How did Covid-19 affect school education in Slovenia?

Schools, teachers, pupils and parents were not well prepared for this crisis. Above all, several lock downs negatively affected pupils mental health and had bad consequences on learning results.  Before the crisis hit, teachers and students use ICT technologies in the classroom in lower extend than the average of the OECD countries. Results from the 2018 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) prior to the crisis show that on average across participating OECD countries and economies, only slightly more than half of lower-secondary teachers (53%) reported letting students use ICT for projects or class work “frequently” or “always”. In Slovenia, this was the case for 37% of teachers, which is lower than the average of the OECD countries participating in TALIS. 

Schooling from home with primary school children was a burden for many homes. 60% of families shared the opinion that helping children with their school work is a big or very big burden. At the end od January 2021 when schools were opened again, only 52% of families share this opinion. 

A study by the National Institute of Public Health (NIPH) on the impact of home-schooling in the context of the epidemic of covida-19 shows that school staff perceive some impacts on cognitive abilities and mental health in pupils when they return to school. Among others, reading and literacy skills have deteriorated, there are problems with concentration, slower thinking, more restlessness and chattiness. More anxiety and impulsivity were also detected in schoolchildren.

How familiar were schools with the use of digital education prior to Covid-19? 

Before the crisis only 37% of lower-secondary teachers (lower than the average in the OECD report) reported letting students use ICT for projects or class work “frequently” or “always”.  In order to be effective, teachers’ practices need to be grounded in a body of knowledge acquired through quality training. In Slovenia, 53% of teachers reported that use of ICT for teaching was included in their formal education or training, which is lower than the average of the OECD report. (56%). At the time of the survey, 55% of teachers in Slovenia felt that they could support student learning through the use of digital technology (e.g. computers, tablets, smart boards) "quite a bit" or "a lot", which is lower than the average of the OECD countries participating in TALIS (67%).

In Slovenia, 59% of teachers reported that ICT skills for teaching were included in their professional development activities (OECD countries in TALIS (60%). At the same time, in Slovenia 8% of teachers reported a high level of need for professional development in ICT skills for teaching, which is lower than the average of OECD TALIS countries (18%). These suggest that the transition to remote teaching and learning may have been challenging for a number of teachers. 

Just some principals reported shortage or inadequacy of digital technology (4%, OECD 25%) and insufficient Internet access, which was much lower than in OECD countries participating in TALIS. They also reported that they have effective online learning support platform for teachers, effective professional resource to help teachers using digital devices and enough time to prepare lessons which integrate digital devices.

How prepared were Slovenian teachers to adopt digital learning methods? 

In Slovenia, 80% of teachers "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that most teachers in the school are open to change (OECD countries participating in TALIS (74%). Than, 26% of teachers reported participating in collaborative professional learning in their school at least once a month, which is higher than the average of the OECD countries participating in TALIS (21%). Teachers who engaged in professional collaboration such as this – which involves a high degree of interdependence among teachers – also tended to report more frequent use of effective teaching practices like cognitive activation.  Also 69% of principals in Slovenia "often" or "very often" took actions to support co-operation among teachers to develop new teaching practices in the 12 months prior to the survey (OECD countries participating in TALIS (59%).  

The number of teachers who participated in online courses/seminars in the 12 months prior to the survey, was lower than the average of the OECD countries participating in TALIS (33% TALIS 36%).  Out-of-school learning communities can also be a valuable asset for mutual professional support in times of crisis. 43% of teachers in Slovenia participated in a network of teachers formed specifically for their professional development in the 12 months prior to the survey (OECD countries participating in TALIS (40%). From the perspective of school leaders, in Slovenia, 52% of principals reported collaborating "often" or "very often" with principals from other schools on challenging work tasks in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is higher than the average of the OECD countries and economies in TALIS (37%).

What barriers were there to Slovenian pupils accessing digital learning opportunities?

In Slovenia, 97% of students reported having a computer they could use for school work, which is higher than the OECD average (89%). For those from the bottom quartile of the socio-economic distribution, 94% of students reported having a computer they could use for school work, which is higher than the OECD average (78%). 
In Slovenia, 93% of students reported having a quiet place to study at home, which is higher than the OECD average (91%). This percentage was 88% for students coming from the bottom quartile of the socio-economic distribution, which is higher than the OECD average (85%). 

Based on PISA 2018 data collected before the crisis, 77% of students in Slovenia "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that their belief in themselves gets them through hard times, which is higher than the OECD average (71%). Same number of students as from OECD average "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that they usually manage one way or another (89%). Students bottom quartile of the socio-economic distribution were also optimistic (77% of students). Our students also had high lev of motivation – 90% of them "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that trying hard at school is important (OECD average: 88%). That was true for 89% of students of the bottom quartile of socio-economic distribution. Regarding parental support 90% of students "agreed" or "strongly agreed" that they support them, that was true for 87% of students coming from the bottom quartile of the socio-economic distribution. But some families may face language barriers and the academic support of parents to students might suffer - 10% of the students reported that (OECD average: 12%). This is the case for 20% of students coming from the bottom quartile of the socio-economic distribution. 

School Education During Covid 19 Were Teachers and Students Ready? OECD TALIS 2018 Database.
access: https://www.oecd.org/education/Slovenia-coronavirus-education-country-note.pdf 

Brodnik M., Delo in izobraževanje v času covida-19, Slovenija, december 2020–februar 2021 (Eksperimentalna statistika), SURS, 9.4.2021
access: https://www.stat.si/StatWeb/News/Index/9498 

NIJZ, marec 2022  https://www.nijz.si/sl/solanje-od-doma-po-mnenju-solskih-delavcev-vplivalo-na-kognitivne-sposobnosti-in-dusevno-zdravje