locked in a dispute for months now over required reading at schools. Polish Minister of Education Roman Giertych, leader of the ultra-right League of Polish Families (LPR), removed among others two books by Witold Gombrowicz from the official literary canon. Yesterday the Cabinet revoked the new canon. Giertych immediately announced that he would appeal the decision before the constitutional court. Miroslaw Czech comments. "He wants to show both voters and the Church that as minister he's prepared to do battle to the bitter end against the 'pederasts'. ... Even Witold Gombrowicz wouldn't have come up with this: » more
Poland's ruling coalition has been locked in a dispute for months now over required reading at schools. Polish Minister of Education Roman Giertych, leader of the ultra-right League of Polish Families (LPR), removed among others two books by Witold Gombrowicz from the official literary canon. Yesterday the Cabinet revoked the new canon. Giertych immediately announced that he would appeal the decision before the constitutional court. Miroslaw Czech comments. "He wants to show both voters and the Church that as minister he's prepared to do battle to the bitter end against the 'pederasts'. ... Even Witold Gombrowicz wouldn't have come up with this: the fate of his books no longer depends on their readers but on the constitutional court. ... We've stopped being angry about it and are now just smiling and asking ourselves how long this governmental circus in the name of a moral revolution will go on."
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Portugal
Diário de Notícias - Portugal | Friday, 30. December 2005
"The blogosphere is a brilliant tool for teachers. It is with this idea in mind that a group of inspired teachers have started the BLOPE ... » more
"The blogosphere is a brilliant tool for teachers. It is with this idea in mind that a group of inspired teachers have started the BLOPE awards for the best educational blogs in portuguese and spanish," the Lisboan daily reports. For Vítor Relvas, one of the teachers behind the initiative, "the use of the blogosphere in teaching is a work in progress." Students prefer to write for a real audience and not just "for the teacher's red pen". The newspaper finds that there is a greater motivation to write when the finished product is published online. "Blogs can bring vitality back to the learning process," Relvas concludes.
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Romania
Gândul - Romania | Tuesday, 20. November 2007
Melania Mandas Vergu comments on the cuts in Romania's education budget: » more
Melania Mandas Vergu comments on the cuts in Romania's education budget: "For eleven months we've been almost deafened by the praise for Tarceanu's Cabinet - those patrons of Romanian schools. There wasn't a speech which didn't mention the fact that for the first time since 1989, education was receiving adequate - or even ample - funding. But yesterday's government session put an end to any hope of consistent political action in this area: the education budget was cut by 130 million euros in one go. ... Of this sum that was stolen from our schools yesterday, 100 million euros were to be spent on didactic material. In concrete terms this means each school would have been able to buy new blackboards, lockers for sport equipment, maps and materials for chemistry and physics lessons, microscopes, CDs or other necessary materials. But these little things - which account for the quality of lessons in other European countries - are dismissed as frivolities and luxuries here in Romania."
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Gândul - Romania | Tuesday, 25. September 2007
Last week a Romanian school teacher was caught taking a hefty bribe from a pupil in exchange for a good grade during an exam. Melania Mandas Vergu comments: » more
Last week a Romanian school teacher was caught taking a hefty bribe from a pupil in exchange for a good grade during an exam. Melania Mandas Vergu comments: "I don't know exactly what goes on in the head and heart of a pupil when he hears his teachers preaching about honour, fairness and other moral values, knowing that his straight A average was bought for a couple of million lei. He knows this because he's heard his mother and father talking about it. The child knows that adults lie and he's confused because he hasn't yet learned to say one thing and do the opposite. But he will - after all, he goes to school!"
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Gândul - Romania | Friday, 3. August 2007
In the recent Pisa study Romania came 34th out of 43 countries. Education Minister Cristian Adomnitei now plans to reform the education system and introduce compulsory nursery school for all children above the age of three. Marius Nitu comments: » more
In the recent Pisa study Romania came 34th out of 43 countries. Education Minister Cristian Adomnitei now plans to reform the education system and introduce compulsory nursery school for all children above the age of three. Marius Nitu comments: "In theory, compulsory nursery school is a wonderful idea that could help smooth out the differences between children starting school. But in reality no one has taken into account the fact that the first prerequisite for a successful law is its enforceability. Bucharest would need another 15,000 nursery school places. Moreover, in other European countries most nursery schools have groups of 20, not 40 to 50, as we do here in Romania... Most of Bucharest's nurseries have only one room for eating, sleeping and playing. In rural areas the law will be even more difficult to enforce because even if a nursery exists there is rarely any way of getting the children to it. There are no buses for them."
