In Ukraine, they plan to restore the system of state final certification of schoolchildren with several improvements
In Ukraine, it is planned to restore the system of state final certification (DPA) with several improvements, this new testing model will cover students of the fourth and ninth grades, which will allow assessing their knowledge according to new standards.
According to the information published on the official page of the Ukrainian Center for the Evaluation of the Quality of Education (UCEQA), the first pilot testing for fourth-grade students took place in the spring of 2024. The revealed results showed that the current assessment model needs to be adjusted. In view of this, in 2025 it is planned to carry out advanced testing, which will allow to improve approaches to evaluation and develop a more accurate testing model. Pilot testing for ninth graders is scheduled to begin in 2026.
As noted in the UTSOYAO, in 2025, the second stage of piloting of DPA for fourth-grade students will take place. The results of this testing will not affect students’ annual grades, but will serve to improve assessment approaches and develop a testing model that will ensure full coverage of mandatory learning outcomes.
It is expected that computer-based testing will be the most likely format for ninth-graders, the results of which will be available not only to teachers, but also to the students themselves. Knowledge in such areas as language, literature, mathematics, history, foreign languages, civics and natural sciences will be assessed. However, computer-based testing for ninth graders is associated with certain challenges, such as the quality of technology in educational institutions and ensuring academic integrity during testing.
Currently, the UTSOYAO is actively working on the creation of a technical task for the software that will be used by educational institutions during testing within the DPA for ninth grades.
We would like to remind you that the state final certification (SCA) is a procedure for verifying the degree to which the level of education of graduates meets state standards. In 2022, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted a draft law that provided for the abolition of the DPA for graduates of the 2022-2023 academic year. However, on March 9, 2023, the People’s Deputies decided to restore the DPA from 2024. Compulsory subjects were determined for students: Ukrainian language, mathematics, history of Ukraine and a foreign language (except Russian).
We will remind that according to the plan of the Ministry of Education and Science, within the framework of the “Offline School” initiative, 300,000 Ukrainian children are expected to return to full-time education.
