President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has spoken about the considerable challenges in the field of education as revealed by the 2022 PISA results. Despite the allocation of 46 trillion soums to school education in 2024, poor performance in mathematics, reading, and science, where Uzbekistan ranked at the bottom, shows there is much work to be done.
During a video selector meeting on February 5, President Mirziyoyev addressed the quality of education in schools. It was reported at the meeting that over 46 trillion soum is planned to be invested in schools and secondary education in 2024. However, the results of the 2022 PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) suggest that considerable improvements are still required. Uzbekistan's PISA scores were significantly below the average of the participating countries: 364 points in mathematics (average result was 472 points), 336 in reading (476 points), and 355 in science (485 points).
According to the Development Concept of the Public Education System of Uzbekistan, the republic aims to rank among the top 30 countries in PISA results by 2030.
The selector meeting also revealed that a new assessment system in 500 schools has identified the actual level of knowledge. It was found that even with a total of 984 hours allocated to foreign language learning from grades 1 to 11, not even half of the students have achieved a "B1" level proficiency.
Additionally, the inefficiency of certain regional professional development centers was noted.
The meeting set out tasks aimed at accelerating reforms in school education. It was noted that in 2023, the Republic Scientific-Methodological Center was established. Furthermore, last week saw the organization of the Project Office, which has gathered experienced and capable professionals.
The center, together with the Project Office in collaboration with the Ministries of Pre-school and Public Education, and Higher Education, are tasked with:
- Updating mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and foreign language curriculums and programs in schools based on international standards;
- Developing teaching methodologies focused on cultivating students' knowledge, analytical, critical, and creative thinking skills, and their ability to solve problems and implement solutions in practice.
Recognized international programs (such as A-level, IB) and international experiences in assessing student and teacher knowledge (such as PISA, TIMSS, PIRLS) will be gradually implemented. Additionally, the Presidential Schools education program will expand to another thousand schools in 2024, with local governors responsible for improving their material-technical base.
