EU officials for education will convene in Tartu today and tomorrow to learn about Estonia’s experience in modernising education and discuss how to ensure that education continues to meet the needs of learners and the labour market in the changing world.
According to the Deputy Secretary General for General and Vocational Education Mart Laidmets, Estonian education is the centre of attention in Europe. “Firstly, people come to find out how our students have managed to score the best PISA results in Europe in terms of their knowledge and skills. Secondly, being the EU presidency for the second half of 2017, we have this great opportunity to steer the debates on adapting EU education systems so that people would be able to enjoy success in a world that keeps changing faster and faster.”
The officials will visit the University of Tartu to get an idea of the strategic choices and challenges faced by the higher education system and universities in Estonia, and learn about studies analysing the progress made by graduates. Speeches will be made by the Rector of the University of Tartu Volli Kalm, the Head of the Ministry’s Higher Education Department Margus Haidak, and Cybernetica’s engineer Riivo Talviste.
At the National Archives and the Tartu Environmental Education Centre, the officials will learn about various possibilities for making education more practical and interesting. The PISA National Project Manager Gunda Tire will provide an insight into Estonia’s success at the PISA test. Further, the visitors will have the opportunity to see the sights in Tartu and visit the Estonian National Museum.
The education officials’ visit to Tartu is part of the official programme of Estonia’s presidency in the EU Council. The Estonian presidency’s priorities for education include the modernisation of teaching and learning on all levels of education, and the links between education and working life.
Further information on the Estonian presidency’s priorities and events in the field of education