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Sweden
Expressen - Sweden | Tuesday, 20. November 2007
For Sweden's schools, parents and children are coveted customers in an open market: » more
For Sweden's schools, parents and children are coveted customers in an open market: the state funding allocated to each child for its education goes to the school - public or private - which the child attends. Schools therefore often come up with spectacular advertising campaigns. The newspaper calls for more objective information on the quality of education provided by a school: "Some of the advertising on this market is so dubious that text message ads for cheap credit look serious in comparison. At the school fair held recently in Älvsjö, one school marketed its services with the slogan: 'You only have to come to school for half the day here'. Schools should be forced to offer proof of their quality when marketing themselves. What are the average grades? How large is the proportion of pupils who pass the exams in the core subjects? What's the school's ranking on the national ranking list? In possession of such objective data, consumers can make an informed decision."
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Dagens Nyheter - Sweden | Friday, 26. January 2007
A school in the southern Swedish city of Landskrona recently banned pupils from speaking languages other than Swedish on the school grounds. The school management decided to introduce the measure after a gang of pupils with a foreign background systematically bullied and abused other pupils and staff at the school. The ban has now been confined to lessons. The newspaper examines the introduction of such rules: » more
A school in the southern Swedish city of Landskrona recently banned pupils from speaking languages other than Swedish on the school grounds. The school management decided to introduce the measure after a gang of pupils with a foreign background systematically bullied and abused other pupils and staff at the school. The ban has now been confined to lessons. The newspaper examines the introduction of such rules: "The fact that Swedish is Sweden's official language doesn't mean that people are not to use other languages. It simply means that they need and have the right to be able to speak Swedish. Experience has shown that people learn a foreign language more easily if they have a good command of their own language. Bilingualism does not lead to half-lingualism... People learn a language by listening to it and reading it, talking it and writing in it – with effort and discipline, but also with enthusiasm and ease. The more we use it, the easier it becomes. One thing's for sure: bans won't make anyone learn another language quicker, but they can make someone silent – regardless of the language."
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Dagens Nyheter - Sweden | Tuesday, 1. August 2006
The Swedish party Folkpartiet has proposed the introduction of a compulsory literary canon and triggered a nationwide debate. Stefan Jonsson rejects the proposal, saying it ... » more
The Swedish party Folkpartiet has proposed the introduction of a compulsory literary canon and triggered a nationwide debate. Stefan Jonsson rejects the proposal, saying it would lead to literature being misused to create a false and incomplete picture of Swedish culture. "It's naïve to believe that interest in literature can be maintained by introducing a canon prescribed by the state. When you consider the huge gaps in knowledge and social inequality in our schools, such a step seems pitifully inadequate. Compared to effective measures – such as improving the teaching profession, increasing funding for schools and libraries or increasing the amount of time allocated to lessons in Swedish – the proposal to create a Swedish literary canon is a purely symbolic gesture."
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Slovenia
Večer - Slovenia | Thursday, 5. January 2006
In a primary school in the Slovenian town of Novo Mesto, Roma children are now being taught separately from the other children in maths, Slovenian ... » more
In a primary school in the Slovenian town of Novo Mesto, Roma children are now being taught separately from the other children in maths, Slovenian and English classes. For Jasna Snezic, this represents a "compromise in the conflict between the school and Slovenian parents who were threatening to change schools and boycott lessons." Now all the children can learn under one roof without compromising their education. "Education minister Milan Zver repeatedly ensured that this separation was not ethnically motivated but based solely on the differing knowledge levels of the children."
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Delo - Slovenia | Thursday, 22. February 2007
The Slovenian ministry of education plans to drastically reduce the number of optional subjects on offer in the last three years of primary school. Until now, pupils could, in theory, choose from up to 60 subjects to be taken for three hours a week, including bee-keeping, rhetoric and journalism. Now there is to be more emphasis on second languages, sport, and technology. Teacher Zdenko Medves opposes the measures: » more
The Slovenian ministry of education plans to drastically reduce the number of optional subjects on offer in the last three years of primary school. Until now, pupils could, in theory, choose from up to 60 subjects to be taken for three hours a week, including bee-keeping, rhetoric and journalism. Now there is to be more emphasis on second languages, sport, and technology. Teacher Zdenko Medves opposes the measures: "We [the panel of experts] were already aware by the end of the 1980s that a move away from the programmatic nature and uniformity of the curriculum was necessary. This was achieved with the introduction of optional subjects as an obligatory component of the primary school curriculum. If we want to keep up with European and global developments, we must create the conditions for pupils to accumulate knowledge without losing sight of their inclinations and interests."
