Annual Implementation Report 2010

Transcription

1 Annual Implementation Report Government of Greenland Ministry of Education and Research June 2011

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3 CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES... IV LIST OF FIGURES... VI ABBREVIATIONS...VII EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION Overview of Greenland s Education Programme Brief readers guide INTRODUCTION TO THE GREENLAND EDUCATION SECTOR Demographic, geographical and linguistic aspects Political, economic and strategic aspects An overview of the education system Elementary school Continuation schools Vocational Education and Training (VET) High schools Higher education Training courses offered by Piareersarfiit and VET STATUS OF THE GEP; LESSONS LEARNED AND MAIN CHALLENGES IN Status of GEP in general Challenges within the GoG The Ongoing success of the Greenlandic Continuation School Piareersarfiit and competence courses The Elementary school The field of raw materials and minerals The work with Strategies and reports PERFORMANCE IN VIEW OF VARIABLE TRANCHE DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES, BUDGET AND EXPENDITURE AND RESULTS PER INDICATOR Preparatory courses and youth educational and training programmes (focal area 1) Competence (skills training) courses, the Piareersarfiit and unskilled labour in the work force (focal area 2) Higher education and strategic sectors (focal area 3) Cross-cutting initiatives (focal area 4) Drop-out rates and completion (focal area 5) Housing and building (focal area 6) Monitoring OVERALL EDUCATION BUDGET BIBLIOGRAPHY AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 iii

4 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Number of active students (September ) Table 2: Pupils and teachers / Table 3: Number of pupils per school in the settlements / Table 4: Number of students at VET schools (September ) Table 5: Number of students in high schools (September ) Table 6: Number of students at higher education by type of education (September ) Table 7: The number of participants and number of course weeks Table 8: Educational status by mid-september for pupils from Danish continuation schools Table 9: Educational status mid-sept. for pupils from Greenlandic continuation schools Table 10A: Variable tranche calculation with adjustment Table 10B: Variable tranche calculation with adjustment, without indicator Table 11: Budget for focal area 1 ( m) Table 12: Applicants for VET (indicator 3.1) Table 13: Applicants for High School Education (indicator 3.2) Table 14: Students by type of education, (indicator 4a.1) Table 15: Students by type of education, relative to the relevant population (indicator 4a.2) Table 16: Students by type of education, indexed (2005=100) (indicator 4a.3) Table 17: Number of apprenticeships at VET (indicator 5.1) Table 18: Budget for focal area 2 ( m) Table 19: Number of students by type of education (indicator 4c.1) Table 20: Students by type of education, indexed (2005=100) (indicator 4c.2) Table 21: Focal area 4 ( m) Table 22: Expenditure on education as a percentage of total public expenditure (indicator 1.1) Table 23: Expenditure on education (in million Euro) (indicator 1.2) Table 24: Expenditure on education, indexed (2005=100) (indicator 1.3) Table 25: Number of graduates by type of education (indicator 9.1) Table 26: Graduates by type of education, indexed (2005=100) (indicator 9.2) Table 27: Number of repeaters attending vocational education and training and high school education (indicator 10.1) Table 28: Repeaters attending relative to total attendance in vocational education and training and high school education (indicator 10.2) Table 29: Repeaters attending vocational education and training and high school education, indexed (2005=100) (indicator 10.3) Table 30: Number of dropouts by type of education (indicator 11a.1) Table 31: Dropout rate relative to total attendance by type of education (indicator 11a.2) Table 32: Dropout rate by type of education, indexed (2005=100) (indicator 11a.3) Table 33: Dormitories and buildings Table 34: Budget under focal area ( m) Table 35: Graduates obtaining a job (numbers), (Indicator 12.a1) Table 36: Graduates obtaining a job index = 100, (Indicator 12.a3) Table 37: GDP (Indicator 14) iv AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

5 Table 38: Total external grants by origin (Denmark and EU) (Euro) Table 39: Total external grants in percentage of total public budget (indicator 15.2) Table 40: Total external grants by origin (Denmark and EU) 2005=100 (indicator 15.3) Table 41: Employment by sectors, numbers (indicator 16.1) Table 42: Employment rate by sectors, percentage (indicator 16.2) Table 43: Employment by sectors, indexed =100 (indicator 16.3) Table 44: Life expectancy at birth (Indicator 17.1) Table 45: Indicator 17.2: Birth rate born per 1, Table 46: Indicator 17.3: Number of children per household Table 47: Indicator 17.4: Infant mortality, per 1,000 children born Table 48: Indicator 17.5: Rate of suicide, per 1,000 inhabitants Table 49: Indicator 17.6: Main diseases reported Table 50: Budget allocations and expenditures for the overall education () Table 51: GEP Budget and expenditure AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 v

6 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Overview of GEP... 6 Figure 2: Indicators of GEP... 8 Figure 3: Public expenditures as a percentage of GDP () Figure 4: Public expenditure broken down on types of education () Figure 5a: Overview of the formal education system Figure 5b: Overview of training courses Figure 6: Attendance and graduates from VET-schools Figure 7: Attendance and graduates at high schools Figure 8: Attendance and graduates from Higher Education vi AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

