Monsters of Education: How Reformers Turned the Educational Process into an Unsuccessful Experiment on Children
Ukrainian education has long turned into a field for endless reforms that change the rules of the game faster than students and teachers have time to get used to them. Textbooks where historical events are confused and mathematical problems have no solution are not an anecdote, but the reality of Ukrainian schools. And when you add to this an opaque evaluation system, which often demotivates students more than any two, it becomes obvious: the educational process increasingly resembles an experiment. An experiment that tests not methods, but the patience of students, parents and teachers.
Absurd typos in modern school textbooks
A quality textbook is an important tool in the educational process. It not only contains facts, but also forms in students the ability to analyze, think critically and apply knowledge in practice. Well-structured material, clarity and clear language contribute to easier assimilation of the topic and motivation to study. In addition, modern textbooks often contain interactive elements, which makes learning more interesting and effective. It should be so, but in practice we have many textbooks not only with incorrect data, but sometimes even with very absurd spellings.
It is enough to mention the scandalous case with a school textbook on the Ukrainian language for the 7th grade of the “Litera LTD” publishing house, where a map of Ukraine without Crimea was depicted. Publishing house then explained this phenomenon is a technical problem, as a result of which the contour of the Crimea merged with the background, which led to its absence in the final version of the image. Then the culprits were found and punished. According to representatives of the publishing house, the chief designer was fired, and everyone involved in the publication of the book was reprimanded with fines. But for some reason, everyone forgot about the fact that it was the experts of the Ministry of Education and Culture who recommended this version of the textbook for use in educational institutions.
Even more shocking was the case when a school textbook on the Ukrainian language for the 10th grade, authored by Oleksandr Avramenko from the Gramota publishing house, contained an electronic link leading to a porn site. And what is most impressive is the fact that it was not adults who noticed this terrible mistake, but children. After all, one of the schoolchildren is on the TikTok social network and told in his video that when you click on the link, you can get to a resource with pornographic content. Then those involved explained this phenomenon as hacker intervention.
It is even more interesting when Ukrainian schoolchildren open a textbook “Defense of the Fatherland” for 10th grade, observed photos of military personnel in Russian uniforms. And this is not a historical chapter about armed conflicts, but an illustration of the topic of equipping Ukrainian defenders.
Over the past five years, real gems could be found in textbooks: from “treatment” of oncology with soda to mathematical problems about drinking alcohol. In the Ukrainian language textbook, eighth-graders were told about the non-existent language melodiousness competition, and Kyiv, according to some “sources”, was founded as far back as the 19th century. And while students are trying not to get lost between parallels and meridians, which were mixed up in the textbook for the 7th grade of NUSH, the equator boldly passes through China and Turkey. In the 6th grade geography textbook by Pestushka and Uvarova, they decided to illustrate the section “Earth on a plan and map” with a map from the well-known computer game Skyrim. If the first two cases can be attributed to technical errors, then all other misprints were probably made due to excessive creativity of the authors. But the most interesting thing is that no one noticed this during the examination. As they say, it would be funny if it weren’t so sad, because instead of quality knowledge, our children receive textbooks that themselves need to be corrected. Due to such errors, they had to be reissued or issued separate official clarifications from the Ministry of Education and Science (MES). Obviously, all this points to a serious problem in the quality and expertise of the authors, as well as the modern system of checking textbooks.
Starting in 2026, the Ministry of Education and Science (MES) plans to introduce a new approach to verifying textbook compliance with educational literature requirements. In addition to peer review, where experts will be randomly assigned, artificial intelligence (AI) will be involved in the process to help identify errors and inaccuracies. According to experts from the Ministry of Education and Culture, thanks to computer algorithms, the subjective views of reviewers will no longer affect the evaluation of the textbook. In addition, the system will be able to be effective due to the processing of large volumes of data and their verification using the analysis of authoritative sources of information.
However, do not forget that in order for the system to function effectively, it must be programmed correctly. Artificial intelligence will carry out the verification based on the algorithms of compliance of the textbook with certain criteria. But the presence of such a large number of obvious factual inaccuracies, incorrect historical interpretations and typographical errors in Ukrainian textbooks indicates significant gaps not only in the examination itself, but also in the competence of specialists working on the creation of educational literature.
