The Cabinet on June 28 endorsed the draft Education Code that will replace the Education Law adopted in 1995, IPN reports. By the new law, the authorities aim to encourage studies throughout life, to ensure connection with the labor market, to institute an efficient system for ensuring, monitoring and assessing the quality in education, and to motivate teachers to ensure education of a high quality.
When the new Education Code takes effect, education will be obligatory up to the age of 18, up from 16 at present. Only teachers with a master’s diploma will be able to teach at lyceums. The university lecturers will need to have a doctor’s diploma. The teachers in all the education institutions will be employed by contest. The school principals will be named for a four-year period only, by contest, while rectors will be elected by the general assembly of the university, not by the senate, as now.
Minister of Education Maia Sandu said that investments of 400 million lei a year are needed for extending the length of mandatory education. “The state incurs higher costs for young people who didn’t learn a profession by unemployment programs, social benefit, etc. Over 60 million lei will be needed annually for renewing the teaching staff in general education institutions and for supporting the young specialists,” she stated.
On retirement, the teachers will receive a lump sum of 15% of the salary for every year of work in the education system.
The Education Code is to be adopted by Parliament. Afterward, the Ministry of Education, together with other responsible ministries, will formulate and review over 120 normative documents in the field.
