Schools need more autonomy, OECD official recommends
Greece ranks last among the 38 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in terms of school autonomy, with principals and teaching staff having little say in curriculum and scheduling, decisions that are fully dictated by the Education Ministry.
This highly centralized model limits flexibility and hinders tailored responses to students’ diverse learning needs, the OECD’s director of education and head of the PISA student evaluation program, Andreas Schleicher, says in a report that was recently presented to the Greek government.
According to the OECD, PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) tests have revealed limited academic differentiation among schools, but high disparities within classrooms. Such issues, says Schleicher, would be better addressed through local autonomy.
Socioeconomic-based learning gaps also persist, while the pandemic worsened parental disengagement, with only 40.6% expressing active interest in their children’s progress in 2022, down from 72% in 2018.
Compensating for weak trust in public education, families increasingly turn to private tutoring, the report noted, saying that Greek students spend fewer instructional hours in school (613 vs the OECD average of 706 annually) but study more outside of it, reducing their free time.
Teacher evaluation – which has stalled after being introduced in 2021 – is another key pillar for achieving successful educational reform, the report notes, adding that while Greece scores relatively well in class size, it still faces teacher shortages and relies heavily on temporary hires.
