KHACHATUR ABOVYAN ARMENIAN STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY

The yearend board meeting of Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU) chaired by Armenian Prime Minister and Chairman of the ASPU Board Tigran Sargsyan was held at

 the University on December 24.

 

 

After approving the agenda of the meeting, ASPU Rector Ruben Mirzakhanyan presented an annual report of the University's activities in 2013 and the budget estimate for 2014.

 

 

The rector pointed out the new approaches applied by the Chairs of Foreign Language Teaching, Informatics, Chess and Sports, and said ‘in the current year the University again attached great importance to research activities.’ 

 

 

Mr. Mirzakhanyan added that they had reviewed academic curricula at all Chairs, quadrupled and developed new principle for foreign-language teaching in all specialities. Three reading rooms equipped with modern technologies have been opened at the University in 1,5 years which enables visitors to use electronic literature. They also plan to renovate in the near future the psychology research laboratory opened in 1957. 

 

 

With regard to the internationalization process, Ruben Mirzakhanyan said the ongoing cooperation with the University of Oulu (Finland), a leading teacher-training university in Europe, and the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two universities in the field of education will help adopt new approaches in the organization of teaching practices. “The development of the education system and high school in the country is determined by the process of internationalization which is a long but realistic process,” he stressed.  

 

 

The ASPU Rector said that in the near future a number of subjects will be taught in the Russian language thereby enabling citizens of the Russian Federation to study at Armenian State Pedagogical University. He added that the intergovernmental agreements signed between the two countries and recognition of diplomas of the two countries will further contribute to the process. 

 

 

Speaking about the structure and number of the ASPU staff, Mr. Mirzakhanyan said lecturers make up the majority of employees; their recruitment process will hereinafter be carried out on a competitive basis.

 

 

With regard to the interconnection between the gross income and wage fund, Ruben Mirzakhanyan said that as instructed by the Prime Minister, lecturers’ salaries were raised by

 40% as of January 1, 2013.

 

 

The rector noted that tuition fees were not raised in 2013 and will remain the same in the new academic year.

 

 

Further on, Anahit Bakhshyan, Deputy Director of the National Institute of Education, a member of the ASPU Board, asked questions regarding the report. 

 

 

She offered to open academic laboratories and train teachers of educational institutions at the University. 

 

 

Ruben Mirzakhanyan said in reply that the Project Implementation Unit has permitted the University to open laboratories in different subjects, which will operate at the University’s Basic School as well.  

 

 

Answering inquiries about the University’s graduate employment statistics, the ASPU Rector said part of the best graduates is employed at the University to support the administrative staff. There is still a problem connected with graduate placement, especially in schools, but the University already has offers: recently the director of the Tchaikovsky Music School turned to the Pedagogical University asking to send teachers to work at their school.  

 

 

Anahit Bakhshyan confessed that serious steps are being taken at the University to better organize the process of education.

 

 

Members of the ASPU Board, Professors Aelita Dolukhanyan and Lavrenti Barseghyan, took the floor to comment on the report.

 

 

They spoke with satisfaction about the reforms carried out at the University in 2013. 

 

The Board assessed the University’s activities in 2013 as satisfactory and approved the budget estimates for 2014.