ZAGREB, 13 Oct (Hina) - According to the latest TALIS survey, classroom discipline problems are less common in Croatia, and violence in schools occurs far less frequently than in other countries covered by this largest international survey about teachers and school leaders, according to the OECD.
The findings of the 2024 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) were presented last Tuesday at the National Centre for External Evaluation of Education (NCVVO). Education systems from 53 countries participated in the study, though the data analysis included 49, as some did not meet specific criteria.
In Croatia, 6,660 teachers and 439 headteachers from 296 primary and 200 secondary schools took part in the survey.
When it comes to teaching strategies, Croatian teachers and lecturers most frequently use explaining learning objectives (96%), linking new material to prior knowledge (94%), and setting clear lesson goals (84%). However, compared with international averages, they rely less on strategies aimed at maintaining classroom discipline, shows the survey.
Compared with other countries, classroom discipline problems are less common in Croatia, and violence in schools occurs far less frequently. Only about 4% of teachers work in schools where violence among pupils is reported as a serious issue, while in the Nordic countries this share exceeds 40%.
Most Croatian teachers and lecturers report having good relationships with their students, although fewer feel that their pupils truly value them.
Secondary school teachers, however, are more likely than primary school teachers to feel respected by their students.
Croatian schools and classrooms among the most homogeneous
Croatian schools and classrooms are among the most homogeneous in Europe, with a lower share of pupils of migrant origin, minority background, or lower socioeconomic status compared with international averages.
NCVVO head Vinko Filipović said, while presenting the findings of the latest TALIS survey, that in the 2018 survey, there were no pupils of migrant origin, whereas they now make up 1.4% of the student population. The EU average is 26.2%.
The share of pupils with special educational needs and refugee pupils has increased significantly over the past decade.
More than 23% of primary schools and 30% of secondary schools report having over 10% of pupils with special needs, while at least 1% of refugee pupils are present in 33.7% of primary and 43.3% of secondary schools.
This rise has also been observed in many other TALIS-participating countries, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe.
10% of pupils in their classes have behavioural difficulties or special educational needs
In Croatian schools, a quarter of teachers report that more than 10% of pupils in their classes have behavioural difficulties or special educational needs.
Other challenges such as underachievement, gifted pupils, language barriers, or socioeconomic obstacles are present to a lesser extent than in most other countries.
Feminisation of teaching profession, 8 in 10 primary school teachers women
Women continue to dominate the Croatian education system, accounting for 79.4% of primary school teachers and 69.1% of secondary school teachers.
Filipović, noted that this trend has persisted in Croatia for decades. According to the research, Croatia ranks fifth in terms of female representation, following Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Slovakia.
Compared with the 2018 study, the share of teachers aged over 50 increased in 14 participating countries, while it decreased in only three: Austria, South Korea, and Slovenia.
The average age of primary school teachers in Croatia is 43.6 years, while secondary school teachers average 46 years, an increase of about a year and a half since 2018.
Around half of Croatian teachers previously worked outside the education sector, and 3.5% switched careers to teaching as a second profession - this latter group reported being the most satisfied with their jobs, Filipović added.
Workload of Croatian teachers and educators has been steadily increasing
According to the TALIS survey, the workload of Croatian teachers and educators has been steadily increasing. Primary school teachers work more than 43 hours per week, which is up to five hours more than the international average, and over the past 11 years, their weekly workload has risen by more than two hours.