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Spain
El País - Spain | Wednesday, 12. September 2007
This September 12th, 7.2 million little Spaniards are going back to school. Whereas in 1996 only 0.7% of pupils were immigrants, there are 9.4% of them today. The overall majority of them are in state schools. The daily notes in an editorial that this is leading to "the multiplication of the number of state schools where 80% of pupils are immigrants. This situation, representing a schooling ghettoisation is resulting in a lowering of the level of teaching in many establishments: » more
This September 12th, 7.2 million little Spaniards are going back to school. Whereas in 1996 only 0.7% of pupils were immigrants, there are 9.4% of them today. The overall majority of them are in state schools. The daily notes in an editorial that this is leading to "the multiplication of the number of state schools where 80% of pupils are immigrants. This situation, representing a schooling ghettoisation is resulting in a lowering of the level of teaching in many establishments: teaching a class of 20 of whom 15 are of foreign backgrounds and speak different languages is clearly not the same as a class with only three foreign pupils. The arrival of children from different cultures is doubtless enriching for Spanish pupils and allows the children to learn how to live together. But it has become a problem of concern for our education system."
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Czech Republic
Lidové noviny - Czech Republic | Wednesday, 26. September 2007
"Young Czechs are no longer interested in learning German," Jana Machalkova notes. "The kids at schools mostly want to learn English. They choose either Spanish or Russian - not German - as their second foreign language. The sinking popularity of German is also evident at universities. Jaroslav Kovar, head of the German language and literature department at Masaryk University in Brno, observes: » more
"Young Czechs are no longer interested in learning German," Jana Machalkova notes. "The kids at schools mostly want to learn English. They choose either Spanish or Russian - not German - as their second foreign language. The sinking popularity of German is also evident at universities. Jaroslav Kovar, head of the German language and literature department at Masaryk University in Brno, observes: 'In a couple of years we won't even need entrance examinations. We'll count ourselves lucky that anyone still wants to study German.' If this trend continues, the German departments may disappear completely from the country's universities, as they already have in Italy and the Netherlands."
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Hungary
Népszabadság - Hungary | Tuesday, 7. February 2006
A few days ago, opposition leader Viktor Orban said in a speech that he understood parents who didn't want to send their children to schools attended by Roma children. Laszlo Kallai, a civil rights activist for the Roma, protests in an open letter to Orban: » more
A few days ago, opposition leader Viktor Orban said in a speech that he understood parents who didn't want to send their children to schools attended by Roma children. Laszlo Kallai, a civil rights activist for the Roma, protests in an open letter to Orban: "If the children of poor families or Roma families are forced to attend separate classes, they will receive a lower standard of education. Segregated schools have lower standards regardless of whether it's because of skin colour or their parents' social background that the children are separated from the rest of the children. Children in segregated schools have little opportunity to acquire the knowledge that will enable them to survive in a competitive society. They end up without jobs and become dependent on social welfare."
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Cyprus
Cyprus Mail - Cyprus | Tuesday, 17. July 2007
The new public school uniforms revealed by Cypriot education minister Akis Kleanthous on Friday, July 18th, hailed as modern and flexible, are put in perspective ... » more
The new public school uniforms revealed by Cypriot education minister Akis Kleanthous on Friday, July 18th, hailed as modern and flexible, are put in perspective by the daily. "This was the big challenge for the Education Ministry in the last two years – combining jeans with school colours, because it wanted students to look cool as well as smart – during which it was supposed to reform a failing education system beset by problems. All that has been achieved in two years of discussions about reform was to reform the school uniform. This is indicative of the superficiality with which education is treated by our society – getting the uniform right is the number one priority. It does not matter if there is a problem of functional illiteracy and that more than half of this year's school leavers failed their Greek exams, because, according to Kleanthous, schools did not develop children's critical thought."
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