The Intercultural Education Standard 10 Years Later – Challenges and Opportunities for Assessing Intercultural Competence

The Bulgarian education system has made significant progress in implementing intercultural education. For more than several decades, this modern perspective has been part of the Bulgarian education system, but it was only less than 10 years ago sustainably imposed through a standard. The introduced educational standard requires the development of specific methods and tools for assessing intercultural competence. The aim of this paper is to present the results of a study based on a methodological tools for studying the intercultural competence of students graduating from basic education. Specifically, the results of a survey with a questionnaire to establish the levels of knowledge and understanding of basic concepts in the context of the standard for intercultural education for the secondary stage are presented, as well as an expert assessment of the knowledge of seventh-graders of basic concepts in the composition of intercultural competence. The study covered 765 students in the 7th grade from all over the country, as well as 36 class teachers of the same students. The comparative analysis conducted provides information about the level of knowledge and understanding of basic concepts by students, as well as the extent to which their class teachers are engaged in this process.