The Hungarian government will implement a modification to regulations regarding national competency assessments starting March 1, which will allow higher grading levels to influence students' overall scores.

These grades will be factored into both year-end marks and points available for high school entrance exams.

Parents and educators have expressed their discontent over the proposed changes, particularly given the tight timeline for preparation ahead of the first competency tests scheduled for March 24, 2023. Miklós György, a representative of the Szülői Hang community, highlighted that students will face significant pressure, potentially affecting their future educational opportunities if they perform poorly on these assessments.

Critics describe the changes as detrimental to children, with György characterizing the regulation as a step towards undermining high school education.

Concerns have been raised regarding the timing of the online survey seeking parents' opinions through the KRÉTA education system, wherein feedback was collected by February 16, leading to the proposal being completed just two days later.

Reports from the media indicate that the Ministry of Interior (BM) is drafting regulations to incorporate competency assessment results into significant grading criteria for relevant subjects, with two grades being awarded based on the assessments.

Outcomes from the tests conducted between March and May will influence student placements for the subsequent 2025/2026 academic year.

The BM has justified these measures as a way to enhance the significance of competency assessments among students.

However, specifics concerning how grades will be assigned remain unclear, prompting further criticism from parents' organizations.

György suggests that the ongoing centralization of education in Hungary is advancing if the government lobbies for a role in student grading.

Totyik Tamás, president of the Teachers' Union, pointed out that competency assessments were not designed for student grading purposes, calling such an application inappropriate.

He argued that if competency measures evolve into grading criteria, they would cease to serve their intended pedagogical function and instead resemble final examinations.

Education researcher Péter Radó described the use of centralized assessments for evaluating student performance as nonsensical in a recent interview, reinforcing concerns over inaccuracies and their potential impact on students' futures.

The Civil Közoktatási Platform, comprising over fifty professional organizations, echoed these viewpoints, stating that while competency assessments employ sophisticated measurement tools, the resulting inaccuracies at individual student levels are considerable and imposing such stakes on students would be inherently unjust.

Additionally, proposed changes to preschool education indicate that starting September 2023, nurseries with at least three groups will be mandated to create separate classes for children reaching school age.

This measure is purportedly aimed at ensuring a smooth transition between preschool and school.

The Civil Közoktatási Platform also criticized these reforms, suggesting that they may represent an attempt to shift the responsibility for educational failures, stemming from stricter eligibility procedures for primary education enacted in 2020, onto preschools.