It is obvious that the Ministry of Education has undertaken to control the creation of textbooks, but it seems that this mission is beyond its power. School textbooks are not just books, but guaranteed income for the state budget. You publish an art book – it still needs to be sold. You publish a school textbook – it will be bought one hundred percent. And if it works, then why change anything. And it is worth changing, by the way. For example, to introduce a system of grants for the creation of modern textbooks. And this should be done not only by authors, but also by teachers, designers, psychologists, and intellectual property specialists. Because the textbook is not just a text with random pictures. All illustrations must be of high quality and licensed, and the text must be checked not only by experts, but also by children. After all, what is the point of a textbook that corresponds to the program, but is not understood by the student?
The problem is not only in mistakes, but also in the fact that our textbooks often lack the slightest desire to interest the student. Third-graders are offered scientific terms that they cannot understand, and educational materials are presented in a dry and boring manner. Every year, the educational community chooses the textbooks that should be used to teach schoolchildren. Every year, publishing houses reprint existing editions and quickly print new ones. The covers and the volume of pages change, but the content does not improve. Many textbooks are printed in flagrant violation of sanitary requirements.
Let’s recall history textbooks for fifth graders. Well, it is unlikely that a 10-year-old child will remember all the material that is laid out, like a scientific journal, with many texts, not highlighted in any font and with almost no illustrations. And what can we say about foreign language textbooks, where there is not a page, but a whole set of words, as if taken straight from the dictionary, and in such a quantity that the students physically cannot remember. There are almost no practical exercises. And what is not a lesson is a new set of words. Previously, the textbook, before getting into the hands of students, went through a long and thorough way of checking. It was almost a special operation, where each stage had its own clear role and responsible persons, which is why they were high-quality and effective. At the same time, children in foreign countries are still studying under many of them.
Initially, the text was prepared by the authors. These were not just random teachers or scientists, but recognized specialists in their fields. When the manuscript was ready, he went for examination. Here reviewers came into play – teachers, methodologists, scientists who carefully analyzed the material: whether it corresponds to the program, whether it contains no errors, whether the information is correctly presented. But that was just the beginning. Then the textbook went through approval – it was tested in schools. Teachers and students checked in practice how convenient it is to work with the material, whether everything is clear, whether there are no logical failures or unclear explanations. According to the results of the approval, the authors could make corrections before the book is approved. After that, there was another line of defense – editing and proofreading.
Linguists and philologists cleaned the text of grammatical and stylistic errors, checked that there were no typographical “blunders”. And when this stage was passed, the textbook went to the printing house. Of course, even then there were inaccuracies, but they were the rare exception, not the norm. Control was multi-level, and the quality of the textbook was determined by specialists, not officials or random experts. The system was not perfect, but at least it ensured that no absurd mistakes or outright false information would appear in school books.
In most developed countries, textbooks are not treated as a pile of pages, but as serious educational tools that are subject to strict requirements. There are no absurd mistakes, incorrect formulas or historical failures here, because quality control is multi-level and uncompromising.
The first rule is compliance with the program and scientific accuracy. In the USA, Germany, Finland or France, books are examined at the manuscript level. The authors are teachers with experience in schools and universities, and each topic is checked for compliance with current scientific knowledge. No alternative facts or outdated theories.
The second is testing in practice. The textbook is not printed until it is tested in schools. Teachers and students use trial versions, after which they collect feedback: whether the presented material is clear, whether the structure is logical, whether there are no difficulties in mastering the topics. If something is wrong, the book is sent back for revision.
The third is printing quality. In Europe and the USA, textbooks are not printed on paper similar to newspaper, but on strong, high-quality material so that they can survive more than one school year. Moreover, most books have electronic versions with interactive exercises, videos and simulations.
The fourth is correctness and inclusiveness. No one will allow sexist, racist or discriminatory statements to be made in the textbook. Even illustrations are scrutinized to see if they reflect the diversity of society or promote stereotypes.
The fifth is constant updating. In some countries, such as Singapore, textbooks are updated every 3-5 years to reflect new discoveries, changes in society, and new teaching methods. This is not a set of archaic texts, but modern, living material. As a result, students do not receive a bunch of false statements and confusing explanations, but clear, high-quality and relevant knowledge. Because education is not a place for experiments on children, but a system that should work without failures.
An evaluation system that demotivates and causes mistrust
But not only low-quality textbooks affect the quality of Ukrainian schoolchildren’s knowledge. The Ukrainian school increasingly resembles a testing ground for dubious reforms. Changes are pouring in one after another, and if once the focus was on the child, now it is the process for the sake of the process. For years, the Ministry of Education and Science (MES) has been producing new rules that look as if they are tested not in laboratory conditions, but directly on children. The result is schools where the textbooks are full of mistakes and the grading system is not only confusing but demotivating.
