By Months: Liina Kersna

The speaker is a strong proponent of education reforms, specifically mentioning raising the compulsory education age to 18 and formalizing micro-qualifications. The political focus is centered on increasing the system's flexibility and highlighting future funding requirements (particularly for teachers' salaries and vocational training). The overall thrust is clearly policy- and reform-driven, underscoring the need for substantive changes.

The political position is one of strong support for the education reform concerning the formalization of micro-qualifications and micro-degrees. It is stressed that this is a long-term and necessary draft bill, preparation for which began when the speaker was still serving as minister. The focus is policy-based, concentrating on establishing quality standards (e.g., 5–30 ECTS, 50% of the volume of formal education) and creating the necessary legal framework.

The political focus is currently directed at the quality of legal education and the standards for judicial qualification in Estonia. The speaker expresses concern regarding the low pass rate (one third) of the judicial examination and is seeking a systemic explanation for this, questioning whether the issue lies in the quality of education or an excessively high standard. This stance is strongly policy-driven, focusing on analyzing the system's performance and potential reforms.

The political focus is clearly aimed at long-term strategic investments, particularly in research and development (R&D) and preventative measures within the social sphere. The speaker opposes the government's plan to cut R&D funding via a negative supplementary budget, deeming this move unwise. They emphasize that preventative measures, such as parenting programs, are significantly cheaper in the social sector than dealing with the consequences. These positions are strongly policy-driven and results-oriented.

There is strong political support for amending the education laws to create a legal basis for removing Ukrainian children who have left Estonia from school registers. This is a policy-driven stance aimed at resolving an administrative issue and freeing up school slots for Estonian children. The speaker emphasizes the significance and merit of the bill, while simultaneously criticizing the political obstruction that has stalled the process.

The political position is supportive of the ongoing education reforms, while simultaneously stressing the necessity of their careful and collaborative implementation to prevent harm to the sector. Criticism is leveled against the failure to avert the teachers' strike, an event which severely damaged the state's credibility. The focus remains on stability and fulfilling the government’s mandate, emphasizing an approach rooted in policy and core values.

The political focus centers on highlighting the inequities within the education funding system, advocating for tying the per-capita grant directly to the school to facilitate teacher salary increases. Furthermore, emphasis is placed on a broader conceptualization of research and development (R&D), specifically inquiring about the role of the social sciences and humanities in innovation. Policy development is heavily geared toward improving political mechanisms (the allocation of funding).