Hungary announces reforms to teacher training and professional development

Hungarian Minister of Education Judit Lannert has announced significant changes to teacher training and professional development. The reforms include abolishing the mandatory National Core Curriculum exam for trainees and eliminating so-called content renewal training.

Under the new plan, educational institutions will be permitted to organize their own internal training, with funding provided to maintainers based on teacher numbers. The ministry intends to reintroduce market-based, elective training and expand the system to include vocational and nursery workers. A social consultation process will be launched to gather feedback from institutions, professional organizations, and higher education entities.

The Democratic Union of Teachers (PDSZ) has expressed mixed reactions. While the union views the end of the National Service University’s exclusive role and the increased flexibility for institutional training as positive, it criticized the proposed credit limits. Specifically, the PDSZ noted that the 15-credit limit for internal training is disproportionately low, representing only 12.5 percent of the required 120 credits in a five-year cycle.