7 ABBREVIATIONS ACERC Agency for Culture, Education, Research and the Church (merged with MoCerc from 1 January 2011) AEU Recognised Vocational Education AIR Annual Implementation Report AMA Labour market courses (mainly for skilled workers) AWP Annual Work Plan DTU Denmark s Technical University EC European Commission EU European Union EUR Euro FA Finance Act (the Budget) FSA The Leaving Examination of the Elementary School 10th grade GDP Gross Domestic Product GEC Greenland Economic Council GEP Greenland Education Programme GoG Government of Greenland HE Higher Education High school General High School, in most instances used as an overall term for all 3 kinds of High School HHX Commercial High School HTX Technical High School ICT Information and Communication Technology ISCED International Standard Classification of Education KANUKOKA Association of Municipalities LEB Life Expectancy at Birth m Million MoCERC Ministry of Culture, Education, Research and the Church, dissolved March 2011 MoER Ministry of Education and Research, from March 2011 MoFA Ministry of Family Affairs (formerly a part of Ministry of Family Affairs and Health) (dissolved March 2011) MoFCCGE Ministry of Family, Culture, Church and Gender Equality, from March 2011 MoF Ministry of Finance MoH Ministry of Health MoHIT Ministry of Housing, Infrastructure and Transport MoILM Ministry of Industry and Labour Market PD Pedagogical Diploma PEFA Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability Piareersarfiit Career guidance and counselling centres PKU Competence development courses (mainly for unskilled workers) PØB Political Economic Report (Politisk Økonomisk Beretning) PKU Personal development courses RDS Regional Development Strategy SG Statistics Greenland VET Vocational Education and Training AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 vii

8 On March 18 th 2011 the Government of Greenland cabinet members' (Ministers') responsibilities were redistributed. With the change of Ministers a reorganisation of the ministries followed. This affected the Ministry of Culture, Education, Research and the Church (MoCERC) as follows: the areas of Culture and the Church were moved to the Ministry of Family Affairs, which became the Ministry of Family, Culture, Church and Gender Equality. the two remaining areas Education and Research form a Ministry called the Ministry of Education and Research (MoER). The Minister responsible for MoER also has the responsibilities regarding Nordic Cooperation. The reorganisation, although dividing the former MoCERC, did not result in any changes regarding the responsibilities related to the Partnership Agreement or the Greenland Education Programme (GEP). viii AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

9 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Annual Implementation Report (AIR) for follows the same structure as the AIR for. This report reflects information available as by end of May The aim is to give a broad overview of how Greenland s Education Programme (GEP) was implemented in, highlighting both success and obstacles that were observed during the year. Diagrams are being used extensively throughout the report to give a clear picture of tendencies and magnitudes. Detailed information and data is annexed to the work plan and repetition of information is minimized. Introduction to the AIR in relation to Greenland Education Programme The AIR is relating to the vision and the main strategic goals behind GEP. An important part of the AIR is to report on the allocation of the funding from the Government of Greenland (GoG), including the support from the European Union (EU), to different activities of GEP. For this purpose the GEP-budget for is compared with the actual expenditures for on a detailed level. Another important part of the report is to evaluate the targets set for for the various statistical indicators related to the education sector, such as number of attendance and dropout rate. The targets influencing the calculation of the variable tranche are of a particular interest and are presented in detail in the report. The approved implementation report is a precondition for the payment of the variable tranche of a maximum of 20% of the annual EU sector budget support to Greenland. GEP is a very important part of the overall education policy. The program has a clearly stated vision and a precise goal for achieving this vision. The vision is to obtain a higher standard of living and quality of life through better education. The goal for reaching the vision is that 2/3 of the work force should have academic qualifications or vocational skills in GEP is organized as a classical monitoring system. Two target groups have been identified to be addressed in the first phase of GEP that covers the period Firstly, young people just leaving elementary school and are to enter VET education or high schools are targeted, to make sure that as many as possible go into further education, do not drop out and eventually complete. Secondly, unskilled workers below the age of 50 years, with a need to be upgraded to either to be able to work within strategic sectors where labor is needed presently or to take advantage of future possibilities of expected upcoming industries in Greenland within sectors like energy, mineral resources and mining. The economic accounts of GEP are divided into 7 focal areas that address the needs and formulate activities to support them. The focal areas are monitored and evaluated on the basis of 17 statistical indicators every year. Concurrent with the development of the AIR the Annual Work Plan (AWP) 2011 are being prepared in 2011 to report on the budget of GEP for 2011 and to set targets for Besides that, two annual reports are being prepared in 2011 addressing the medium-term public expenditure framework with specific reference to the education sector and macroeconomic situation in Greenland in the short and medium term run (MTEF ) and the improvements in the public finance management systems with particular focus on three critical areas (PFM 2011). The four reports give a detailed picture of the present situation of the education sector and the relation to the overall economic situation in Greenland. Introduction to the Greenland education sector The population of Greenland is small consisting of app inhabitants that are scattered around the country. Transportation is difficult since no roads connect the cities. All transportation between cities is done by ship or airplane. Greenland is a bi-lingual society, with Greenlandic as the official language and Danish often used alongside. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 1

