Key competences in the education strategy

Prepared in 2019, the Guidelines for education policy of the Czech Republic until 2030+ stressed the importance of key competences. Attention should be paid especially to their development and evaluation, especially for less measurable literacy and competences.

The main changes in general education are in its content and relevance following the revision of FEPs for basic education. However, the revision does not lead to an overall strengthening of the hourly subsidy for general education at the expense of the professional component. Qualitative changes focus mainly on strengthening:

1. the importance of key competences and basic skills (particularly literacy, numeracy and digital skills), with emphasis on their cross-cutting nature in relation to the general and vocational components of education;
2. the applied-knowledge part of general education, which forms a preparatory phase of education prior to the follow-up vocational education.

The FEPs for upper secondary VET were approved and made public on 1 September 2020. Schools should adjust their school curricula in line with the updated FEPs by 1 September 2022, when they will start teaching according to them. The vocational component of education has been updated with regard to new technologies. In line with the Digital education strategy (2020), a new concept of digital competences was formulated within the general education component, it is reflected in the cross-cutting theme Man and the world of work and the content of informatics education. This adjustment was fully implemented solely in the IT technology field of study (EQF 4). For other fields of upper secondary VET, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports launched pilot testing of the new concept of digital competences. Since 1 September 2020, a total of 11 schools with 25 fields of study have applied to participate in the piloting.

The update of the FEPs for basic education is a transitional phase preceding a comprehensive revision of the framework educational programmes for VET (plan 2023). Conceptually, it builds on the Strategy 2030+, in terms of content it will align with the revisions of the FEPs for basic education and also with regard to the development of key competences.

The national Recovery and resilience plan was prepared; its launch is foreseen for 2022. In line with the Strategy 2030+, the component targeting innovation in education in the context of digitalisation focuses on content transformation, support for digital and information literacy and computational thinking. The aim of this component is to support the development of digital education in line with the Strategy 2030+ and the Digital education action plan 2021-27.

In 2021, the methodological cabinets Czech language and literature, mathematics and its application, and informatics and ICT, established under the SYPO project (System for the support of professional development of teachers and directors) , continued their activities. Methodological cabinets are an open professional network focused on the systematic and coordinated development of professional knowledge and skills of pedagogical staff at national, regional and local levels, with a focus on the coordinated development of subject didactics.In September 2021, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports announced the pilot of the alternative exam of the profile part of the Maturita examination. The goal was to test the options for the exam in the form of a comprehensive graduate thesis and its defence in upper secondary schools, as well as its link to the exams in the subjects of the profile (school) part of the Maturita examination. This is in line with the broader context of the planned change in the whole concept of Maturita examination, whereby it should focus more on testing literacy and key competences and as a whole reflect the competence model of education in line with the Strategy for education policy of the Czech Republic 2030+. At the same time, the pilot was based on the assumption that graduates in the fields of study with Maturita exam are able to demonstrate readiness to solve complex tasks in a real environment, using knowledge from profile subjects of their field of study, and defend their thesis in a qualified manner.

In 2021, pilot testing continued, aimed at recognising international ICT certificates, that prove students' knowledge and skills not only in the field of Informatics and ICT (in upper-secondary general schools, Gymnázia) and in ICT (for secondary VET schools) but also in digital competences in the profile part of the Maturita examination.

In 2022, the pilot of international ICT certificates in 22 schools continued. For the final year of the pilot, the MŠMT has recently approved the possibility of replacing the entire Maturita exam with international ICT certificates (at the start of the pilot project, only some, but not all, parts of Maturita were allowed to be replaced). The pilot will continue until 30 September 2023.

In the school year 2021/2022, a total of 7 schools were involved in the pilot of the alternative examination of the profile part of Maturita exam in the form of a comprehensive graduation thesis with a defence. Six fields of education with technical, economic and artistic focus were included in the pilot. The schools are very positive about the concept of an alternative profile part of the Maturita exam based on the preparation and defence of a comprehensive graduation thesis. In particular, they see a great benefit in the possibility of combining the Maturita exam with practical training in a real work environment at employers. The model enables students to adopt a more comprehensive view when processing the topic of their graduation thesis, to develop their practical skills, creativity, ability to solve problems, and it promotes their independence and ability to take responsibility. It links the general education component to the vocational one, including the practical training. It develops students' language, communication, and presentation skills, which is highly valued by the employers. However, due to the comprehensive concept of the profile part of Maturita exam, the model appears to be more challenging for students. Schools therefore believe that it will only be used as a possible option for the Maturita exam -for selected students only. In line with the Strategy 2030+, the pilot allows for individual approach to students when testing their knowledge and skills acquired during their studies. It develops their competences for further professional growth and grants them opportunities for further individual learning within the framework of lifelong learning. The pilot will end in November 2023.

