SARAJEVO, March 13 (FENA) - According to the analysis of the Agency for Preschool, Elementary and Secondary Education of Bosnia and Herzegovina, students in BiH fall below the European average, i.e. in terms of reproducing knowledge, they are more or less at the level of international standards, but there are problems when it comes to applying the acquired knowledge.
The data was presented today by the Deputy Director of the Agency for Preschool, Elementary and Secondary Education of BiH Alisa Ibraković, prior to the beginning of a two-day workshop "PISA 2018: The Road to Quality Learning in BiH".
The two-day workshop, held in Sarajevo, was organized by UNICEF and the Agency for Preschool, Primary and Secondary Education of BiH, in partnership with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
PISA is a three-year international test aimed at assessing education systems around the world by testing the knowledge and skills of 15-year-old students.
Ibraković, who is the head of the Sarajevo regional unit, that is conducting PISA 2018 surveys in BiH, has especially emphasized that BiH will for the first time take part in PISA testing this year and that this is a great opportunity for our country.
The agency is already conducting qualitative preparations and Ibraković clarified that PISA's main focus is on literacy as well as mathematics and natural sciences.
Testing will take place in April and May, and will encompass 236 schools in BiH, and around 7,000 15-year-olds will be involved.
As she said, what PISA offers to participating countries are empirical indicators that show where and how to changes need to be made in the education system.
“Based on these indicators, together with representatives of the authorities and education ministries and experts will be able to give concrete recommendations on what to work on and how to improve educational practice in BiH,” Ibraković said.
She added that PISA testing does not show how much someone knows but when and how to use that knowledge in everyday life, personal development and participation in society.
Ibraković pointed to the fact that participation in international studies is very expensive and that BiH's participation in PISA 2018 was funded by the European Union Delegation to BiH and that without support from the OSCE and UNICEF it would certainly be impossible to carry out this study.
She noted that the participation in PISA 2018 cost about EUR 192,000 and appealed to BH authorities and institutions to engage in funding such programs, adding that the next PISA study in 2021 they expect greater support from the state.
UNICEF representative in BiH, Geeta Narayan also addressed the journalists and said that UNICEF is exceptionally proud to be part of this assessment process.
She expressed her conclusion that the education system in BiH is faced with certain challenges.
"We are aware that students do not learn enough skills they need for the labor market, and in addition to this, our goal is to improve the quality of education based on the data we get," said Narayan.
Senior Adviser for Global Relations in Education and Skills in the OECD, Elizabeth Fordham emphasized that it is important for BiH to become part of this process because PISA testing will provide information on the knowledge that the students possess or what they can do with that knowledge when they finish school.
"These are the data that are relevant to each ministry of education in order to determine how effective the education system is and how it prepares students for the future," she explained.
Narayan noted that, BiH can compare the collected data with other countries in the region, such as Serbia or Croatia, and therefore will be able to see what needs to be done to improve its own education system.
Narayan said that BiH should not miss on this opportunity because PISA testing will show where the country is in comparison to the others, however, she pointed out that this should not be used as an opportunity to place the blame on someone for potential disadvantages in the education system of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
(FENA) S. R.