Ombudsman: Student's right to quality education violated

The Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms has determined that a Montenegrin elementary school violated the right of students to quality chemistry education.

In the opinion of the Deputy Protector Snežane Mijušković It is stated that the school, the Education Inspectorate and the Institute for Education took measures within their jurisdiction, but that the problem in teaching was not eliminated.

"The Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms, after conducting an investigation and obtaining documentation, notes that there has been a violation of the students' right to a quality education in the subject of chemistry...", the opinion reads.

The proceedings before the Ombudsman were initiated following a complaint by a former student, who claimed that his chemistry teacher had mentally and physically abused him, that she had hit him in the eye with a piece of paper, and that there were problems with biased grading. The complaint also stated that the teacher, even after the student no longer attended the school, had continued to tell lies about him and his father.

The education inspectorate, as stated in the opinion, conducted supervision and determined that at the time of filing the application, the student no longer had the status of a student at that school, which is why the institution could not hire a mediator. The inspectorate also determined that the student had a final A in chemistry in both semesters and at the end of the school year.

It was also concluded that the quality of the teacher's educational work is not within the jurisdiction of the education inspection, but of the Institute for Education, and that there are no grounds for taking administrative measures within the jurisdiction of the inspection.

The Education Bureau had previously determined that the quality of the chemistry teacher's educational work was unsatisfactory. The school then adopted an action plan and, according to the opinion, took measures: observation visits were conducted, interviews were conducted with the teacher, guidelines for work were given, pedagogical documentation was monitored and teaching conditions were improved.

However, the Institute concluded that "no improvement has been achieved in the area of ​​the implementation of chemistry teaching and the assessment process", and therefore "the overall quality of teaching is still not at a satisfactory level".

"The Ombudsman is concerned about the fact that there are teachers in the education system whose teaching quality is not at a satisfactory level," the opinion states.

The Protector also pointed out that the quality of education "is not measured only by grades, but also by functional knowledge, critical thinking skills, and the inclusiveness of the system."

The school was recommended to take measures to improve the implementation of chemistry classes and the assessment process, “in order to achieve better teaching quality.” It was also recommended to continue to work on better cooperation between students, teachers, and parents through education and workshops, so that the same or similar situations would not be repeated.