“It is noted that the number of people who have problems with basic skills is increasing.”, — write: www.unian.ua
It is noted that the number of people who have problems with basic skills is increasing.
The EU is far behind its goal of reducing the failure rate / UNIAN collage, photo ua.depositphotos.comThe level of children’s knowledge of mathematics and reading has “significantly deteriorated” in most countries of the European Union. This is a huge risk for the economy in the future.Politico reports that failure rates – when students do not meet a minimum level of proficiency – have risen over the past 12 years, and in 2022 there was a sharp decline in basic skills, possibly as a result of school closures due to the pandemic.
Currently, the European Union is far from its goal of reducing the failure rate to 15% by 2030. Almost one in three 15-year-olds do not have basic maths skills, and one in four cannot reach the minimum level in reading and science.
Low academic performance threatens labor productivity and competitiveness in the medium term. Employers, on the other hand, argue that having skilled workers is critical, and point out that labor shortages are holding back companies’ ability to ramp up production.
“Thus, well-functioning and effective education and training systems are crucial for teaching young people and adults the skills needed in the labor market to obtain quality jobs, particularly given the large-scale transformations the EU is facing,” the message reads.
The lowest success rates in mathematics are in Bulgaria, Cyprus and Romania. Poorer pupils across the EU are doing far worse, with almost half of them failing in maths in 2022, “significantly up from 38.2% in 2018”.
However, the decline in academic performance also affected more affluent children. There is a problem of a shortage of qualified teachers, which has “increased in the last few years, in particular, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Governments in a number of countries are taking action: Finland is introducing more compulsory lessons, and the Netherlands plans to allocate €500 per pupil to schools willing to improve their basic skills.
The economic crisis in Europe – the latest newsAfter five years of stagnation, Germany’s economy shrank by 5% compared to pre-pandemic growth rates. Much of the deficit will be difficult to recover due to structural shocks, particularly in the energy sector and the automotive industry.
Experts believe that the problems of Europe’s largest economy will soon spread to the European Union.
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