From Futog and Vršac to Kragujevac and Niš - in mid-April 2022, as part of the piloting of the state matura, demonstrations of practical exams were held as part of the vocational matura. In 24 schools in seven cities, 39 practical exams were demonstrated. The host schools were selected in cooperation with the Institute for the Advancement of Education, and each demonstration was accompanied by teachers of vocational subjects in the educational profiles included in the second pilot of the state matriculation exam.
Demonstrations of practical exams were organised to introduce teachers who have not yet taught in outcome-oriented programmes to the critical elements in organising and taking the practical exam. Advisory teams from the Centre for Vocational and Adult Education (Institute for Improvement of Education) joined the demonstration teams consisting of members of the working groups to prepare examination materials and project trainers.
The practical part of the exam within the state matura will not differ from the practical part of the vocational matura, which is already being conducted for modernised educational profiles. The list of work tasks will be formed by each school for its students during the exam period, based on the list of combinations of work tasks. The school is also obliged to provide conditions for taking the exam - to organise taking exams in school classrooms and workshops or in other rooms that simulate jobs for the profession for which the student was educated. Student work is assessed based on a framework for evaluating professional competencies, containing evaluation elements and expected assessment results.
Within each task, students' competence is checked when it comes to planning and organisation of work, safety at work, environmental protection, attitude towards work and means of work and the need to keep records.
- Assessment is conducted by the school examination commission, based on defined criteria. It consists of two teachers of professional subjects for the educational profile and a representative of employers, an expert in the field to the work task relates. The work tasks are composed in such a way as to enable the verification of students' ability to perform specific tasks and determine their readiness to be included in the world of work. The observation technique assesses practical performance, and all individual expected results or indicators are evaluated - explains Svetlana Mladenović, demonstrator of practical exams and member of the working group for the preparation of exam materials.
The practical part of the professional exam is to check the professional competencies prescribed by the qualification standard, i.e. the curriculum. It is about the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the job within the occupation for which the students were educated.
- Demonstrating practical exams enabled us to review and professionally evaluate practical tasks prepared by working groups, improve assessment frameworks, and finalise manuals for each pilot exam - says Gojko Banović, an expert on the State Matura Project.
Demonstrations of practical exams were attended by about 630 teachers from more than 300 vocational high schools. Judging by the questions and comments, most of the doubts have been resolved, and schools should be able to organise the practical part of the vocational matura, which is, in some aspects, more demanding and complex than taking any other exam.