10 To meet the vision and goal of GEP and cope with the challenges related to geography and demography, GoG provides massive funding to the education sector in these years. The total education budget accounts for about 20% of Gross Domestic Product, which is a significantly higher share than in other Nordic countries. The financial support to the education sector is backed up by reforms that has been or will be put into force in the coming years. The reforms cover day care institutions, elementary school, VET schools and high schools. The main purpose of these reforms is to ensure that education at various stages is rooted in the Greenlandic culture as well as ensuring that education becomes an integrated part of the comprehensive development framework implemented by GoG, such as e.g. the Regional Development Strategy. Also considerations with regard to a more efficient allocation of resources are assured. For example, the reforms addresses the use of ICT as a tool to have a more effective way of allocating resources to a dispersed population as found in Greenland. Besides these reforms of the education system, focus in the education policy is on strategic sectors where qualified labor is presently needed or is expected to be needed in the future. Presently there is a need for labor in many sectors, such as education, health and within the social sector. The raw materials and mineral sector is expected to grow in the future and this will raise the demand for labor that possesses specific qualifications. Also, there is focus on education within non-literal qualifications such as garment making. Although not being a formal part of the GEP, elementary schools form the basis of all further education and it is therefore important to understand the problems related to elementary school as a basis for understanding the problems that appear in later stages of the education system. Only about 40% of a year group is enrolled into education 1 year after leaving elementary school, a number that has to be raised significantly if the overall goal of GEP has to meet. Further, particularly the pupils from settlement schools pose problems to the education system, primarily because they lack linguistic skills in Danish and English, but also because they have to move to bigger cities away from their families to attend school the last two years before the graduation exam, being away from their families at a very young age. Continuation schools is an important bridge between elementary school and further education and the newly established continuation schools in Greenland have proved to be successful, especially attracting pupils from smaller cities and settlements. In / two continuation schools were in operation, attracting 160 students. The VET schools, high schools and higher education have succeeded in attracting more youngsters to attend education and to complete it over the last years and this trend continued in. Self-assessment of annual performance and conditions; including the main developments, tendencies and results of activities carried out in The Greenland Education Programme is generally proceeding according to targets set. Continued progress was observed in many of the indicators in although at lower rates for some indicators. The decrease in progression rates can be potentially attributed to a number of factors that however still need clarification and therefore are subject to investigations in Since it is the elementary school that delivers input in the form of students to the whole of the educational system after the 10 years compulsory elementary school, focus has been put on this area as well in relation to meeting the goals set in the GEP. An evaluation of the elementary schools in showed that the principles of the reform have not yet been fully implemented in all schools. Generally, the reform principles have been mainly adopted in the bigger schools in the cities while smaller schools, especially settlement schools, have not yet fully implemented the reform. More attention will be directed towards 2 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

11 ensuring the principles of the reform implemented to a larger extent. An element of this process is to strengthen the cooperation between the larger schools in the cities and their related settlement schools. The decreasing number of apprenticeship places in Greenland was in problematic for the successful graduation of students from many commercial educations. The VET schools in Greenland have now established a new organizational model with school boards as well as a new model for financing the branch schools has been implemented, based on a so called taxameter system according to specific needs at local schools. For the high schools the primary limiting factor in was the physical capacity of the high schools both regarding capacity for education and on dormitories. New dormitories and apartments will open in Nuuk, Ilulissat, Sisimiut, Aasiaat and Qaqortoq. Expectations to upcoming industries within the oil and mineral sector gives rise to new demands on specific types of labor and therefore also specific challenges for the education sector. A development of a total education programme for all short-term courses regarding research and production of oil products has been initiated at a conference held in December at the newly established Greenland School of Minerals and Petroleum in Sisimiut. There has been an increased focus on languages within the education system in, both regarding how much the students learn at a given education/institution, but also on issues related to language and language capability levels required for attending a particular education. A general policy/law of language was put into force by 1 st July. The purpose of the law is on one hand to secure and strengthen the Greenlandic language while at the same time to remove barriers for the use of other languages so that a multi-lingual society can pave the way for a sustainable and prosperous society. In GoG began formulating two strategies 1): A Regional Development Strategy with the overall goal for Greenland to develop a self-supporting economy, 2): A Strategy for Children and Young People. The two strategies have a broad and horizontal perspective and will include education policy related themes. Detailed description of activities, budget and expenditure and results per indicator Focal area 1 The expenditure under focal area 1 exceeded the budget of 6.8m with 0.8m or 12%. No single explanation for this can be given. All indicators under focal area 1 were at or above their targeted value. This regards indicators on applicants and students at VET schools and high schools. Also apprenticeships places are an indicator under this focal area. Focal area 2 The expenditure under focal area 2 was 6.7m which was exactly as budgeted. No indicators were available to measure the performance under the focal area. Focal area 3 The expenditure under this focal area was above the budget of 8.6m with 0.2m or 2.3%. The indicator under this focal area measures students attending higher education was above the targeted value. Focal area 4 The expenditure under focal area 4 was below the budget of 7.7m with 0.2m or 2.1 %. The indicator under the focal area measures expenditure on education. The outcome of the indictor was slightly above the targeted value. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 3

12 Focal area 5 The expenditure was equal to the budget of 0.8m. The crucial indicator used for the calculation of the variable tranche was quite above target and was in at the same level as the base line percentage It was especially the drop out rate at the VET schools that was high where as the drop out rate at high schools did better. Focal area 6 The expenditure under the focal area was at the budget of 17.8m. In work on dormitories was in progress. The major part was completed in the beginning of Focal area 7 The budget of this focal area was below budget of 2.2m with 0.2m or 8.1%. It especially expenditures for The Good Day Care Reform that were below the budget. All in all saw the GEP on track according to budgets and expenditure as well as the development of the various statistical indicators that are used to monitor the development of the 7 focal areas. The only exception was the indicator measuring drop outs. This point to the fact that drop out is an essential problem that needs to attract more attention in the coming years conduct of education policy. 4 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

