site.btaSkills, AI and Education Reform Across Europe Highlighted at Green Transition Forum

Bulgaria was among the first countries to develop its own vision for working with artificial intelligence (AI). "We provided guidance to teachers on how to use AI. Those guidelines also outlined the risks they may encounter in their work," Deputy Education and Science Minister Tanya Pancheva said on Friday during an education panel on the fifth and last day of the Green Transition Forum 6.0 in Sofia.

"Our understanding is that artificial intelligence can be a tool that adds value to the learning process, but at its core stands the teacher, with human reasoning, creativity and critical judgement," Pancheva said.

She noted that another important priority is digitization and the digital transformation of school education.

"A major project linked to the introduction of modern technologies is now beginning through the Digital Backpack initiative. It is extremely important for us that it is implemented effectively so that our students can receive technological tools that support them in the learning process," Tanya Pancheva explained.

The Education and Science Ministry has consistently worked in recent years to streamline educational content, but today society has reached a stage that requires a much deeper conceptual change. "This involves preserving the strengths of the Bulgarian education system while placing greater emphasis on functional literacy, critical thinking and the development of competencies," Pancheva said.

"We are now preparing the next stage under a project focused on competencies. It will establish the framework for new curricula, with support from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) through its expertise and the experience of European countries. Curriculum reform will be a longer-term process, but we also have measures that are already being implemented," the Deputy Education Minister explained.

Starting from the 2026/2027 school year, a new list of professions will be introduced in vocational education.

European Parliament Vice-President Victor Negrescu said in a video address that many politicians speak about education but hesitate when it comes to funding it. People must be prepared, and investment in education and skills is essential, he said. "We need to adapt and ensure that EU citizens have the skills needed for the future, enabling them to identify fake news, find good jobs and earn better wages," Negrescu said.

According to him, Bulgaria and Romania have high rates of early school leaving. "We must offer better opportunities to talented students so that they remain here, but we must also avoid losing entire generations of young people," he urged.

During the discussion, Barbara Nowacka, Poland's Education Minister, spoke about reforms in her country. "Today Poland is in a very strong economic position, but we achieved this through hard work and have become the world's 20th-largest economy. Everything began with education and our teachers. We teach mathematics using highly effective methods, although we are a large country. We will establish 12,000 artificial intelligence laboratories and provide training for 100,000 teachers. Curricula must adapt to changes in the world. In education, it is sometimes useful to learn from someone else's failures, and from September 2026 we will begin implementing our reforms. We first assessed what types of graduates we needed in order to move higher in international rankings," Minister Nowacka said.

Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills at the OECD and founder of the international PISA study, joined the discussion online. He said that Bulgaria has schools and universities that are highly advanced, but also others whose results are not as strong. In Asia, the effects of poverty are not reflected in students' results, Schleicher noted.

Speaking about artificial intelligence, he said that Europe should not fear AI because it will not become human. Europe has much more work to do in terms of inclusion. In Europe, we may be educating young people about the past rather than the future. More than half of 15-year-olds want to work in offices, but many of those jobs are likely to disappear, Schleicher said.

He noted that there is no widespread trend in Europe towards lifelong upskilling, even though learning has already become an integral part of work. Estonia, Poland and northern Portugal have managed to make progress in this area.

"Students today must be curious and possess social skills and resilience, but these are learned through practice. Bulgarian students can reproduce what they have learned, but they must also be able to function in the real world. We should give young people greater freedom, and vocational schools should not be viewed as the last option for students," Schleicher said.

Antoaneta Angelova-Krasteva, Director for Innovation, Digital Education and International Cooperation at the European Commission's Directorate-General for Education and Culture, insisted that high-quality education should be ensured for all children in the European Union, and civic education is also needed.

According to her, creative thinking and media literacy should be encouraged. Teaching methods and curricula need to change, and technology should be used to improve learning outcomes, Antoaneta Angelova-Krasteva noted.

The discussion also featured Kostadin Kostadinov, a member of the governing board of Stara Zagora's Trakia University, who explained how students are being prepared to work with new technologies.

The Green Transition Forum 6.0 was organized by the internet platform Dir.bg and the Bulgarian-Greek Chamber of Commerce and Industry. BTA was among the forum's media partners.