The situation in Austria
In Austria, the competent Federal Minister can carry out school experiments at certain public schools to test special educational or school organisational measures. Each school experiment is based on a plan which sets out the objective of the experiment, and the details of how it will be carried out and how long it will last. The duration of a school experiment cannot be longer than the number of grades at the school where the experiment is being conducted plus two school years. A one-time extension by two additional school years is allowed. After the duration specified in the school experiment plan has ended, the school experiment is transferred to the regular school system based on the achievement of the objectives. Before a school experiment is carried out at a school, the school forum, the school community committee, or the school cluster advisory board must be consulted. School experiments are prescribed by the Federal Minister or approved at private schools. However, the school partners have the right to express an opinion during the hearing when school experiments are given approval. In addition, at least two thirds of the legal guardians or pupils as well as the teachers of each school or class where the school experiment is to be carried out must agree. School experiments can only be carried out in up to 5% of the classes in schools.
At Austrian academic upper secondary schools, pilot projects for the further development of lower secondary education can be conducted to delay a decision on the educational career path. They should be set up by the competent Federal Minister upon application by the Directorate of Education and include all lower secondary schools. The competent Federal Minister may, based on the application of the Directorate of Education, issue the model plans regulating the details of the implementation of the application. The model plans are announced in the schools concerned by posting for one month, and are then kept by school management. Pupils and guardians are allowed to inspect them on request. Each pilot scheme for the individualisation of educational careers needs to relate to clearly defined school locations, and covers a period of four years. Model experiments can only be set up at a general secondary school if the guardians of at least two-thirds of the pupils and at least two-thirds of the teachers of the school concerned have agreed to the model experiment.