The updating of the aims and principles of education, the definition of compulsory schooling, the recognition of knowledge acquired through different channels and the strengthening of protections for the rights of children and adolescents are among the main contents of the draft Education Law that will be submitted to the National Assembly of People's Power in December.

The legislation is the result of a drafting process involving more than 25 agencies, organizations, institutions and study centers, explained Deputy Minister of Education Marlen Triana Mederos during an interview with Granma, in which she detailed the background, objectives and next steps of the legislative proposal.

She explained that, since 2023, a temporary working group was reconfigured to support the drafting of the document, with the participation of agencies of the Central State Administration, the Supreme Court and study centers, including the Central Institute of Pedagogical Sciences, the Center for Youth Studies and the University of Havana.

Workers have also been represented through the union, while the Ministries of Education (Mined) and Higher Education (MES) have coordinated the work.

She noted that the version available for consultation is number 19, reflecting the work carried out to build a norm that responds to the current needs of the education system and articulates provisions related to the training, rights and responsibilities of the different actors.

A Legislative Process with Several Precedents

The drafting of the bill has its antecedents in 2019, when Cuba approved a new Constitution. Since then, the development of other norms has affected the timeline of the Education Law, due to the need to harmonize its contents with provisions that also regulate aspects linked to teaching and the training of individuals.

Among them, Triana Mederos mentioned the Family Code, the Code on Children, Adolescents and Youth, the Labor Code, the Sports Law and the Public Health Law, among others.

Clarifying Rights, Duties and Compulsory Education

Among the problems identified during the preparation of the proposal are the outdated nature of the aims, principles and objectives of education; insufficient articulation and coherence among training agencies regarding modalities, structures and functions; ambiguity about the start and end of compulsory education; and imprecision in rights and duties.

One of the fundamental changes proposed is to define the period of compulsory schooling.

"This law comes to define that education in Cuba will be compulsory from the sixth year of life of early childhood, which is the preschool grade, through the ninth grade," Triana Mederos stated.

The norm also seeks to harmonize the rights, duties and responsibilities related to education with what is established in the Family Code and the Code on Children, Adolescents and Youth.

In that sense, it incorporates issues related to participation, the best interests of the minor and protection against violence, aspects that are part of the updating of the legal framework that regulates educational processes.

The intention is to have provisions that allow for greater articulation of the system and more precise protection of rights in educational institutions.

Recognizing Knowledge Acquired Through Different Channels

Among the novelties of the draft stands out the recognition and certification of knowledge acquired through different channels, including outside formal teaching processes.

The deputy minister gave the example that a person who has learned a trade self-taught, such as welding, and can demonstrate their knowledge, will be able to receive a qualification certifying it.

"If you know how to be a welder self-taught and you demonstrate it, you can receive a qualification," she said.

This possibility broadens the channels for recognizing people's knowledge and skills.

The draft also incorporates contents related to research, digital transformation and cybersecurity, as well as the strengthening of ties between the university and society.

The digital update includes the critical and ethical use of artificial intelligence, with attention to security and data protection. These elements are integrated into the proposal as part of the issues that must be considered in the development of educational processes.

Regarding financing, the norm endorses Economic and Social Transformation 67, which allows diversifying postgraduate, training and care educational services.

"We continue to be budgeted, but we will be able to make use of complementary financing to continue favoring educational processes," Triana Mederos affirmed.

Specialized Consultation and Tour of the Country

The drafting of the bill has included different moments of consultation. The working group met between 2023 and 2025 and held a specialized consultation with training agencies, including Mined, MES, and the Ministries of Public Health, the Interior, the Revolutionary Armed Forces and Culture.

More recently, a videoconference was held with university rectors and opinions were commissioned from several university institutions across the country.

A tour of all provinces has been conceived, with plenary sessions of representatives covering the eastern, central and western regions.

Among the criteria gathered during the process are the need to regulate and supervise educational activities carried out by non-state management forms, as well as attention to tutors and greater participation in decisions related to education.

The importance of guaranteeing inclusion through resources, support, accessibility and reasonable accommodations has also been raised, along with strengthening preparation for employment and the links between training and the needs of each territory.

These issues are part of the elements considered in building the proposal, which remains open to the exchange of criteria before its presentation to the legislative body.

With the draft, the Ministry of Education aspires to have a more articulated system that strengthens the protection of rights in institutions, has concrete support for inclusion and recognizes learning acquired through different channels.

The certification of knowledge and the possibility of verifying educational quality also figure among the expected results of the future law.

For Triana Mederos, the scope of the norm transcends the functioning of educational institutions, since its effects can contribute to the development of society and the territories.

"Necessarily, if it is going to contribute to the development of education, this law will also be able to contribute to the development of the country and the territories," she affirmed.

The draft is available on the Ministry of Education's website as part of a process that seeks to continue gathering criteria; to do so, readers may write to ley.educacion@mined.gob.cu.