We Literally Blasted the Education System - Expert

Photo: LETA

"We all collectively allowed a situation where, in order for students to pass their assessments and to create the appearance of successful implementation of reforms, we became so lenient and so inclusive in the worst sense of the word that a result of only 31% of the completed work is considered passing," said Iveta Ratinika, director of the Riga State Gymnasium of Agenskalns, in the TV24 program 'Let's Talk Honestly!'

Member of the 14th Saeima Czeslaw Batnia noted that over the past ten years, the education system has undergone numerous reforms and experiments.

"We literally blasted the education system with a multitude of so-called innovations. And after each such 'blast,' there are usually damages left behind," he said.

As an example, Batnia cited the grading system. According to him, ten years ago, the primary school used a 'pass/fail' system, then a points system was introduced, followed by grading with symbols and emojis, and then the current STAP system was implemented.

When asked who came up with it, Batnia replied:

"Officials who look at what is happening in the world and then claim that we need to do the same, only better. And it is this desire to make it 'better' that led us to the current STAP system."

Former Saeima member Evija Papule disagreed with this assessment and noted that the role of officials in these changes is exaggerated.

"I think you are overestimating the officials. They are very minimally involved in this. There are specific people who consider themselves experts," she said.

According to Ratinika, this refers to the leaders of various educational projects at the Ministry of Education. She noted that each new team effectively denies the achievements of the previous one.

At the same time, in her opinion, the responsibility lies not only with the authors of the reforms but also with those who implement them. As an example, she reminded that in 2008, a passing score was considered to be above 50%, whereas now this threshold has been lowered to 31%.

Evija Papule also considers the current grading system to be flawed.

"We need to assess what students do during the learning process, not just the final result on the centralized exam," she emphasized.

Minister of Education and Science Ilze Indriksoni, in turn, stated that the current system has become too bureaucratized.

"I believe there are too many exams. It is much more important to evaluate the learning process itself. We need to trust teachers and the methods they choose to work with, because school management knows the situation best. The state should be a helper, not a supervisor," said the minister.