The main role of the Cyprus Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth (MOECSY) is to develop and implement educational policy in line with the government’s declared vision. To this end, the MOECSY is required to develop strategic goals and programs to fulfill the government’s vision, to prepare annual operational plans, to monitor and assess progress towards achieving the goals, and to support educational institutions in implementing the programs. In addition, the MOECSY is responsible for research related to education, sport and youth, for the continuing professional development of teachers and school principals, and for the inspection of schools. Some of MOECSY’s activities include the preparation of the educational budget, the drafting of new laws regarding education, the monitoring of the implementation of the existing ones, the development of the curriculum and others. Specifically, the Directorate of General Secondary Education (DGSE) is responsible for both public and private secondary schools. The DGSE has a wide range of responsibilities such as: monitoring and evaluation of public and private schools, monitoring of the implementation of the regulations for the schools, inspection of teaching staff, educational planning and teachers’ placement in schools, monitoring and evaluation of the State Educational Institutes, monitoring of the Counseling and Vocational Education Service, provision of training to students and adults, providing adult education and second chance programs, etc.
Relevant information:
STEM education and digital transformation are key priorities among the newly developed policies of the DGSE. MOECSY has a strong expertise in technology-based learning and STEM education. The digital transformation of education promoted by the MOECSY is determined by two pillars: (a) growth and use of digital technologies and (b) the development of digital skills and abilities (skills and competences) of education community. The continuous professional development of teachers is offered systemically and is part of the school reality. Also, the enrichment of the curricula with indicators related to development of skills and abilities of students in digital technologies is promoted. In addition, the MOECSY has a strong expertise and experience related to Didactics of Science (Biology) including Health and Environmental Education in secondary schools, with regards to the development of the curriculum, the preparation of teaching materials, the teachers’ professional development and training and the inspection of schools’ staff.
