The President of Latvia stressed the importance of continuing the work aimed at ensuring that every child in Latvia has access to high-quality education regardless of social status and place of residence of his or her parents. “As the number of inhabitants decreases in the regions, access to and quality of education, and mobility, meaning that students get to school, constitutes a range of issues that must be addressed through joint cooperation among Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, Ministry of Transport, and local governments,” indicated the President of Latvia during the conversation.
The dialogue between the government and the Latvian Trade Union of Education and Science Employees is appreciated while searching for potential solutions for further increase in teachers’ salaries at the negotiating table. However, the increase in teachers’ salaries will not be possible without significant changes in the education sector. Latvia is among the leaders in terms of money per learner in the European Union. Unfortunately, it does not reflect on teachers’ salaries. Therefore, assessing the circulation of financial means in the sector and transparency of the education system are necessary.
The President of Latvia acknowledged that positive changes in the education system could only be achieved by joint efforts to reach the goal with each stakeholder working from its side, that is, the government, educational establishments, educators, their representative organisations, and parents. Work must continue to raise the prestige of the teaching profession and raise public awareness that parents and educators are equally responsible for the future and accomplishments of our children, as only collaborative work can bring results.
During the meeting, the President of Latvia appreciated the vision of the Minister of Education and Science regarding the measures to be taken to improve the whole education system both in terms of pre-school and general education, and vocational and higher education.
During the meeting, the Minister of Education and Science informed the President that she had prioritised the continued work on reforming the educational content by introducing a competency-based approach in the curriculum, strengthening teachers’ support systems and the motivation of teachers for quality education. Priority has also been given to optimisation of the school network by addressing the issue of access to education. While reviewing the quality criteria, increasing the prestige and competitiveness of education, maintaining accessibility and the character of inclusive education, using all human capital and financial resources to strengthen the abilities, skills, and knowledge of children and youth, thus also the growth and future of Latvia are planned. The Minister also noted that work on more efficient use of existing funding in science was planned while seeking opportunities to attract additional funding. During the meeting, the Minister noted that one planned to revise the model of sports management and financing to make it more arranged and efficient in 2019.
It has already been reported that President of Latvia Raimonds Vējonis planned to meet with all the ministers of the government led by Krišjānis Kariņš to hear the vision of the Ministers on the assignments to be fulfilled and priorities to be pursued in their supervised sectors in 2019 and later on.
