Reforming the Education System in Kosovo with the Start of the 9th Classes
Prior to 1999 Kosovo was a province of the former Yugoslavia. While predominantly inhabited by ethnic Albanians, Kosovo was ruled by Serbia during much of this time. Following the war many international organizations joined those developing domestic organizations and had great influence on decision making. This led to Kosovo declaring its independence from Serbia on 17th February 2008. Post-war Kosovo continues to undergo many transitions in all aspects of development, including education. Education reform was essential both to bring education up to date and in line with international standards. However, somewhat by necessity, changes were drawn up rapidly when they demanded, but did not receive thorough planning, that would have allowed them to be implemented and integrated more effectively. The transition from the pre-war education system to reforms also was a result of the policies of both international and domestic influences which have been decision makers on the fate of so much, including education in the country. The application of these reforms has been complex and difficult as the stages of implementation was not conceived, planned, prepared or understood properly starting from Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST), to the teachers and students. Educational reforms began immediately after the adoption of two laws on primary, secondary and university education (Parliament of Kosovo, 2002). The pre-war educational structure included an instructional framework consisting of twelve grades in a 4 +4 +4 arrangement. After the war, Development of the new Curriculum Framework of Kosovo (2001), determined that a revised framework was needed. The new framework includes nine grades in a 5 +4 +3 arrangement. This new plan extends compulsory education from eight years to 9 years of schooling which complies with European and international course in education. (DES, 2001) Given the significance and impact of the process of including ninth grade as compulsory the goal of this study is to answer the questions: Have the education reforms, i.e. the beginning of ninth graders, brought positive change in education or made the situation more difficult? What should be the basis for planning by MEST, when designing new curriculum, especially when implementing programs for the first time? How should teachers be prepared to implement reforms? On what decisions should reforms in the educational system of the new country be based? Methodology: Qualitative research, comparative, analysis, etc. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n1p183