Ísland og Svíþjóð: Menntakerfi í krísu

OECD hefur sent frá sér skýrslu og ráðleggingar til Svía um bætur á skólakerfinu. Eins og kunnugt er eru Svíar á svipuðu róli og við.  Verið á niðurleið í PISA könnunum.  Sérstaklega er bent á stöðu kennara, sjálfsmat þeirra er ekki hátt, tiltölulega lág laun laða ekki til sín góða

nemendur í Kennaranám, starfsþróun er ekki stunduð sem skyldi með endurmenntun og skólaþróun.  

Þetta bendir okkur á hvaða leið við eigum að fara.  Í Svíþjóð var full samstaða hjá yfirvöldum og kennarastéttinni um þörf á umbótum.  Hjá okkur ætla yfirvöld að keyra yfir kennarastéttina, með breytingum sem alltof mikill ágreiningur er um.  Það væri betri kostur að setjast niður saman og lagfæra kerfið og auka gæðin.  Skólakerfi þarf að leiða á betri braut í sátt og samlyndi. 

Lærum af öðrum, byggjum á okkar sterku hliðum, aukum fjölbreytni í skólakerfinu.

Hérna eru meðmæli til Svía í skýrslunni:

The report recommends that Sweden:

• Improve the quality and attractiveness of the teaching and school leadership profession. Only half (53%) of lower secondary teachers would choose the same career if they could decide again, partly due to the heavy workload and relatively low salaries for experienced teachers. School leaders and their employers should prioritise pedagogical leadership and encourage greater co-operation among teachers and invest more in professional development. A publicly-funded National Institute of Teacher and School Leader Quality would help improve recruitment and the quality of teaching and leadership in the education system.  
• Review how school education is funded. The current funding mechanisms are not meeting the objectives of improving quality while maintaining equity. There are different options Sweden can use, including earmarked funding, defining criteria for municipalities and schools, and student funding formulae, to ensure equity and especially consistency in school funding across Sweden.
• Strengthen support for disadvantaged students. This should include greater focus on enhancing language skills for migrant students and their parents; high quality reception classes; extra assistants in the classroom; and improved access for disadvantaged families to information about schools.
• Put in place a national school improvement strategy. School evaluation should be strengthened and the Swedish Schools Inspectorate should assist schools through more follow up and targeted support. It should help bring about a shift in culture from administrative compliance to responsibility for improvement.