PARTISANSHIP DESTROYS EDUCATION

Lragir.am
13 June 06

In his first news conference Levon Mkrtichyan, the minister of
education and culture, proposed and called for changing the attitude
towards the sphere of education.

Minister Levon Mkrtichyan proposes several steps. First, “stop
approaching our ministry and sphere as a mere system intended for
organizing different examinations because the problems we are facing
are much more important and serious and are related to much more
vital interests than the entrance or graduation exams of our children.”

Levon Mkrtichyan suggests using the term “upgrading” instead of
“educational reform.” Especially that the education of Soviet Armenia
complied with the standards of the time. “The quality of our education
was very high,” he said. Simply in today’s changing world education
has also changed, and the problem of upgrading has emerged “to comply
with the international standards in this sphere.” We have to upgrade
to comply with the European education, states Levon Mkrtichyan, adding
that the quality of education in Armenia has declined. If formerly we
were on the same level with the European educational system, at least
with the countries of Eastern Europe, currently we are compared with
Turkey, Costa Rica and Central Asia.

Knowing that there are members of different political parties in the
ministry, Levon Mkrtichyan, ARF, reminds that this sphere “will operate
as an integrated professional system.” The minister would not like his
children or everyone else’s children to attend a Republican, ARF or
Orinats Yerkir school. “It would ruin us,” said Levon Mkrtichyan. Levon
Mkrtichyan’s call was addressed to all the workers of education,
“if the directors of schools support some ideas but they do not want
to affiliate with the party, let them not to in order not to appear
in such a stupid situation.” However, quite recently the Republican
Party has launched a campaign of involving teachers in the party,
and only three days ago the Bargavach Hayastan Party used the Last
Bell ceremony at schools for political advertisement. In answer to
this remark Levon Mkrtichyan added that his call against partisanship
in education is addressed to statesmen and political parties as well.