The introduction of a new assessment system for students in grades 5-9, which for the first time since 2011 changes the approach to knowledge assessment, caused a loud outcry. Teachers and parents lost patience and criticized these innovations. Changing the approach to assessing students’ knowledge does not improve the quality of education, but rather complicates the work of teachers due to excessive bureaucracy. In response, teachers created petition with a call to cancel the reform, which quickly gained the necessary 25,000 signatures. This forced the government to react, and the Ministry of Education and Science officially issued its own respond. According to experts from the Ministry of Education and Culture, the evaluation system based on Bloom’s taxonomy (gradual complication of tasks from simple assimilation of facts to their independent analysis – ed.) is modern and progressive and will provide an opportunity to more effectively evaluate all types of student activities.
In the pursuit of modernity and progress, the officials forgot about the most important thing – about the participants of the educational process themselves. No one questioned whether such an assessment contributes to the improvement of knowledge, whether the teacher will have the time and energy to fill in all the tables with many criteria. Is it possible that artificial intelligence will be involved here as well?
How students are evaluated abroad and why there is a problem with this in Ukraine
In the civilized world, assessment has long become a full-fledged system that really works for the development of the child. Teachers do not arrange a lottery, do not bet “just in case”, and certainly do not humiliate students with points that do not explain anything. At the same time, evaluation in Ukraine is increasingly reminiscent of chaos, where scores are of little use and criteria change more often than education ministers. In developed countries, the main goal of assessment is not to punish the student, but to help him understand his strengths and weaknesses. In the USA, Canada, Finland, Germany and other countries, there is a system that works for the benefit of the student, not for the tick. In the same Finland, the student is not subjected to tests, after which he receives a dry number. The teacher gives a detailed comment: what went well, what should be tightened, and how to do it. No “I got a 6 – figure out why”.
In Great Britain they use the letter system (A, B, C, etc.), and in the USA they also add a percentage scale. It is important that there the assessment embodies a part of a large system of motivation. In Sweden, children up to the age of 12 are not graded at all, because they believe that you should study for knowledge, not for numbers. But even when grades do appear, they work as feedback, not as a punishment mechanism.
In Ukraine, assessments are either a punitive tool or a meaningless formalism. A point is given simply “for effort” or vice versa – for every small mistake, the result is underestimated. Often, evaluation does not have clear criteria at all: in one school, 8 is “good”, and in another, “so-so”. Sometimes, it even reaches the point of absurdity, when a student can know the subject, but because of the subjectivity of the teacher, get a low grade. Or vice versa – not to study, but to “beg” for a high score. All this demotivates children, because they do not understand what to fight for.
The next drop was the reform of evaluation in primary classes, where a level system was introduced: “has significant success”, “has achievements”, “needs improvement”. It looked modern on paper, but in practice it was confusing. Parents do not understand what these levels mean, and teachers complain that the system is complicated and inconvenient. All this was the reason for the creation of a petition with the demand to return a clear evaluation system. But taking into account the response of the Ministry of Education and Culture, this petition seems like a voice crying in the wilderness. After all, the agency claims that after the approval of the new assessment in 145 schools in the 2023-2024 academic year, “no comments were received regarding the increase in the bureaucratic burden.” There were no comments, and more and more educators are leaving the profession, because their voice is not taken into account during the reformation of the educational process. Perhaps it is time for the officials of the Ministry of Education and Culture to stop turning a blind eye to obvious indications that the reforms are not yielding positive results.
It is obvious that Ukrainian education has found itself in a closed circle of experiments, which are supposed to improve the system, but in reality only add to the chaos. Errors in textbooks have become commonplace, and the grading system is another source of confusion and mistrust. As a result, those who should acquire knowledge are forced not to learn, but to adapt to constant changes and shortcomings.
The main problem is not in the reforms themselves, but in how and by whom they are implemented. As for who, just go to the page of the Minister of Education and Science and read the comments of parents and teachers – everything will immediately become clear. Imitation of changes, lack of professionalism of “reformers”, responsibility and neglect of the real needs of students and teachers lead to the fact that instead of quality education, children receive a set of random solutions that do not work. If this endless series of failed experiments is not stopped, the Ukrainian school risks turning into a system where learning loses its meaning and knowledge becomes secondary. And so far, we are watching how the education system is gradually being destroyed.