13 1 INTRODUCTION In the below the introduction is presented to the Annual Implementation Report in relation to the Greenland Education Programme. 1.1 OVERVIEW OF GREENLAND S EDUCATION PROGRAMME The Annual Implementation Report (AIR) relates to the vision and the main strategic goals behind the Greenland Education Programme (GEP). This programme is a very important element of Greenland s educational policy. The AIR is prepared by The Government of Greenland (GoG) every year on the basis of vision, strategies and results regarding the Greenland education and vocational training sector with specific reference to the GEP from the previous year. AIR is part of the Financing Agreement: /21121 between European Commission (EC) and the GoG and has a direct relation to the Annual Work Plan (AWP). The Financing Agreement states that: The annual implementation report shall include a self- assessment of the annual performance made by the GoG indicating the (un)favourable exceptional conditions that could have influenced the results achieved. These exceptional conditions if considered relevant would be duly taken into account in the performance assessment. An assessment of the Annual Work Programme including the results achieved by implementing the Greenland Education Plan (GEP) measured against the 17 agreed indicators. An assessment of the implementation of activities in terms of budget execution of the financial means made available for that purpose in the budget. A statement assuring legality and regularity of expenditure of the accounts. The finalized AIR is submitted to EC and is a condition for receiving the variable tranche (20%) of the annual EU sector budget support. The precise percentage that is actually being paid to GoG is established by comparing a set of statistical targets relating to the education sector (set in AWP) with the actual statistical outcome to be presented in AIR. A calculation method presented in AIR leads to the precise percentage. A GEP team within The Ministry of Education and Research (MoER) is responsible for the drafting and submission of AIR as well as the Annual Work Plan (AWP) to EC. Additional to the responsibility of reporting and cooperation with EC services, the team is also responsible for carrying out the administrative day-to-day functions 1 as well as long-term planning of the GEP activities. The AIR is a tool for those responsible for the program, i.e. MoER, the Executive Steering Committee, and the Planning Steering Committee for GEP. It is furthermore a tool for communication between the GoG and the EC about actual plans, targets and indicators for monitoring the implementation of GEP 2. Two other reports relating to GEP are yearly prepared within GoG: Public Finance Management (PFM) and Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) that are prepared and submitted to EC by the Ministry 1 Such as: current servicing of GoG and the Parliament with reporting on specific GEP issues and overall program progress. The team has also provided GEP related information to newly GoG established advisory council and reform commission see MTEF (-2013) for more detailed description of the purpose of the Greenland Economic Council as well as the term of reference for the Commission on Tax and Welfare for which the education sector and education policy are objects for review and analysis. 2 See Annex 4, Terms of Reference for the Steering Committee for Sector Programme and the GEP. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 5

14 of Finance (MoF). While the MTEF describes the public expenditure framework in light of the macroeconomic situation with medium-term forecast on key macro-economic indicators and the GoG budget with specific references to the education budget and policy, the PFM reports on improvements in the public finance management system with particular focus on 3 critical areas identified in the first PFM evaluation undertaken by external evaluators. Two workshops were held in with delegates from GoG and EC services in Brussels. Various aspects relating to GEP and the reporting process were discussed. EC provided technical assistance to MoER in by employing two experts to assist MoER and MoF in drafting the four reports. However, the reports are in the end the responsibility of GoG. Due to the rather complex nature of the reports, an independent executive summary is prepared and submitted to the parliament twice a year, at the spring and autumn assembly respectively. These reports are also made public on GoG s homepage in Greenlandic, Danish and English. GoG is promoting GEP in the Greenlandic society with regard to visibility and transparency. Visibility is assured by promoting education through television spots and articles in newspapers. It is the policy of GoG to actively take part in the discussion of education policy in the media. Transparency is assured by publishing material in a pedagogical way to explain the vision and goals of GEP that are often being seen by the public as a complex and difficult program. The overall structure of GEP is illustrated in Figure 1 below. The GEP has organised a monitoring system where the vision and goal of the programme are evaluated on the basis of quantitative indicators. Figure 1: Overview of GEP Vision: The aim is to achieve higher standards of living and improved quality of life through better education. The strategic background for GEP is based on the analysis of the education and labor market requirements for the future, prepared by the GHRG in 2004, with the title; "Progress through Training, 6 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

15 Education and Development of Competencies", which resulted in formulation of the Greenland Education Programme (GEP) -2020, adopted by Parliament in. In support of GoG s overall education reform programme, the European Commission through the Programming Document for the Sustainable Development of Greenland (PDSD) has decided to support the Education Sector in Greenland, in the form of a Sector Policy Support Programme to be implemented through Sector Budget Support amounting to a maximum of 25m (in prices) per year for the period Main goal: To contribute to a higher standard of living and quality of life through development of better education, technical skills and knowledge with the strategic goal, that 2/3 of the workforce should have an academic qualification and/or sufficient vocational skills by Qualifications are measured by international standards using ISCED level 3 as indication of these qualifications. Target groups: The GEP is divided into two phases. During the first phase of the GEP (-2012) focus is on the target groups: Elementary school leavers. Unskilled workers under 50 years of age who are either unemployed or in endangered professions and/or for breadwinners. The target groups to be addressed in phase 2 ( ) remain yet to be established. As for now it is though foreseen that higher education will receive more funding in phase 2. Focal areas: The GEP is organised in 7 focal areas, described in figure 1. The activities within the seven focal areas are the means for achieving the results as intended and described in the strategic goals and the long-term visions. Some of the expected results might be influenced by factors that were unforeseeable or unpredictable at the time of implementation of the AWP. Deviations from the planned results might occur due to impact of external or internal factors and in such cases measures to introduce adjustments to the planning and to the performance of activities will be taken. The 7 focal areas are divided into a variety of activities that receives funding from GEP. 17 indicators measure the results achieved within the 7 focal areas. Indicators: To monitor and evaluate that the activities have the expected impact on the vision and the objectives, the GoG and the EC have agreed on a set of statistical performance indicators. The indicators define what Greenland is supposed to deliver (input indicators) in terms of contributions to the education sector as a whole (expenditure allocated to education), and immediate results from the activities (output, outcome and impact indicators). These results contribute to achieving the main objectives. Annex 4 and 6 contains a description of the indicators, including the extent to which they have an impact on the variable tranche. Annex 5 states the baselines and detailed results for the indicators. Input: Measure the financial resources provided and the administrative and regulatory measures taken (for example, resources allocated, resources used, measures taken, laws passed). Output: Measures the immediate and concrete consequences of the resources used and measures taken (for example, schools built, teachers employed, nurses trained) The definition of output covers those goods and services "supplied", produced or "provided" by the public sector with the inputs. Outcome: Measures the results at the level of beneficiaries (for example, gross enrolment rates in elementary schools, vaccination). The definition covers the outcomes (or results) from the use and satisfaction of the goods and services produced by the public sector, when supply equals demand. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 7

