State Final Attestation for 4th grades: what subjects and tasks will there be
Kyiv • UNN
The State Final Attestation for 4th grades will be conducted in the linguistic-literary and mathematical educational fields. The piloting of the State Final Attestation at the primary school level will take place in the spring of 2026.
In Ukraine, the State Final Attestation (SFA) for 4th grades will be conducted in the language and literature and mathematical educational fields. In the spring of 2026, the SFA will be piloted at the primary school level. This was reported by the Ukrainian Center for Educational Quality Assessment, according to UNN.
Details
It is reported that this refers to the introduction of state final attestation in the form of external independent evaluation at the primary school level. However, for 4th-grade students, it will differ little from the SFA that was conducted until 2020 in all schools in Ukraine. In essence, it will be a comprehensive control work with interesting tasks.
"The difference for teachers will be that instead of having to develop tasks for the SFA and analyze the results, they will need to use the materials and instructions developed by the UCEQA, and after conducting the assessment, enter the students' results into special forms," the center explains.
Which subjects will be assessed during the SFA
It is reported that within the SFA, the learning achievements of 4th-grade students will be assessed in the language and literature and mathematical educational fields. The language and literature educational field covers the school subjects "Ukrainian Language and Reading."
What the tasks will be like
The UCEQA explains that the SFA tasks will have a distinctly competency-based nature, thus corresponding to the essence of the State Standard of Primary Education.
"Tasks in the language and literature educational field will involve work focused around interesting texts. Here, students will be able to show how well they understand the read text and whether they can create their own small message - structured and grammatically correct. In addition, students will be offered tasks for listening and speaking. These tasks will relate to various life situations," the UCEQA informs.
Similarly, mathematics tasks will offer students to demonstrate their mathematical skills by reflecting on typical everyday situations, such as purchasing goods or products, preparing meals, measuring certain objects, predicting results, etc.
The UCEQA notes that it is competency-based tasks that allow for taking into account the entire diversity of educational trajectories that students follow in primary school to achieve the requirements defined by the State Standard of Primary School.
Where will children take the SFA-4
All fourth-graders will take the SFA in their school, in their classroom, with their teacher. No movement of children between institutions is foreseen, as 4th-grade students are an age category of children for whom it is critically important to work in familiar conditions to show their actual knowledge.
It is also noted that fourth-graders will work in their usual mode, and the computer environment will serve for exchanging materials between the UCEQA and educational institutions.
What will happen to a child who fails the SFA
"Nothing. SFA-4 will be conducted solely for the purpose of monitoring learning achievements," emphasizes the UCEQA.
Assessment results, as indicated:
- do not determine the child's further education;
- are used only so that the child, their parents, and teachers can find out: which topics have already been well mastered and which still need to be worked on to study more confidently in the 5th grade.
That is, the SFA is not an exam, but useful feedback for further development, the center noted.
Why conduct the SFA at all
The Ukrainian Center explains that with the help of digital algorithms and artificial intelligence capabilities, stakeholders should receive concise, clearly written reports on student results that will allow:
- the school - to see the strengths and weaknesses of the educational process, to adjust teaching methods;
- teachers - to find out where children need additional support;
- parents - to get a clear picture of what the child already does well and what still needs to be worked on.
What to do with stress in children
The UCEQA emphasizes that SFA-4 has no consequences for either children or schools. The assessment tasks are designed to be interesting and manageable for students.
The only source of anxiety for children is the reactions of adults. Therefore, the UCEQA appeals to parents and teachers:
- do not scare children with complex words or abbreviations;
- it is better to explain that an interesting independent work awaits them;
- emphasize that it is important to try, but there is no need to worry if a task seems difficult.
When to expect changes
It is reported that in the spring of 2026, the SFA will be piloted at the primary school level. 10,000 4th-grade students from different regions of Ukraine in different types of schools will be involved. The purpose of this piloting will primarily be to test the procedures related to collecting assessment results through a special educational platform (SEP), which is currently being developed by IT specialists.
Mass implementation of SFA for 4th grades is possible from 2027, but the decision on this must be made after taking into account many factors, primarily the war.
Why not start deploying the SFA system with ninth-graders
The deployment of the SFA is happening sequentially - along with the progress of the New Ukrainian School. Currently, the NUS at the primary school level is already fully implemented, so the introduction of SFA-4 is a logical step that will allow obtaining annual objective data on the academic performance of all younger students, the UCEQA noted.
However, at the level of basic secondary education, the reform is still in progress. The first graduation of 9th-graders who studied under the NUS State Standard will take place in the 2026/2027 academic year. Currently, only the piloting of educational and methodological support for the entire line of 5-9 grades is underway. Therefore, the launch of SFA-9, which must be consistent with the approaches characteristic of this level of education, is possible only after the completion of the piloting.