Reform of the first triad in primary schools in the Republic of Srpska from the teachers’ perspective

Abstract

The transition to nine-year primary education in the Republika Srpska was a major pedagogical challenge imposed by the previous state of schools. The grand changes compared to the previous education system included different conditions, equipment, didactic tools, work methods, and toward children. Triads represent a unity, which continuously affects children’s development through various forms of systematic learning. The transition to the new elementary school system required significantly different conditions and work organization starting from the first grade. In the first triad, the planning and implementation of teaching content are now based on different principles. Teachers need to plan activities that are mostly playbased, monitor children’s motivation, activities, and school achievements, and foster developmental changes, with a healthy dose of self-criticism and a desire to further progress and improve (Spasojević, 2006). As teachers are the bearers of innovation in the teaching practice (Vujačić, Đević & Stanišić, 2017), it is important to examine their assessments of the success and quality of the implemented reform in the first triad of elementary school.