Numerous educational reforms have been initiated in Serbia since 2000. The aim of this study was to examine education policymaking in Serbia in order to provide policymakers and stakeholders with recommendations on how to minimize pitfalls and increase success of future educational endeavors. In the study, we utilized the education policy cycle heuristic to analyze formation, implementation, and evaluation of three major education policies in Serbia: in-service training of teachers (INSET), school development planning (SDP), and inclusive education (IE). Examining three reforms simultaneously enabled us to identify major characteristics of Serbian policymaking, regardless of the reform content. We also relied on educational change literature, so that we could assess complex contexts of reforms. Finally, considering the importance of school staff during implementation, we examined education policymaking in Serbia through the eyes of over 1,800 teachers, counselors, and principals. The results point out to dissatisfaction of school staff with all aspects of the policymaking in Serbia and with the social and education context. Reforms appear to be undertaken in a similar pattern across different reforms. The findings imply that a thorough examination of both the policymaking in Serbia and communication, organization, and administration within the education system itself is in order.

Having in mind that student achievement and interest in subject are some of the most important educational goals, and that quality of teaching is the crucial schooling factor influencing them, we examined the contribution of teacher-level variables from the Dynamic model of educational effectiveness to student achievement and interest in mathematics and biology. The representative sample included 5476 students from 125 elementary schools in Serbia and 5021 parents. Data on student and teacher variables were collected through student and parent questionnaires, while data on prior and current achievement was comprised from students' TIMSS 2011 scores and national examination results, respectively. Data was analyzed using multilevel modeling. The results indicate that teacher factors from the Dynamic model did not impact student achievement in mathematics and biology, but that they influenced student interest in both subjects. We offer recommendations for educational policy and directions for further research.

Improving the quality of in-service teacher training is a very topical issue in educational policies of a number of countries. This segment of the system was also subject to considerable changes in Serbia in the past ten years. The changes brought about certain improvements, but also opened up numerous dilemmas and issues. This paper is aimed at acquiring an insight into the opinions of different participants on the ways of improving the quality of in-service teacher training. The sample included three groups of respondents: the employees in education bureaucracy and experts in the field of education (N=34), principals (N=50) and expert associates from primary schools (N=93). We developed a questionnaire for the purposes of this research, using open-ended questions to collect respondents? suggestions on improving the quality of in-service teacher training. The content analysis method was used to process the collected data. Research results point to three directions of the necessary changes: (1) better governing of the system of in-service teacher training, (2) providing funding and other forms of support, and (3) higher flexibility of in-service teacher training and implementation of the acquired knowledge. The range and quality of respondents? suggestions demonstrate the need to take into account different perspectives in overcoming the difficulties in the system and practice of in-service teacher training. Consequently, the obtained results should be observed as a contribution to creating a more purposeful and efficient system of in-service teacher training.

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Value added (VA) is one of the measures to assess the quality of school work; when calculating this value, the individual characteristics of students are statistically equalised in order to focus on the factors that are under the jurisdiction of the educational system. The basic value of VA is seen in providing as fair information as possible about the contribution of teachers and / or schools to student achievement. In this paper, we investigate the value added of schools in Serbia. We have set the following research goals: (1) examining the contribution of students? individual characteristics on student achievement in seven subjects, (2) establishing the connection between the student achievement and the expected VA, (3) examining the representation of school groups selected by the expected student achievement and VA and (4) determining the variability of VA of subjects in a particular school. The study was conducted on the sample of 125 elementary schools, with participation of 5065 8th grade students and 5021 parents of these students. Data on student variables were collected through a questionnaire, and from student achievement from the 2011 TIMSS and 2015 final exam databases. Hierarchical modelling was used for the analyses. The results, among other things, show that the expected student achievement and VA are unrelated for most schools, that most schools have both negative VA and below-average expected achievement, and that VA varies between school subjects. The limitations of this study are also given, as well as the implications that the obtained data have on educational policy in Serbia. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. 451-03-68/2020-14/200140 and Grant no. 451-03-68/2020-14/200163]