Abstract:

The Latvian education system is currently progressing gradually towards the introduction of the SLO (school as a learning organisation) approach in Latvia's general and vocational education. The SLO approach to the performance of institutional functions is currently applied by both the Latvia`s National Centre for Education in developing general and vocational training education standard and providing support for its introdiction in the implementation of the project “Competence Approach to Curriculum” (School 2030), and the State Education Quality Service, in which the issue of SLO is related to education quality assessment (accreditation), self-evaluation of educational institutions, as well as improvement of schools` principals professional competence. Although the main responsible institutions for the implementation of the SLO approach in the Latvian education system are the State Education Quality Service and the National Centre for Education, however the SLO approach is based also on co-operation between different stakeholders, including co-operation between the educational institution and its founder, and especially local governments (municipalities). Education is one of the most extensive functions of the local government, thus in the context of SLO, the role of the local government in the development of education institutions is also a matter of concern. The aim of the study is to evaluate the current understanding and implementation practice of SLO in local governments. The study clarified the understanding of SLO by responsible local government specialists and analyses the extent to which local governments are already pursuing policies in the field of education aimed at achieving common, learning-related objectives and expanding and developing learning opportunities in educational institutions. The study also highlights the extent to which local governments themselves are prepared for the successful transformation of educational institutions to become as “learning organisations”.

Keywords:

School as learning organization (SLO), introduction of the SLO approach in general and professional education in Latvia, the role of local governments.