16 Impact: Measure the consequences of the outcomes in terms of wider objectives (for example, literacy rates, health improvement). The definition covers the wider effects of the outcomes but there might also be higher level impacts, related to broader objectives growth and income poverty, for example. In order to turn it into a net impact indicator the effect of other educational programmes and other external effects (not related to GEP) has to be assessed and accordingly subtracted. Figure 2 gives an overview of the various indicators of GEP and they are grouped as input, output, outcome or impact indicators. Figure 2: Indicators of GEP 1.2 BRIEF READERS GUIDE Chapter 2: This chapter provides the reader with an overview of the education sector and gives an impression of the magnitudes involved when looking at this sector. It is important to have the demographical and geographical aspects of Greenland in mind when analysing performance of the education sector and these aspects are briefly being described in the beginning of the chapter. References to the political and strategic aspects that are part of and underline GEP will be touched upon. The chapter ends with a general description of the various parts of the education sector. The chapter only 8 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

17 provides a broad overview while detailed statistics and other details are to be found in the coming chapters and annexes. Especially Annex 3 gives a more detailed description of the education system, its content and the on-going reforms. Chapter 3: This chapter provides a status that is done as a self-assessment, in the context of the GEP with its main objective to ensure that two thirds of Greenland s workforce should have an academic qualification and/or sufficient vocational skills by The self-assessment briefly considers the progress and setbacks experienced during, highlighting the factors that have had an impact. Chapter 4: This chapter presents the calculation of the variable tranche. In a sense this chapter gives a broad evaluation of the GEP performed in. Each of the indicators that are part of the calculation are presented and it is explained why each indicator did/did not achieve the target. Chapter 5: This chapter presents the 7 focal areas one by one. For each focal area budget and expenditure are compared. Also target and outcome for the indicators relating to each focal area are compared. Explanations of deviations are given wherever possible. This chapter gives a detailed description of how the GEP performed in. Chapter 6: This chapter presents the overall budget of the education sector for Government of Greenland. Again budget and actual expenditures are compared and explanations of deviations are given wherever possible. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011 9

18 2 INTRODUCTION TO THE GREENLAND EDUCATION SECTOR 2.1 DEMOGRAPHIC, GEOGRAPHICAL AND LINGUISTIC ASPECTS As per 1 st January, 56,194 inhabitants were living in Greenland. The largest part of the population, namely 15,105, was living in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. The cities Sisimiut and Ilulissat are also considered large with 5,458 and 4,528 inhabitants respectively. The rest of the population is scattered around the coast, living in smaller cities and settlements. Approximately 85% of the population lives in the cities, while the remaining 15% are living in settlements. For the education sector the size of the year groups of persons between years is of particularly interest. As per 1 st January there were 4,484 persons in the year group years, 4,344 in the year group years and 3,937 in the year group As a rule of thumb the number of persons leaving elementary school each year is 900 persons. A slow but steady tendency towards an ageing population is apparent from the yearly demographic forecasts that are carried out by Statistics Greenland 3. The same tendency can be observed in most western countries. However, in the coming 10 years a higher proportion of the younger population is expected to enter into education. Though the demographic trend is pointing to an ageing population in the coming 10-year period this trend will however not imply fewer persons attending education, in absolute terms. Another significant trend that is apparent from the demographic forecasts is the movement of people from the settlements to the cities. This trend is primarily due to the fact that living conditions in the settlements generally are difficult and job opportunities are scarce. With regard to education policy the young people in the settlements will however still pose a serious problem in the coming years, especially within the elementary school. Although only 15% of the pupils within the elementary school live in the settlements it is of outmost importance to ensure that these pupils are given the same opportunities with regard to education as pupils from bigger cities. The problems of education related to settlements are of great importance and is addressed specifically in section 3.5 below. Communication between cities and settlements in Greenland are hampered since there are no road connections between cities and settlements. Airplanes or ships carry all transportation within Greenland. Transportation is expensive and the weather occasionally hinders the traffic by sea and by air. A sea cable was established in ; it was expected to lower costs and to improve speed on use of the internet. The sea cable has improved the speed at a lower cost in general. However, for the various parts of the education sector, especially the elementary school, no specific improvements have taken place. In a conference was held in Nuuk with representatives from the education sector in general and from the private sector. One obvious conclusion was that more focus should be directed towards E-learning, especially within the settlements. It was also pointed out that the sea cable and the opportunities it provides needs to be reconsidered, taking into consideration the various participants, such as GoG, the local authorities and the education sector. A strategy on ICT was under preparation in and planned to be presented for the Parliament in When it comes to the elementary school sector, the challenge is to ensure that pupils can attend schooling where they live. It is not possible, of course, to gather all elementary school education in a few places. Elementary schools must be placed where the pupils live. The implication is that a great number of rather small elementary schools are scattered all over the country. This pose at least two challenges to GoG and the municipalities: 3 See for references and descriptions of these forecasts. 10 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

