Engel Fattakhov: “2013 has been a significant year for the education sector”

Tatarstan’s education minister, Engel Fattakhov, on Wednesday met with journalists, to sum up the outgoing year’s results.
The expiring year was significant for the education sector, said E. Fattakhov, since new federal and republican laws on education had taken effect.
Pre-school education, according to them, had been defined as stage one of comprehensive education. Speaking of kindergartens, the minister said that teachers there were tasked to teach the two state languages. All the pre-school institutions had been supplied with new language education kits and will prospectively be supplied with laptop computers and projection equipment. Besides, about 29 million roubles will next year be allocated for teaching staff training.
The second bilingual kindergarten competition will next year be held.
Speaking of high school education, E. Fattakhov said the year 2013-2014 had been declared the year of mathematics. Math classrooms were planned to be set up at Tatarstan’s basic schools, numbering 500.
Each municipality would next year open 50 superiority schools, to serve as basic grounds to implement new technologies, said the minister.
A total of 450 million roubles would be allocated for vocational training, he said. Besides, Tatarstan in 2013 won a federal grant and funds will in 2014-2015 be allocated for machine building related training.
The meeting at the Education Ministry included a ceremony of awarding winners of a journalism competition, aimed to identify best pieces related to education in Tatarstan in 2013. The winners, including Tatar-inform reporters, were presented certificates and valuable gifts.