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Transparency and Accountability in the Education Sector in Eastern European and Central Asia Countries. Indra Dedze . Education Support Program (ESP) Open Society Institute (OSI) Oktober 6. utca 12 H-1051 Budapest, Hungary e-mail idedze@osi.hu Presented at IWGE Meeting June 12 – 15, Rome.
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Transparency and Accountability in the Education Sector in Eastern European and Central Asia Countries Indra Dedze Education Support Program (ESP) Open Society Institute (OSI) Oktober 6. utca 12 H-1051 Budapest, Hungarye-mail idedze@osi.hu Presented at IWGE Meeting June 12 – 15, Rome
Challenges in Higher Education • Increase of the role and demand for higher education, • Establishing an European area of higher education by 2010 (Bologna process), • Development of private higher education institutions and their competitiveness with the state universities, • Access to higher education, study loans, study fees Increasing the role and demand of HE.
Services • Supporting Fraud: • Plagiarism: • Term paper writing • Selling ready made term papers • Custom written term papers for fee from closed subscribers only pages • Offers ghostwriter online or in person, etc. • Selling illegal textbooks • Producing fake credentials • False high school transcripts • Fake letters of recommendation • Fake admission letters • Preventing Fraud: Software and the Internet sites that is trying to match texts from course papers, highlighting the parts of the text that might be copied
Russia • The level of corruption reached 30 billion rubles (about 1 billion USD) in 2003 which are spent on bribes to enter universities or to pay fees to entrance courses that are “requested” by entrance committees • This amount on average increases 7-10% per year • To enter elite universities, the level of bribes increases 15-20% in 2004 • 70% of parents admit that there is a need to pay for entrance in school/ university, but about 60% of parents are able to pay, • Children from wealthy families enter more prestigious specialties – journalists, architects, but children from low income families enter less prestigious specialties – teachers. Source: Rosijskaja Gazeta16.08.2005
Latvia: • About 27% students admitted that cheating takes place during the exams • Most often used forms of cheating: • Crib sheets – 72% • Finding out exam questions prior exam – 7% • Talking with peers during exam – 6% • Only 10% feel guilty after cheating during the exam Source: Riga Stradins University, 2004
Macedonia: • Demand for bribes, discrimination by gender • Arrogance of professors during the exams • Appearance of nepotism in HE – employment of close relatives Source: Student Survey in Macedonia, 2005
The amount of bribe is determined by the following factors: • The prestige of university • Gender of the applicant (males need to pay up to 30% more, as they could avoid to be called to serve the army) • Wealth of parents (wealthy families could be demanded to pay double high bribe) • The place of living (entrants from other CIS countries need to pay double) • Relationship of parents of the applicant and the bribe taker (“friends” pay less) Source: журнала «Экономика России: ХХI век», 2005
The number of students in Kyrgyzstan admits that their university is bribable: • 68,0% - Kyrgyz Technical University • 67,5% - Kyrgyz Agrarian University • 64,9% - National State University • 62,0% - Bishkek State University • 59,6%- Medicine Academy • 59,0% - Kyrgyz State University of Construction and Architecture • 51,0% - Kyrgyz Slavonic University (Russian) • 49,5% - International University in Kyrgyzstan • 34,3% - Kyrgyz Sate physical culture and sport Academy • 5,1% - American University-Central Asia Source: Independent Ebert Fund, 2006
Corrupt situations occur in following situations: • 90% duringtheexaminations • 6% receiving a document from the university administration (dean or rector) • 2% to get a “right” topic for the course or diploma paper or get to know the question of the exam ahead of the time • 2% to transfer to another department, course or specialty Source: Independent Ebert Fund, 2006
The reasons of corruption in Higher Education Georgia • Extremely low quality of teaching and learning, • Poverty among majority of teachers and professors, • Lack of technical equipment and facilities (including libraries) • Insufficient professional skills among trained specialists • Disjunction between the higher educational system and labor market, • High level of unemployment among young professionals, • Low standards of moral values and norms of conduct, • Proliferation of corruption in all structural levels of the system, • Drawbacks in existing legislation on Education Source: Rostiashvili, K. Corruption in Higher Education system of Georgia, 2004
Problems with transparency and accountability in the system of education – Georgia: • Overloaded school programs push parents to pay or use personal contacts to get a child through the school. This leads to the practice that a student perceives that the only success in the life is to bribe the official. • Good schools contribute to corruption by using personal contacts (for example by letting students to crib the answers for the test). • Preparing and lobbying textbook for approval • Corruption in vocational education. • Price of entrance exams ranges from 200 to 1500 • Corruption in higher education, • Unclear financial allocation norms, misappropriated school funds (1/6 of Georgian education budget in 2002 was stolen) • Money collected from parents (study conducted in December 2002 by IPF fellow) • Few formal rules regarding school management Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Albania: • Low teacher salaries force them to engage in private tutoring, often their own students. Parents report threats if they do not hire a teacher, their child will not get a good grade • Appointments of school directors are politicized, no clear rules. Teachers and principals are hired on the basis of connections, social group affiliations, not professional qualifications. • Poor and rural students suffer under conditions of tight budget constrains. • School buildings repair and maintenance, • Supply and distribution of textbooks, • Examination and diplomas • Funding and information system Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Armenia: • The government has developed Anti-Corruption Strategy and timetable for its implementation • The main source of corruption it the system of examination: - school leaving exams, - the university entrance exams, - post graduate entrance exams. Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Ukraine: • Low teacher salaries leads to private tutoring practice • Appointment of school principals might be based on Nepotism, • Production of textbooks, • Funding policy • Examinations and diplomas – sharp increase of private institutions lead to decrease of quality, decrease of access of low income students. • Corruption at entrance exams. A survey carried out in 2002 demonstrated that the examination system is imperfect and needs to be restructured. Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Kazakhstan: • Lack of transparency in the flow of financial resources • Lack of transparency in the collection and usage of fees paid by parents • The problems with equity and transparency in access raised by new national testing system for university entrance Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Tajikistan: • The weakness of existing monitoring system • The lack of transparency in allocation bonuses for teachers • The collection of illegal fees at pre-university level • The centralization of process of administration of exam organization, • Distortions in the implementation of payment mechanisms for producing school textbook, which involved huge amount of international aid. Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Kyrgyzstan: • Lack of transparency in the flow of financial resources • The impact of teacher absenteeism • The collection of illegal fees at pre-university level • The lack of objectivity in pupil’s assessment • The problems with equity and transparency in access raised by new national testing system for university entrance • The promotion of “academic honesty” in various NGO programs Source: ESP OSI, 2004
Organizing “receptions” for school inspectors, presents to local governments to get benefits for the school, private gain Contributing to classroom supplies presents to principals, private tutoring, private gain Parental Committee Contributing to school/ classroom maintenance, security guards, presents to teachers, buying out students from last grades in secondary school, etc. Graduating school (good marks) Transferring between levels Hypothetical Financial Flows of Parental InformalPayments to Education (PIPES) Principals Teachers Parents Entering first grade Entering university Grades 1 Primary schooling 9 10 Secondary schooling