19 It is costly to establish and maintain small schools, and to teach only a few pupils, implying high unit cost per pupil. It is difficult to get enough qualified teachers to work and live in the settlements, implying a significant challenge to the education sector planners to ensure adequate coverage of fully qualified teachers. In many cases it seems to be necessary to make special efforts to convince pupils and parents, not least from the small settlements, that education is a necessity in a modern, sustainable Greenland. This fact is primarily related to the cultural characteristics and family patterns of the Greenlandic population. The special conditions and challenges in Greenland leads to the fact that many young people (students and/or apprentices) aged 15 and up have to move from home in order to get an education. These young Greenlanders have to live on their own - far away from home and family - early in their lives. A major issue for the receiving institutions is therefore to train and support the youngsters how to cope with this situation securing that the individuals continue the study and/or work in spite of inconveniences forced on them. The challenge in that respect is, among other things, to ensure that there are dormitories and housing available for those who want to either study or live and work where this is possible. In order to encourage young people to enter and get an education Greenland has established an advanced study grant system 4. Since so many students have to leave home in order to study or work, and since it is so important for the country to educate and train people, there is no alternative to such a study grant system. Finally, the linguistic situation is important to have in mind. Greenland is a bi-lingual society, with Greenlandic as the official language and Danish often used alongside. The linguistic skills differs considerably and is very much dependent on whether a person are being raised and lives in big cities, where Danish is often used or whether a person lives in smaller cities and settlements where Greenlandic is spoken predominantly. Considering that most of the educational material is in Danish and that many teachers, especially within high school education and higher education primarily is Danish speaking, this causes obvious problems for many students. The area is given a high political prioritisation to address these problems. 2.2 POLITICAL, ECONOMIC AND STRATEGIC ASPECTS In GHRG underwent large organizational changes, which was fully implemented by ; however a fundamental change took place when self-governance was implemented in Greenland on June 21 st. The implications of self-governance is among other things the opportunity to repatriate over 33 administrative functions currently undertaken by Denmark, at the own expenses of the GoG 5. By January 1 st Greenland took over the responsibilities in mineral resources and the activities associated. At the same time as the self-governance was implemented, Greenland changed government, with the former opposition party assuming office. The current cabinet is based on political cooperation between Inuit Ataqatigiit, Demokraatit and Kattusseqatigiit Partiiat, who formed a Coalition Agreement on June 10th, 6. The new government has not brought any significant changes to the Greenland Education Programme, as all parties from the beginning (2005) has backed the visions, content and plans of the GEP. The GoG maintain the vision of a self sustainable Greenland through education, growth industries and gradual repatriation of areas formerly undertaken by Denmark. 4 The study grant system is very similar to the Danish system. Students can receive an amount of approximately 550 per month. Besides that, students are allowed to receive an interest free loan of to a maximum of 800 per semester. Greenlandic students can choose between Greenlandic and Danish rules. 5 See AIR for more detailed description of issues and events influencing the implementation environment in. See also MTEF and 2011 for thorough descriptions and analyses on the changed conditions related to Self-Governance. 6 The three parties and their coalition agreement can be found on AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/

20 The Greenland dedication to education stands out as a high-prioritized area when looking at the relative size of the total education budget including elementary school. Figure 3: Public expenditures as a percentage of GDP () Greenland Source: Eurostat. Faroe Island Denmark Iceland Sweden Norge Finland EU (27) Public expenditure on education as percentage of Greenland s GDP is around 15%. Comparatively, this percentage is significantly higher than in other Nordic countries that resemble the way Greenland s education sector is organized and financed. Also compared to countries that resemble Greenland s specific geographical conditions, like The Faeroe Islands and Iceland, the Greenland percentage is significantly higher. Comparison of this kind can, however, be misleading and it should always be kept in mind that the specific geographical conditions of Greenland have a tendency to raise the unit costs within the education sector thereby simply reflecting the fact that provision of high quality education in Arctic environments with a highly dispersed population on a vast geographical space is costly. In Figure 4 total public expenditure on education is broken down into types of education. Elementary school takes up almost half of the expenditures. VET and High School education accounts for 25%, reflecting that the GEP has special focus on these youth educations in phase 1. Figure 4: Public expenditure broken down on types of education () The budget of the education sector for the following year is drafted a year before implementation by MoER and is accepted by the GEP planning steering committee before being passed to the parliament. The budget for the coming year is accompanied by budget projections for yet 3 more years. A GEP-reserve fund is part 12 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

21 of the budget, showing expenditures not allocated to specific projects. This reserve fund allows for flexibility when special conditions call for more funds to be provided. Besides the significant allocation of public funds the education policy and strategy is underlined by various reforms and some specific initiatives all aiming at making education more linked to the culture of the Greenlandic society 7. A reform of the elementary school was put into force into A basic element of this reform is that pupils and teachers are setting individual goals for learning. Also a system of national tests was put into force. The first pupil cohort that has undertaken education under the reform on 10-year primary education will leave school in 2013 and robust and comprehensive outcome evaluations could therefore be performed only from this year and onwards. However a preliminary survey took place in November to see if adjustments of the reform were needed. The specific problems identified from this survey are described in section 3.5 below. A reform of the VET-schools is expected to be put into force on 1 st January The reform has a twofold purpose: Firstly, the financing mode of the VET schools will be changed so that the allocated budget will be dependent on number of students completing the education. The intention is that this new finance mechanism will provide an incentive for the individual school management to ensure a higher completion rate as well as the mechanism will provide a higher degree of transparency by use of calculated unit cost per student allowing for comparisons between schools. Secondly, each school will be headed by a board which members are in close contact with the labour market. The boards are supposed to ensure that the VET educations should become more demand-driven and thereby reflecting the labor market needs for an educated and qualified work force in Greenland. The reform was planned during and implemented 1 st January. A reform of the high school education is in progress and to be put into force by From 1 st January all responsibilities for high school education were transferred from Denmark to the GoG. However, there is still a close cooperation with the Danish Ministry of Education regarding the preparation of examination papers and appointment of examiners. Specialised administrators within MoER carry out the reform, but there is a close cooperation with the Danish Ministry of Education to insure that the high school education remains comparable with Danish standards once the reform is implemented. The overall goal of the reform is to ensure that principles of education are founded in the Greenlandic culture. In a lot of work efforts has been directed at the further education of high school teachers, developing the curriculum in regards to the reform (this work will also be ongoing in 2011) and working with the content of the reform in general. A reform of the day-care system is in progress, headed by an expert in MoER. As indicated by research on education the foundation for a successful entering into education is laid in the early years of the childhood 8. For this reason there is a project related to the day-care reform, which is financed under GEP. This work is looking into models that can ensure good and stabile day-care to children and that are founded on Greenlandic traditions. No time line for finishing the project has been established yet. Besides the greater reforms of the education system, focus in the education policy is on strategic sectors where qualified labour is presently needed or is expected to be needed in the future. Presently there is a need for labor in many sectors, such as education, health and sector social sector. Sectors within raw materials and minerals are expected to grow in the future and this will raise the demand for labour that possesses certain specialised qualifications. Also, though on a smaller scale, there is focus on education within non-literal qualifications. 7 For example, courses for national garment making by use of local materials and animal skins have been established to uphold traditional sewing and cloth making techniques. 8 See for instance Carneiro og Heckman (2003). AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/

