Koolkondades

Koolkondades is a plural Estonian term describing school learning communities or similar groupings within a school. In Estonian education, koolkond means a social and educational unit within a school, typically comprising a group of students and a supervising teacher. Depending on the school, a koolkond may be organized around a homeroom, a grade level, or a project-based group, and it can function as a basic unit for routines, mentoring, and collaborative learning. The primary aim of koolkond in many schools is to foster a sense of belonging, support peer learning, and facilitate student participation in school life beyond subject teaching.

A koolkond typically includes a relatively small group of students, commonly ranging from about 10 to 30, and one or more educators or mentors. Regular activities may include daily check-ins, shared study tasks, group projects, extracurricular activities, and participation in school-wide events. The structure of koolkondades can influence classroom dynamics, student well-being, and the school climate, especially in terms of inclusion and democratic participation.

In policy and practice, the koolkond model is one of several approaches used to organize learning communities. Schools may implement mentoring programs, peer tutoring, or cross-grade collaboration under this concept. Because terminology and implementation differ between schools and regions, the exact features of koolkondades can vary accordingly.