The results of education reforms are manifested in new opportunities and high performance indicators

The results of education reforms are manifesting in new opportunities and high performance indicators

Over the past ten years, Uzbekistan has carried out large-scale work to expand educational infrastructure, update curriculum content, and support educators. During this period, kindergartens with 1.8 million places and schools with 1.5 million places were created, and more than 10,000 kindergartens and schools were brought up to modern standards. Children were returned from cotton fields to school desks, and teachers to the educational process.

Since 2018, work has begun on creating a new generation of textbooks, involving experienced specialists, scientists, educators, authors, and private companies. The experience of Finland and Singapore was studied. This year alone, 324 textbooks were updated with the participation of more than 400 specialists. In the new textbooks, special attention is paid to national values, love for the Motherland, nature conservation, water conservation, digital technologies, financial literacy, professions of the future, and independent and critical thinking. The updating of textbooks for grades 8–11 will also be completed by 2030.

The results of the reforms are also noticeable in international assessments. In the MELQO study, the early childhood education system received a high rating. In the PISA ranking, 15-year-old students rose by 32 positions in science and took 48th place in the world. This year, young people won 228 medals at prestigious olympiads, including 38 gold, 82 silver, and 108 bronze. At the international chemistry and informatics olympiads, which Uzbekistan hosted for the first time, another 8 medals were won. The number of school students who obtained certificates in foreign languages and academic subjects while still at school reached 100,000, increasing 2.5 times. About 5,000 graduates scored the maximum points when entering higher education institutions.

Noticeable results have also been achieved in raising the status of educators and incentivizing their work. The number of teachers holding international and national certificates has grown from 29,000 to 143,000 over five years, and the teacher shortage in schools has decreased threefold. According to the PISA analysis, this indicator in Uzbekistan stands at 8%, while the average across the 91 studied countries is 40%. Currently, 40,000 teachers receive a salary of over 1,000 dollars, and another 1,500 people receive over 2,000 dollars. For the first time, 208 district and city winners of the "Teacher of the Year" competition were awarded 616 million soums each.

The coverage of inclusive education has also expanded. In two years, the number of schools with an inclusive environment increased from 729 to 3,591. 10,000 children with special needs study in the same environment as their peers. A multifunctional inclusive resource center-school has begun operating in Tashkent.

In the field of preschool education, a new program adapted to national values has been developed based on the experience of Italy, the UK, Germany, Singapore, and China. 180,000 educators and teachers are undergoing training under the new methodology. The play-based learning program is already active in 30% of kindergartens. In Tashkent, under the auspices of UNESCO, the Regional Center for Early Childhood Care and Education has begun its work, as well as the Italian Reggio Emilia center. Kindergarten educators have been given the opportunity to obtain higher education without interrupting their work, and this year 7,000 of them entered universities.

In vocational education, international programs from Germany, the UK, Switzerland, and China have been introduced in 104 technical colleges over the past two years. As a result of cooperation with 25,000 enterprises, more than 100,000 young people received the opportunity to study and earn at the same time. Young people learning a profession within dual education are paid a stipend of up to 1.3 million soums. This year, 220,000 9th-grade graduates were enrolled in technical colleges. 170,000 students took part in the "Creators of New Uzbekistan" professional competition.

Thanks to the expansion of higher education opportunities, the number of students reached 1.6 million. Seven universities entered prestigious international rankings in 17 subject areas. Universities have been granted academic, organizational, and financial independence. Today, 32 foreign higher educational institutions operate in the country.