Shavkat Mirziyoyev discuss measures for development of school education

Tashkent, The Gulf Observer: President Shavkat Mirziyoyev got acquainted with the presentation of proposals for the development of the system of preschool and school education on Monday.

The first article of the new edition of the Constitution of our country stipulates that Uzbekistan is a social state. One of the main functions of such a state is to ensure the availability of quality education. For the consistent development of this area, the Ministry of Preschool and School Education was established as part of the administrative reform. Measures are being taken to structurally optimize the system, introduce modern programs, and stimulate workers in the sector.

The presentation discussed future work in this direction.

It was noted that a new curriculum based on international experience will be introduced in the primary grades. The number of subjects in the senior classes will be reduced from 16 to 11, inter-subject and inter-class integration of curricula will be ensured with the introduction of 11 compulsory and 2 optional subjects. From the next academic year, the subject of informatics will be taught from grade 1.

Currently, 70 percent of the topics in the curriculum have no connection with everyday life. From now on, the share of practical training will be increased from 40 to 60 percent. Topics will be taught on the example of solving a specific problem, and practical lessons – in the form of project implementation.

In order to provide schools with qualified personnel, a certification system for teachers will be created. So, a teacher entering a job will have to work for 1 year as a trainee teacher and receive a certificate during this period.

Tests for assigning a qualification category to teachers will be carried out in 2 stages. The first stage is an assessment of the candidate’s knowledge in a specialized subject, the second stage is an assessment of pedagogical skills. Teachers who have received a qualification certificate may be paid an allowance of up to 70 percent of the monthly salary.

Also, in order to attract qualified teachers to kindergartens, from 1 June 2024, their wage rates will be equated to the rates applied to school teachers.

Granting general education schools the right to freely dispose of extrabudgetary funds gives them the opportunity to improve their material base and make additional payments to teachers. Now it is planned to extend this procedure to kindergartens and specialized schools.

Boards of directors consisting of the most experienced directors will be created to form a body of qualified managerial personnel in the field. From now on, school directors will be appointed to this position on the recommendation of the council through an open competition.

At the same time, the powers of the district (city) departments of the ministry to inspect the activities of schools and assess the quality of education will be terminated. Requirements for the organization of private schools will be eased.

The meeting also touched upon the issues of meaningful organization of children’s leisure, the opening of modern circles with the involvement of the private sector.

The head of state approved these proposals and gave instructions on transforming the system, improving the skills and stimulating teachers.