The cross-field topic "Man and the World of Work" was developed in broadly the same way in each VET framework for all categories of educational attainment. Career education has always been anchored in it. However, in the context of updates to the framework educational programmes, this topic has been reviewed and the updated version places stronger emphasis on the development of students' career management skills (i.e. the skills allowing for successful management of one's own private life and professional career). Recently, new skills have been added - 'openness to lifelong learning' and 'active and creative approach to career development'.

Upon the decision of the education ministry, the pilot testing of the recognition of international ICT certification standards in the profile part of the Maturita examination for ICT has been extended by two years from September 2023 to the end of September 2025.

In 2023, Amendment No. 2 to the pilot verification of the alternative examination of the profile part of Maturita exam, in the form of a comprehensive graduation thesis with a defence, was announced by the education ministry. This amendment specifies certain aspects of the remedial exam and extends the pilot testing until the end of November 2025.

The pilot aims to link the professional component of education with practical experience in specific companies where practical education takes place. The pilot also includes verification of knowledge in Czech and foreign languages (key competences). In the 2022/23 school year, ten schools were involved (five new schools; two schools did not continue after the first year). A total of 79 pupils participated in the pilot across 12 different fields of education (one vocational school piloted two fields). Schools consider the possibility of replacing the profile part of the Maturita exam with the comprehensive graduation thesis to be very beneficial. Specifically, they appreciate the comprehensive approach in linking theoretical knowledge with practical skills relevant to the given fields, using experiences gained from cooperating companies. They consider the model of a comprehensive graduation thesis as logical with high added value, but recommend implementing it only as one of the possible options for the Maturita exam, rather than a mandatory approach, to maintain quality.

It does, however, impose a greater administrative burden on schools. Schools prefer to have the flexibility to manage the implementation themselves, rather than adhering to a uniform system; a necessary requirement is cooperation with social partners. They consider the link with the Czech language exam to be problematic, especially with regard to evaluation, and recommend that this be solved in cooperation with the Centre for Evaluation of Education (CERMAT), an organisation under the education ministry. The overall evaluation recommends the introduction and legislative anchoring of this model as one of the possible options for the implementation of the profile part of the Maturita examination.

In August 2023, a measure of the education minister was introduced, outlining a new concept of"Informatics Education" (with the newly conceived Digital Competence and the cross-cutting theme of Man and the Digital World). This change follows modifications to the Framework Educational Programme for Primary Education and the update of the Framework Educational Programmes for secondary VET schools, thus completing the curriculum modernisation process in its general education component and embedding the new concept of ICT at the state level within the Framework Educational Programmes for all educational levels, while harmonising ICT in secondary vocational education with secondary general education.

These changes are based on the requirements outlined in the Digital Education Strategy 2020 and the objectives of the Czech Education Policy Strategy 2030+. They respond to the dynamic developments in technology and the emergence of artificial intelligence. The development of computer education will continue in secondary vocational education, especially in practical applications within vocational fields, but also in general education areas. The objectives of these changes include:

1. to resolve the partial mismatch between the content of education in the digital field and the current knowledge, as well as the skills and knowledge required by graduates in various educational fields and the labour market;
2. to enable the modernisation of educational content and at the same time to adapt it more closely to the field specifics with maximum respect for the given field of education;
3. to lead pupils to understand the basic concepts and methods of computer science and their application across different fields and professions, as well as in everyday life.

The allocation of teaching lessons has also been harmonised.

The education ministry, through the National Pedagogical Institute of the Czech Republic, plans to provide secondary vocational schools with methodological support in implementing the new concept of ICT curriculum in the Framework educational programmes in VET fields and other educational activities (including using existing digital resources created within the framework of previous project activities) with the possibility of leveraging available hours.

Schools can voluntarily incorporate changes related to ICT education into their curricula starting 1 September 2023. However, the obligation to teach according to the updated ICT curriculum will be mandatory for all grades beginning September 1, 2025.

In 2024, the terms, purposes, and criteria for utilising funds from the National Recovery Plan, Component 3.1, was established to cover costs incurred from 1 January, 2024, through 31 December, 2024. These funds are intended for recipients of the National Recovery Plan to help prevent the digital divide.

The pilot testing for the recognition of international ICT certification standards in the profile part of the Maturita examination for ICT, as well as the pilot for the alternative examination in the form of a comprehensive graduation thesis with a defence, continued throughout 2024.