5. The suggestions’ possibility of realization, their effects, maintainability and cost.

5.1. Seven suggestions

In this chapter we intend to support the identification of action plans that have a priority according to the modification suggestions listed in the previous chapter; moreover, we intend to show the possibility of realization, the effects, the maintainability and the costs of each plans. (The analysis of the effects, costs, maintainability and risks of each action plan’s specific elements will have to be part of the preparation process of decision-making).

Since in this part of our report we can consider only some directions of the suggested actions, from the list of suggestions in the previous chapter we took seven suggestions with significant, complicated effects that have educational policy risks, the effects of which should be shortly analysed.

These modification suggestions are the following (not in the order of priority, but sequenced according to the logic of the model applied in the analysis):

5.2 The effect analysis of the seven suggestions

Expected effect: A board merging democratic and professional legitimating, publicity and debate together may result that the medium term strategy of content regulation and development is created, which – with different emphasis – is approved by the participants of educational administration. The experts of educational theories, who had an important role previously, can remain an influential group of content regulation and development, but their monopoly in target setting would be ceased.

Educational policy risks: The modification has the educational administrative risk of slowing down modification processes connected to content regulation due to the inclusion of a larger number of interests and values. (Considering the “Regulation and new regulation rage” of the previous decade, this risk is very small.) At the same time, the inclusion of social partners can strengthen the support of targets and the system’s stability.

The need for the modification of regulations: In the long run, the alteration requires the modification of the public education act. In the short run, this can be substituted by institutionalising the boards of consultants formed on the basis of backing institutions.

Demand for organisations: Since the modification of the public education act has been completed, it would be practical to create the forum as a managing board or a civil (or voluntary) organisation and to launch a trial operation. It is important to emphasise the application of the well-operating international practices (E.g. the Scottish curriculum board) in the course of creating the board.

Financial demand: Since the board’s backing work would be done by the backing institution of content regulation and development, extra costs would also appear there.

Expected effects: The professionalism of the educational sector can be highly increased by the new organization of the capacities of experts currently working separately with restricted capacities fulfilling unplanned tasks.

Educational policy risks: None.

The need for the modification of regulations: In the case of founding a new institution the lower level regulations should be modified, otherwise, only the foundation documents of selected professional backing institutions and other educational institutions have to be changed.

Demand for organisations: The consolidation of the professional and institutional background of content regulation and development can happen in two different ways. The first solution is the effective development of the central backing institution. The other solution is the creation of a national network of institutions or organisational units dealing with content regulation. More importantly, the new professional and institutional background would be created for the profession’s management (program accreditation, curriculum bank, system level research, international connections) and the practical problems of content development and the implementation type state administrative tasks would be separated.

Financial demand: This can only be calculated after creating a picture of the situation and an analysis of the tasks. It can be assumed that it requires the usage of significant financial resources. Its maintainability and legitimacy is provided by the basic character of the tasks: most EU member countries have such an institution.

Expected effects: Connecting and professionalism of the – previously spreading – elements of the curriculum, textbook, assessment and methodological aid development based on national regulatory instruments can create a program supply of better quality. It can also reach a serious effect with orientateing the managers of institutions and teachers towards the methodological reformation of teaching and learning with modifying institutional level content development to the much simpler program adaptation.

Educational policy risks: The innovative freedom of public education’s alternative institutions or of those institutions capable of autonomous program development would not be harmed. The activation of textbook publishers have a much bigger risk, because the Ministry of Education does not have an experience in launching system level policies together with the business sector. Today it seems to be doubtful whether the Ministry of Education creates such a system of motivators, that can make textbook publishers and the universities or colleges involved the most important designers of program groups. Further tension may be caused by excluding those authors from content development, who autonomously or in a half professional way undertake the writing of single textbooks, but who refuse to create programs or program groups.

The need for the modification of regulations: The creation of a national supply of program groups makes it necessary to create a program accreditation system on the level of an Ministry of Education decree. It is also essential to supervise the decree on textbook publishing.

Demand for organisations: The development policy launched together with textbook publishers, universities and colleges do not require an autonomous organisational unit, and only a temporary project organisation seems to be necessary. By suggestion No. 2. We indicated that the tasks of program accreditation could be carried out by the professional backing institution of content regulation and development.

Financial demand: The cooperation between the Ministry of Education, larger textbook publishers, universities and colleges involved requires the mobilisation of significant financial resources for tenders. These resources existed – under the control of different tender issuers – between 1993 and 2003, but during this period, only small-scale institutional innovation programs were financed from these resources.

Expected effects: The basic requirements of a strategy based on lifelong learning (key competencies differentiated and measurable according to age groups) can be the integrating force, that motivates the cooperation between the content development capacities – which are deeply fragmented both professionally and organisationally – of public, vocational and adult training. Besides, the formation of the professional contents of a new type of national assessment would be enabled and the Hungarian educational system’s transparency would be increased.

Educational policy risks: No such educational policy document integrating different educational sectors have been created and approved yet. The risk is significantly lowered by the fact that all the three sectors belong – currently – to the scope of the Ministry of Education’s authority.

The need for the modification of regulations: None.

Demand for organisations: Since the creation of the strategy would be controlled by the social board described in suggestion No. 1. and professional coordination would become the task of content development’s backing institution; the project has no demand for creating new organisations.

Financial demand: Restricted, the financial resources required by the project work essential for strategy building and consultation.

Expected effects: The regulation of the process of maintainer and institutional program approval can increase the external (local community, maintainer) and internal (staff) approval and financial stability of the institutions.

Educational policy risks: None.

The need for the modification of regulations: In the long run the modification of the public education act is needed, in the short run this can be substituted by the modification of lower level regulations, by strategic communication and development. The procedure of pedagogical programs’ approval should be newly regulated by a decree. A ministerial decree should regulate the preparation and approval of quality development programs and the obligatory and minimum consequences of institutional self-assessment and maintainer assessment.

Demand for organisations: None.

Financial demand: None.

Expected effects: The professional and social debate – which was artificially, withheld for a decade – about the accountability of public educational institutions and the entire system can be initiated. It can be indicated in advance that the National Public Education Assessment and Examination Centre – possessing the required professional capacities – is developing an EU conform supervision and accountability concept.

Educational policy risks: The suggested modification is the taboo of Hungarian educational administration since the ceasing of the school-inspector system in 1985. The extremely high risk can be lowered with the application of “system compatible” instruments and with the intensive development using international experiences and EU suggestions establishing the application of those instruments.

The need for the modification of regulations: None.

Demand for organisations: None, professional development and public debate can be carried out on the basis of the National Public Education Assessment and Examination Centre’s current institutional background.

Financial demand: Establishing a supervision system and the strengthening of accountability with the support of system-level policy-making and the essential financial resources. However, the suggestion – acknowledging the expected educational administrative risks – only supports the professional preparation, concept making and social debate. The financial demand of this is not more than the financing of one project.

Expected effects: The “socialization” of the strategic target setting of education, the completion of a strategy based on lifelong learning (LLL) and international requirements (OECD, EU) can create those professional frameworks, within which the professional contents of a modern assessment and state examination system can become interpreted. The debate on the concept of the assessment and state examination system should precede the building of the system between 2006 and 2010.

Educational policy risks: Since it is only about modifying concepts, the educational policy risk can be regarded as very low.

The need for the modification of regulations: None

Demand for organisations: We talk about a mega project of educational development, the launching of which in the period between 2002 and 2006 is merely an illusion.

Financial demand: We talk about a mega project of educational development, the launching of which in the period between 2002 and 2006 is financially merely an illusion.