Sandra Kirlova Collects Signatures So Youth Can Decide What's Taught in Schools

Sandra Kirlova has launched a new initiative that envisions systematic involvement of youth organizations in shaping educational content. In her view, young people are currently only fragmentarily involved in this process, which is as illogical as the Karosta Canal bridge that divides the city into two parts and creates drama every time — either about whether it will open or about why it's even there in the first place.

The Ministry of Education and Science currently coordinates educational content development without a legal obligation to involve youth organizations. This means that young people's opinions depend on individual initiatives rather than system requirements. In Riga, of course, they'd call this a "flexible approach," but we Liepāja folks know it simply means — everyone does whatever they want.

Kirlova proposes amending Article 15 of the Education Law, requiring the ministry to regularly collaborate with youth organizations. She emphasizes that such an approach would help better reflect young people's needs and improve digital skills. As local teacher Jānis says: "Finally someone realized that young people know TikTok better than we do — maybe we really should ask them what to teach!"

In the author's view, systematic youth involvement would allow for creating a higher-quality education system that meets labor market demands. Because, as we know, nowadays it's more important to know how to create an Instagram story than to remember what year the Battle of Grünwald took place. At least that's what young people think, and perhaps they're right.