What's going on in Estonia

How does education in Estonia differ from other countries in Europe?
Education is often strongly linked to the history of a country .The history of education as a formal institution, marked by the emergence of schools, originated in Estonia back in the 13th century when Estonia was being conquered by German and Danish feudal lords. From that period on, until the collapse of the Soviet regime in the 1990s, education and being educated was the highest priority in Estonia. The first university in Estonia, the University of Tartu, was founded already in 1632.  By the end of the 18th century, roughly two-thirds of all peasants in Estonia could read and, according to an 1881 Population Census, 90% of Estonians were literate. From 1940-1990 (Soviet occupation), possibilities were limited for developing independent educational policies in Estonia and schools struggled hard to maintain instruction in Estonian. Depoliticised, child-centred humanistic education regained its status at the end of the 1980s. In 1997, the Tiger Leap Foundation (responsible for the national strategy of ICT in education) was established and has become the trademark for innovation in education in Estonia. 

How is ICT being implemented in Estonia?
After the Tiger Leap Foundation was established in Estonia to manage the development of ICT in general education, the Tiger Leap Program was created (1997-2000). It then turned into the Tiger Leap Plus Program (2001-2005) and finally into the Learning Tiger (2006-2009). Thanks to these initiatives, all Estonian schools have: a broadband connection, constant in-service ICT methodology training for teachers at different levels, and the possibility for teachers to use VLEs (virtual learning environments) to create electronic study materials.  The Foundation’s mission is also to support innovative school projects, including international projects with an ICT component.

Now in its third year, how has eTwinning impacted Estonia so far?
The Action has become more popular than we initially expected. The number of registered schools is 417 out of the total number of 600 and 52 of them have eTwinning projects with another European school.  The impact is twofold; one is raising the awareness of a multicultural Europe and the other is gaining competencies in terms of active teaching methods and ICT-supported project work.  In addition, teachers active in eTwinning projects are often more appreciated by their students and headmasters.

What kind of projects are Estonian schools most often interested in?
Estonian schools are most often interested in projects that have cultural, historical and language learning components in them.  The largest cluster of students active in eTwinning projects is from the 7-16 age group.

Are there special eTwinning activities going on in Estonia?
We have motivated our teachers and school teams by carrying out different competitions: a project idea competition and an international project competition.  In summer and winter schools, teachers are introduced to different ICT tools, such as blogging, wikis, online testing, etc., in connection with eTwinning tools. We have also published an eTwinning manual. Finally, all in-service teacher training courses across Estonia include a module on international projects, where teachers study eTwinning tools.

Do you have any advice for teachers who wish to twin up with schools in Estonia?
My main advice is: be brave and do not lose hope. Estonians may seem to be hard to get to know but once you get acquainted they are sincere, honest and have a good sense of humour. And you can always contact the Estonian NSS: we are happy to assist you in twining up with an Estonian school!

Are you interested in getting involved in an eTwinning project with a school in Estonia?
 

Learn more about Estonia by having a look at information on its national school structure and eTwinning projects.

• Education system
• General information (Wikipedia)
• eTwinning projects
• National Support Service

Web Editor: Borgos Kari Published: 24.09.2008 Last changed: 12.08.2009