On Tuesday, April 2, the U-LEARN platform launched the first of five planned training sessions for participants of the support programme for the creation of a lyceum in the municipality. 40 participants representing 20 municipality teams from 13 oblasts of Ukraine were selected to participate on a competitive basis.
According to Olena Tomniuk, Deputy Director of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme, the main goal of the support programme is to help municipalities understand the steps for creating a specialised education institution and develop a basic package of documents to enable the operation of the lyceum, in which students will gain both knowledge and confidence to choose their future career:
“It is very important for high school students and future university students, who are stepping on their future life path and choosing their career, to be more confident in their choice. The high school reform — establishing lyceums — brings it closer to high school students. Reforms are always difficult, but they are necessary to introduce changes to the present and ensure a brighter future. I would like schools to help students navigate their future careers.”
The participants will have two months to learn how to organise the operation of the lyceum and finance it, how the municipality and the education management body should interact in the context of educational inter-municipal cooperation, how to communicate with stakeholders and explain to them why the changes are needed.
“U-LEAD’s education experts Oksana Hutsoliak and Tetiana Bohatchuk will work with municipalities. The training consists of five training sessions and a seminar, as well as individual consultations for each team. As a result, each participating team will have an action plan for the organisation of specialised education that would take into account the specific aspects and capabilities of their municipality,” said Tetiana Bordiuh, Chair of the Working Group on Education and Head of the Regional Office of U-LEAD in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
Professional education is becoming a priority for municipalities, and its implementation involves a wide range of stakeholders, its own requirements and deadlines. During the first training session, the participants were reminded about the legal requirements for specialised education, explained the criteria for choosing one school from among the existing ones and told about the pros and cons of a boarding school at the lyceum and the need for a security passport for the educational institution.
Speaking about legislative changes, Oksana Hutsoliak reminded of important deadlines for educators:
“By 1 September 2024, it is necessary to approve plans for the formation of an educational network, taking into account the requirements for lyceums. By September 1, 2027, bring the statutory documents of educational institutions into compliance, provide the established lyceums with the proper infrastructure, equipment and access to the Internet and select teaching staff on a competitive basis.”
The expert spoke about the changes in the legislation. In particular, the rule that limited the possibilities for the establishment of lyceums by councils in cities with a population of up to 50,000 in municipalities has been revoked. Moreover, in addition to primary and basic secondary education, base educational institutions can also provide specialised secondary education. The lyceum is a separate legal entity, but education can also be provided at the primary and basic levels. There must be at least two student groups with at least three study profiles in the years 10 to 12.
In preparation for the next training session, the participants must create a working group on the transformation of education and approve it as prescribed by law, as well as develop a security passport of the educational institution.