Two weeks are left before the beginning of the 2012 – 2013 academic year. More than 4.5 million children begin to learn, and about five hundred thousand of them are first graders. And what else is waiting in schools with the coming of the new academic year? Leading experts of the Ministry of Public Education dwell upon this.

“This year, 14 new schools put into operation, all of them were built in rural areas in new residential areas. 187 schools will open their doors after the renovation, and other 162 – after complete overhaul,” said the managing director Nodir Muratov. “All of them are equipped with state-of-the-art furniture and educational equipments of domestic production.”

“From September, learning will be organized on the updated curricula with the wider use of electronic educational resources,” says head of the department Abdurashid Hundibaev. “Thanks to the implementation of a set of measures the number of schools connected to ZiyoNET has reached 9403. In addition, schools were provided with new domestic electronic tutorials, training videos and virtual laboratories.”

“Schools also received textbooks for students and teachers’ guides of 182 names with a circulation of more than 11 million copies,” noted the head of department on publication of new generation textbooks of the Ministry of Public Education Abduhamid Yermekbayev. “According to the tradition, full set of textbooks was published only for first graders. Also this year, textbooks for second, third and fifth grades need in updating have also been republished.

Conditions are getting improved for the development of talents and gaining useful skills in out-of-school education institutions, which are attended by schoolchildren in their spare time.”

“This year, another 58 children’s music and art schools are to receive new and reconstructed buildings, as well as necessary training equipments,” says the managing director Qosim Otamirzaev. - Thus, all 175 institutions in which the works carried out on strengthening material and technical base within the program aimed at developing children’s music and art schools in 2009-2014, will have all conditions for learning various kinds of music and art, in accordance with the established regulations.”

“About one hundred thousand schoolchildren could attend 4,298 study groups functioning at the Barkamol Avlod Children’s Creativity Centers,” tells the managing director Hikmatulla Daminov. “This year the program on strengthening material-technical base of Barkamol Avlod centers gets its continuation. Thus, the ranks of 30 centers that last year received reconstructed buildings will be joined with another 51 ones, renovated this year. By 2014, it is planned to complete the renovation and equipping of buildings of all existing centers throughout the country – it is 211 institutions.”

“This year, 15 children’s sport objects are to be built, as well as 10 reconstructed. Modern gyms will be built at 71 schools. Water sports will also be developed. 16 swimming pools at general schools and children’s sports institutions are to be reconstructed,” said the head of department Akromhoja Shodihojaev. “Schoolchildren would also observe the changes that take place this year in children’s sports objects within the Order of the President of Uzbekistan on upgrading the existing tools and refurbishment.

Alongside with that, all 9,763 general schools, 301 music and art schools, 211 Barkamol Avlod Children’s Creativity Centers, and more than 150 children’s sports facilities of the republic are to be fully ready for the new 2012-13 academic year.” (Source: Uzbekistan Today newspaper)