Minsk, 27 August – Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has attended the Nationwide Conference on Teaching.

The event took place in the Palace of the Republic and featured more than 2,500 participants. The absolute majority of them were representatives of the delegations of the regions and the city of Minsk, including heads of higher educational institutions. The Nationwide Conference on Teaching was also attended by heads of state administration bodies, national public associations, representatives of the public, and MPs.

Education Minister Andrei Ivanets reported on the state and prospects of the national education system. The participants of the event will also discuss ways to improve the quality of the educational process at various levels, the interaction of universities with customers and other topical issues.

The national model of education meets not only modern, but also the future needs of the society and the state, Belarusian Education Minister Andrei Ivanets said during the Nationwide Conference on Teaching.

Aleksandr Grigoryevich [Lukashenko], at the Nationwide Conference on Teaching in August 2021 you said that the reset of the education system was a matter of national importance. This became the basis for further improvement of the national model of education, which meets not only modern, but most importantly, the future needs of the society and the state", Andrei Ivanets said.

It is the second year when secondary school graduates take a centralized exam. “Nowadays it is a clear system of taking final exams, which is combined with the university admission campaign and accepted by both parents and students. We can say that we made the right decision. Moreover, I would like to note that we see not only achievements of a student, but also the teacher's work behind them,” the minister said. “Considering the importance of training qualified personnel for the country's economy, we conduct career guidance in a new format with school administration and parents of students. Last year we opened engineering classes. We are renewing the prestige of blue-collar professions. For the second year in a row we are increasing enrollment in colleges, passing scores are growing, not lower than in higher education institutions. Almost half of ninth grade graduates get a profession in college. All conditions have been created for a conscious choice of future profession. The assignment to improve the quality of national textbooks is being fulfilled. By 1 September of this year, 24 textbooks have been reprinted, a new textbook ‘The History of Belarus in the context of world history’ has been successfully approved and will be introduced as from 1 September.”

Another important matter is the development of higher education. Andrei Ivanets recalled that the president had set the task to “shake up” all universities and check the work of each rector. “Significant work has been done, many drawbacks have been identified,” he noted. About 1,500 educational programs, plans, educational and methodical complexes have been corrected in accordance with the educational standards. Duplication of educational material has been eliminated. Mandatory job assignment for graduates is being put in order. The work of each rector has been evaluated comprehensively.

Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized that the nationwide conference on teaching should not be formal bureaucracy, because if the problems are not revealed, they will remain in place.
“Without you, teachers, there will be no one. Most importantly, there will be no health. If you do not teach it at school, there will be no doctors,” the Belarusian leader remarked.

Aleksandr Lukashenko said: “The education system is a state-forming branch of the economy. Yes, it requires serious investments. And we invest and will continue investing in it. If there are no educated and well-mannered young people in a country today, then the country will not exist tomorrow.”