In April, the Ministry of Education sent a draft regulation for coordination. This regulation adds many new requirements for general education schools. For example, school classes should start at nine o'clock, not eight. Also, the schoolyard must have the grass mowed and the walls painted with non-glossy paint. School leaders do not support these changes. They believe the regulation needs improvement and clearer wording.
School leaders said that the regulation is legally inconsistent. For example, every room must have artificial lighting, but the air movement speed in the rooms must remain below 0.21 meters per second. School leaders find that the regulation does not leave them enough freedom to decide how to organize school matters.
School leaders also ask who will pay for the changes. For example, a lot of money is needed to make the ventilation comply with the requirements. They also ask whether they need permission if they want to start the school day at eight o'clock.
The shift of the start time of school classes to nine o'clock could be applied from September 1, 2026. This would give schools more time to think about their schedules. School leaders offer a compromise that the start of classes could be at 8:30.
School leaders also criticize the requirements set for the rooms. For example, every classroom must have hot and cold water supply. However, in older school buildings, there is only cold water supply. Changing this requires a lot of money.
In conclusion, school leaders believe that the regulation adds many new tasks for them. For example, they must organize first aid training for staff and document environmental risks. School leaders wish that more time than just the summer would be given to implement the changes.