What law is this
The Law on the Foundations of the Education System (ZOSOV) sets the general rules for preschool, primary and secondary education in Serbia: how schools operate, participants’ rights and duties, school bodies and teachers’ status. It does not replace the separate primary- and secondary-education laws; it provides their framework.
What applies now
Under the current text, a school parent council has one parent or legal-guardian representative from each class; its representatives take part in proposing school-board members and considering school programmes, conditions and safety. A student parliament operates in the final two primary grades and throughout secondary school: it has two representatives from each class and may make proposals to the school. A teacher’s licence can now be revoked only through procedures set by law, including cases involving serious breaches and judicial review.
Why it became disputed
N1 says it saw a new draft amendment. According to the outlet, a teacher who does not resume classes after a principal’s warning could lose a licence; the draft would also cap parent councils at eight members in primary schools and 15 in secondary schools. N1’s interviewees also criticise a narrower space for informal student organising. This is an account of the draft’s contents and its critics’ views, not confirmed text of enacted law.
Current status
As of August 1, 2026, there is no basis to treat these changes as law in force: N1 explicitly calls the document a draft, and the ministry and representative unions did not comment to the outlet. The ministry’s page for legislation in preparation has a separate draft PDF based on a 2021 version of the law; that PDF does not allow a comparison with the new text described by N1.
Why it matters
For teachers, the question is whether the link between a suspension of classes, a principal’s action and a professional licence would change. For parents and pupils, representation is at stake: the current model is tied to every class, while the limits reported by N1 would be fixed for the whole school. Until the draft is published, transitional rules, exceptions and avenues of appeal cannot be assessed reliably.
The next open question
The decisive evidence will be the published draft and its official route: public consultation, submission to the government or parliament, and then a published enacted law. Only that text can show which provisions change, how the sanction is worded and whether the law’s procedural safeguards remain.