22 2.3 AN OVERVIEW OF THE EDUCATION SYSTEM Greenland s formal educational system consists of: Elementary school High School Vocational Education and Training school Higher Education The system resembles in many ways that of Denmark (and many other western countries). Educations not offered at Greenlandic education institutions can be attained in foreign countries (primarily Denmark) with study grants from Greenland. Table 1 show the total number of students achieving study grants divided into Greenland and abroad. Especially within higher education many students have to go abroad to study. Table 1: Number of active students (September ) Greenland Abroad Total VET schools 1, ,515 High Schools 1, ,444 Higher education ,073 Total 3, ,032 Source: MoER. The linkages between the different parts of the education system are illustrated in Figure 5a and Figure 5b. Figure 5a: Overview of the formal education system 14 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

23 Figure 5b: Overview of training courses Almost all education is organized within the government sector and is free of charge. There are however two private elementary schools, located in Nuuk and Sisimiut, which are based on fee payment. The VET schools and the university offer seminars on a small scale that are based on fees. The organization of the education sector is in this respect similar to that of the Nordic welfare states like Denmark based on general tax financing Elementary school Although not being a part of the GEP, the elementary school is the foundation for all further education. It is therefore considered important to give an introduction to this sector to understand the problems and challenges that confront the various parts of the education system later on. The elementary school system in Greenland is a compulsory 10-grade system and in the school year / the total number of pupils was 9,139, cf. table 2 below. In the 11th grade was abolished, meaning that the double year group left elementary school. The double year group still presents a challenge to the education sector. Table 2: Pupils and teachers / Cities Settlements Total Pupils 7,705 1,434 9,139 Teachers, total ,132 Teachers with formal qualifications Teachers without formal qualifications Source: MoER. There are 24 schools situated in the cities and since 83% of all pupils lives in the cities it is regarded that these schools can optimise utilisation of the resources in a well balanced way. However, 54 schools are operating in the settlements (school year /) and 12 of these have less than 10 pupils and 13 have less than 20 pupils, cf. Table 3. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/

24 Table 3: Number of pupils per school in the settlements / Number of pupils Number of schools % Less than 10 pupils Less than 20 pupils Less than 40 pupils Less than 60 pupils 7 13 Over 60 pupils 4 7 Total Source: MoER. Elementary schools are confronted with a number of problems these years. The problems and identified solutions were dealt with in an evaluation that took place in November. First and foremost it has become apparent that a significant number of pupils leave elementary schools without having passed the formal tests in 10 th grade. The number is estimated to around pupils or between 10-20% of a year group. Some of these pupils show up later in life at Piareersarfiit-centres (described below). A second problem is that only 42% of a year group is enrolled into education one year after leaving elementary school, the remaining 58% typically have a position in the labor market within traditional service industries like retail trade. The number of pupils to enter into education immediately or soon after leaving elementary school will have to increase significantly if the overall goal of GEP is to be reached. A simple, but important, indicator of the resources devoted to the elementary school is the ratio of pupils per teacher. Overall the ratio is 8.1 pupils per teacher. This is lower than compared with Denmark where the overall ratio is However, when looking at the ratio of certified teachers/non-certified teachers and their dispersion between cities and settlements the difference is significant; By far the majority of certified teachers are employed at city schools. Test results from the National Centre for Research on Education show that pupils from settlements when compared to pupils from cities - actually perform better in Greenlandic language, have equal performance in mathematics, but the same pupils are found to underperform significantly in Danish and English. As most education in later stages is given in Danish and English the low linguistic skills of pupils from settlements could be an obstacle later in life. A problem for the pupils from the settlements is that many of them have to leave the settlements by 8 th grade and onwards and move to the bigger cities, where education at this level is supplied. They are typically living in a special type of dormitories, school homes. It has become clear that issues such as supervision and organisation of the school homes differ from city to city, even from home to home within the same city. It has also been detected that the pedagogical framework in these school homes is not sufficient and sometimes not present at all. A priority will be given to ensure that school homes will be operating with more uniform rules and supervision guidelines Continuation schools There has been a long tradition for young Greenlanders, who wish or need an additional school year, to attend continuation schools in Denmark, which focus on improving grades/skills enabling the youngsters to enter into further education. On average 250 Greenlandic youngsters attend continuation schools in Denmark every year. Analysis carried out by MoER shows that pupils attending continuation schools in Denmark have a significantly higher probability of going into education afterwards, showing a number of 62% compared to the average of 42%. It was decided to close the temporary branch in Kangerlussuaq by the end of the school year /, a decision made on the basis of recommendations by the board of the continuation school in Qasigiannguit. It was furthermore decided in to establish a new continuation school in Maniitsoq using the buildings that until mid-2011 was housing the Food processing School. This school will be 16 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

