Jõhvi will be a new technology school based on self-study

In the autumn of 2021, a new technology school offering practical in-service training for adults will be opened in Jõhvi, which will help reduce the growing demand for software developers. The school will be located in Jõhvi in ​​order to diversify the educational landscape of Ida-Virumaa and offer new development opportunities to local people and the region as a whole. 

The rapid digitalisation of the economy increasingly requires programming skills, among other modern skills, to stay competitive, but today there is a lack of thousands of information technology specialists in Estonia, and this gap is growing every year, the school's founders admit. The founders and leaders of Jõhvi Technology School are Taavet Hinrikus, Marek Kiisa, Mari-Liis Kitter, Maarja Pehk, Merlin Seeman, Rainer Sternfeld, Ede Tamkivi and Martin Villig.

According to Marek Kiisa, one of the initiators of the idea of ​​the technology school, the teaching methodology of the new school is based on the internationally developed program 01Edu . It is a 2-year intensive study, where each student moves forward at his own pace, solving the tasks set by the system, which connect theory and practice.

The teaching at Jõhvi Technology School is largely based on group work and the emphasis is on developing problem-solving skills. Learning is 100% practical and project-based, built in a playful way and creates a completely personal learning experience for the learner. Curriculum areas are databases, networks, software applications and interfaces, and user experience design.

To start the school, support was received from the round of entrepreneurship and diversification of people's work skills established by the State Support Services Center and the Ministry of Finance in Ida-Viru County. In addition, dozens of individuals and several well-known companies and organizations such as TransferWise, SEB, LHV, Superangel, Bolt, Astrec Data, Pipedrive, the Founders' Association, the Good Deed Education Foundation and Startup Estonia have given their consent to support the establishment of the school.

According to the founders of the school, the Jõhvi project is an excellent example of cooperation between the state and the private sector in solving an important problem, where, in addition to significant state funding, private donors contribute more than 700,000 euros. The school team is also looking for new supporters to provide an even better learning experience for students with limited financial opportunities.

All people aged 18 and over who have at least a basic education and who successfully pass a one-month test period can enter Jõhvi Technology School. No previous programming experience or knowledge required. Studying at the school is free for the student. Admission to the school will begin in the spring of 2021 and will admit 200 students a year.

Pictured are the founders of the school (from left to right) Maarja Pehk, Rainer Sternfeld, Merlin Seeman, Marek Kiisa, Mari-Liis Kitter, Taavet Hinrikus and Ede Tamkivi on the roof of the future school building in Jõhvi, missing Martin Villig