More than 30% of the regional budget funds will be directed to the education sector of the Vitebsk region
The August meeting in Vitebsk was attended by the Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee Nikolai Sherstnev, the head of the Vitebsk region's parliamentary corps Vladimir Terentyev, and the First Deputy Minister of Education of the Republic of Belarus Irina Starovoitova.
Before the conference, guests familiarized themselves with the achievements of the participants of the republican professional skills competition WorldSkills Belarus. The exhibition was organized on the site in front of the "Vitebsk" concert hall.
PRACTITIONERS FOR THE ECONOMY
The head of the region, Nikolai Sherstnev, has repeatedly emphasized that the region's economy needs workers, practitioners, not theorists. Therefore, special attention was paid to personnel training at the pedagogical conference. The head of the Regional Executive Committee set the task to develop and implement a regional program for early career guidance for schoolchildren and the popularization of blue-collar professions in grades 7-9 by January 1, 2019, to more actively involve students in the life of enterprises – potential employers, to give the best students the opportunity to work with modern expensive equipment, and to improve the system of ordering training for skilled workers in accordance with the requirements of the main sectors of the economy.
BECOME LEADERS
– Today, we can confidently say that two years ago we chose the right direction for the development of the region's education sector, – Nikolai Sherstnev emphasized, addressing the educators. – We have mobilized the education system as a whole and each institution individually to achieve specific results. We have created an optimal network of educational institutions, optimized expenses, and are promptly improving the material and technical base. The main thing is to give children the opportunity to study in modern schools and gymnasiums that meet the requirements of the 21st century. The results of the work are already visible to both educators and parents. But it is necessary to reach every educational institution, and by 2021, "Schools of the Future" should appear in all districts, which will become centers for promoting innovation in education.
There are 350 educational institutions in the Vitebsk region, including 23 gymnasiums, a lyceum, and 2 cadet schools.
According to the chairman of the regional executive committee, the current successes are not a reason for educators to be complacent.
– Improving individual indicators is good, but we need to strive to be among the best in the republic in all positions, not to be content with fourth or fifth place, – Nikolai Sherstnev said. – Cases of injury, especially in preschool institutions, are unacceptable. The demand for this will be strict, and the response will be immediate.
Nikolai Nikolaevich noted that much is being done in the region for the material support of educators.
– Only a highly qualified teacher, mentor, and educator can provide quality education, – he emphasized. – From the regional budget, 52 thousand rubles have been allocated this year to support talented educators and gifted children, and 250 thousand rubles for the development of the material and technical base of educational institutions. Every labor must be adequately compensated. The Vitebsk region ranks second in the republic in terms of the average salary of educators, and there are resources for its growth.
First Deputy Minister of Education of the Republic of Belarus Irina Starovoitova noted that the authorities see not only the advantages but also the disadvantages in the region's education system, the correction of which will provide opportunities for improvement.
– Education is a priority line of state policy, – emphasized Irina Anatolyevna. – Its basic principles are accessibility, quality, and health preservation. The Belarusian education system as a whole is ready for the new academic year. But we should not rest on our laurels. The Vitebsk region has potential.
Moving Up
— The main topic of the conference is the development of teachers' professional competencies, – said Dmitry Khoma, Head of the Main Department for Education of the Regional Executive Committee. – A teacher is an example and an indicator of the work of the entire education system. The more professionally prepared and motivated they are, the better results the sphere shows as a whole. And today we can confidently say that we are developing consistently, moving upwards. According to the results of the republican subject Olympiads, our students received 14 more diplomas than last year, and the region moved from sixth to fourth place in this indicator. At the republican competition of student research papers, schoolchildren from the Vitebsk region received 20 diplomas and took second place.
According to Dmitry Khoma, the main tasks for the new academic year are to improve the quality of education, form human resources, and create a modern material and technical base.
The Cost of the Issue
More than 30% of the regional budget, or 571.4 million rubles, will be invested in the education sector of the Vitebsk region this year. In recent years, allocations for the preparation of educational institutions and the renewal of the material and technical base have significantly increased. If in 2016 the amount was 8 million, now it is more than 30 million rubles.
As Dmitry Khoma noted, this became possible thanks to the support of the regional executive committee, the regional council of deputies, and the coordinated work of the city and district executive committees to save budget funds.
– Over the past two years, the number of educational institutions in the region as a whole has been optimized, and the enrollment in schools and kindergartens, especially in rural areas, has increased, – informed Dmitry Khoma. – All saved funds are used to improve the material and technical base of educational institutions and to acquire modern equipment.
For future first-graders
Over several years, 800 new places have been created in preschool institutions in the Vitebsk region, and three new kindergartens have been put into operation – in Novopolotsk, Orsha, and Glubokoye. In the new academic year, a second kindergarten will open in the Bilevo microdistrict in Vitebsk. All five-year-old children have the opportunity to prepare for school with qualified teachers. For several years, the rate of childhood illness in the region has been below the national average.
In the new academic year, 450 young specialists will begin working in the educational institutions of the Vitebsk region, and more than 12,000 teachers in total ensure the educational process. 80% of them have first and highest qualification categories.
What's new at school?
In the 2018-2019 academic year, no cardinal changes are expected, but there are some innovations. In grades 5-11, unsatisfactory marks are now "1" and "2". However, they promise not to make students repeat the year with these marks. In grades 5-7, a foreign language can be studied at an advanced level, making the curriculum of gymnasiums and secondary schools practically identical. In grades 5-8, the subject "Art (National and World Culture)" will be studied, and in grades 2-7, "Fundamentals of Life Safety". In some educational institutions, agroclasses will be opened at the request of students and their parents. In basic 10th grades (except for gymnasiums), labor training (vocational training) is introduced with a workload of 6 hours per week. There are some other changes, but they relate directly to the educational process.