25 merged with the Hotel and Restaurants school in Narsaq by mid The new continuation school will begin by the school year 2011/ Vocational Education and Training (VET) The VET-schools are specialised so that all vocational education, within a specific area, takes place at only one VET-school. Vocational Education and Training (VET) is offered at 11 schools scattered around Greenland. Iron and metal School (Nuuk) Building and Construction School (Sisimiut) Commercial School (Nuuk) 9 Commercial School (Qaqortoq) 10 Hotel and Restaurants School (Narsaq) Food processing School (Maniitsoq) until mid-2011 Skippers School (Paamiut) The School for Hunting and Fishery (Uummannaq) Social Workers School (Ilulissat) Greenland School of Minerals and Petroleum 11 (Sisimiut) Design School (Sisimiut) The relative numbers of students attending the various types of education supplied by the VET-schools are displayed in table 4. Table 4: Number of students at VET schools (September ) Branch/education Number Iron and metal 318 Building and construction 355 Commercial 363 Hotel and restaurants 151 Skippers 58 Hunting and fishery 16 Social workers 206 Design 23 Service 25 Total 1,515 Source: MoER. VET schools constitute by far the biggest share of the education sector in Greenland. 1,477 students attended education in and 321 graduated, a large number of them within Building and Construction and Iron and Metal. The significant feature that VET has the largest share of the Greenlandic education sector is also making it dependent and sensitive to general economic conditions and business cycles. 9 The Commercial School in Nuuk offers a wide range of traditional lines aimed at working in commerce and IT. 10 The Commercial School in Qaqortoq offers more specialised lines such as education in working in the tourism business along with the more traditional high school lines aiming at working in the commerce sector. 11 Formerly School of Mining. AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/

26 Figure 6: Attendance and graduates from VET-schools Source: Statistics Greenland The number of students at VET-schools has gradually increased over the period However, in a drop was observed, probably due to the fact that the financial crisis began having an impact on the number of apprenticeship places. An apprenticeship place is a precondition for enrolment into a VET education. Through it was feared that the financial crisis would have a continuous negative impact on the activity of the VET schools. However, it seems that the VET schools have made it through returning to the level of. School apprenticeships are right now used extensively to accommodate the need for apprenticeships places in the private sector High schools High school education is offered at six schools. Three of them are of a general nature located in Nuuk, Aasiaat, Sisimiut and Qaqortoq. HHX in Qaqortoq is specialised in commercial studies, while HTX in Sisimiut specialises in technical studies. In two tracks of ordinary high school education were established in Sisimiut to ease the pressure of applicants that appeared at other high schools, it is connected to the HTX in Sisimiut. The two tracks accommodate 44 students. In a total of 1,172 students attended high schools while 278 completed. The number of students attending the various high schools (September ) are shown in table 5. Table 5: Number of students in high schools (September ) Place Number High school-nuuk 368 Of these pilot 22 High school-aasiaat 349 Of these Pilot 22 High school-qaqortoq 151 New tracks-sisimiut 42 HTX 172 HHX 102 ATX-single subjects 58 TNI etc 84 Abroad 118 Total 1,444 Source: MoER. The high schools are not in the same way as VET schools dependent on business cycle conditions. However, lack of school buildings and dormitory capacity provides problems for this education type. The high school located in Aasiaat attracts pupils from a wide area, making it necessary to ensure the supply of required dormitory capacity. Currently, the demand is not met. 18 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011

27 Figure 7: Attendance and graduates at high schools Source: Statistics Greenland Higher education The Greenlandic higher education system works, within the three cycles defined in the Bologna process: Bachelor degrees (including professional bachelors for example nurses and diploma engineers). Within this first cycle, Greenland has also Academy programmes (the so-called short cycle programmes). Master degrees (the second cycle). PhD s and similar (the third cycle) is an opportunity to study at doctoral level at a Greenlandic institute or a Danish institute or somewhere else. In 799 students completed a higher education. This number has increased steadily since 2005, cf. Figure 9 below. Institutions providing higher education are concentrated in Nuuk at Ilimmarfik (campus area). The campus opened in and almost all higher education is located here. In order to give as many opportunities to the Greenlanders as possible, close cooperation with other universities has been established and Greenlanders have free access to matriculate to universities in Denmark. Furthermore Greenlandic legislation secure that students with sufficient aptitude can be granted funds for attending fee based education abroad. In there were attendants at higher educations and 124 completed. In table 6 the numbers of students at higher education is distributed on the various types of educations. Table 6: Number of students at higher education by type of education (September ) Education Number Elementary school teachers 216 Commercial schools (NI2 etc) 69 Social pedagogue 63 Culture and society (University) 55 Administration (University) 46 Nurse 45 Language, literature and media (University) 42 Social advisor 32 Engineer diploma (arctic) 23 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/

28 Education Number Journalist 20 Theology (University) 9 Abroad 453 Total 1,073 Source: MoER. Figure 8: Attendance and graduates from Higher Education Source: Statistics Greenland 2.9 TRAINING COURSES OFFERED BY PIAREERSARFIIT AND VET Besides the degrees and qualifications from the formal education system, mainly the VET schools and the Piareersarfiit provide a number of training courses: For skilled or unskilled employed workers (AMA) and For unskilled workers and employed and unemployed adults (PKU) The courses primarily provide the strategic aim of training for work that is to qualify the apprentices within specific strategic area like social work, health, trade and industry and the new strategic areas mining and tourism. Piareersarfiit Piareersarfiit currently form the link between elementary school, and further education and the labour market, providing counselling and education for both youngsters and the older age groups of the population. Recognised Vocational Education (AEU) is established at Piareersarfiit and the overall aim is to enable young people to be admitted to a recognised education and acquire the competences needed to graduate. AEU courses are concentrated on qualifying the pupils in 4 main topics; Greenlandic, Danish, English and mathematics. In two batches of a total of 1,665 tests were performed and 75% passed the first batch and 79% passed the second. From the gathered material it has been established that the average age of the students was 23 years. An examination of the ratio of males and females showed that 189 students were male and 374 were female A student can attend 1, 2, 3 or 4 topics and therefore the number of tests exceeds the number of students. 20 AESA Consortium / Edburgh consultants May/2011