Teachers of Romanian language from Gagauz autonomy, Taraclia and Balti to improve professional skills in Romania

Chisinau, 13 June /MOLDPRES/ - A group of 57 teachers of Romanian language from the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia (UTA Gagauzia), Taraclia district and the Balti municipality will participate in courses for improving the Romanian language, held in Romania. The professional training courses are organized at an initiative by the Education and Research Ministry (MEC) and the Embassy of Romania in Chisinau, with the support of the Romanian Education Ministry.    

The courses of Romanian language will be held at the Stefan cel Mare University from Suceava, West University of Timisoara and the Transylvania University from Brasov on 16 June – 10 July. In next mid-July, another 50 teachers will be able to improve their linguistic skills in Romania.   

Education and Research Minister Dan Perciun said that, through the participation in courses in Romania, the teachers would be able not only to improve the linguistic abilities, but also to discover new pedagogical ways and practices which they will be able to subsequently enforce in schools.     

„We launch an initiative on the consolidation of the professional skills of teaching the Romanian language in the areas compactly populated by national ethnic minorities, such as UTA Gagauzia, Taraclia or the Balti municipality. We have the first 57 teachers who are ready start a new stage of professional training. We rely on making this project permanent and the extension of the list of Romanian Universities, where year after year, the teachers of the Romanian language can take qualification courses and discover Romania. We are happy that the interest in the Romanian language is enhancing in the regions compactly populated by ethnic minorities. The national programme on the studying of the Romanian language for adults, launched by MEC, showed an increased interest as well, especially among the ethnic Gagauz and Bulgarians,’’ Dan Perciun said. 

Romania’s Ambassador to Moldova Cristian-Leon Turcanu said that those 57 teachers were members of the first group due to go to qualification courses organized in Romania. He also said that another two groups of teachers are to benefit from trainings this year.  

„I wish you a good journey in a travel which is not only pleasant, but also useful. You are the first group of this project, which I hope will be extended in the next year as well. This is a project initiated at the Embassy followings visits which we paid to diverse schools from Moldova as a result of discussions with teachers and headmasters of these schools, thus learning the existing need for you to improve your knowledge in the field where you work. I am pleasant to say you that we work on the initiation of a new project backed by the Education Ministry from Bucharest, which is to address not only the teachers of Romanian language and literature, but also the teachers who teach other disciplines in the Romanian language,’’ the ambassador noted.     

According to MEC’s data, about 900 teachers of Romanian who teach in 255 schools where subjects are taught in other languages are employed in Moldova’s education system. To support these teachers, the Ministry undertakes more measures. Thus, the framework plan for primary, gymnasium and lyceum education for the 2024-2025 academic year, approved by MEC, provides for the inclusion of an additional class of studying the Romanian language in the schools where the subjects are taught in other languages, starting from the first form till the 12th one. The concept of multilingual education will also contribute to this important approach of the ministry. The concept sees the gradual switch from the studying of the basic disciplines in the Romanian language. At the same time, the ministry annually allocates funds for the editing of textbooks of Romanian language meant for the pupils speaking other languages.          

In 2023, with MEC’s support, 17,400 textbooks of Romanian language and literature for the fifth and seventh forms were edited. In early 2024, 28,100 manuals were printed for the pupils of the eighth, ninth, tenth and 12th forms. Also, classes with teaching in the Romanian language are opened at some education institutions, with the help of local authorities and MEC. An example in this respect is the Mihail Ceachir Theoretical Lyceum from Ceadar-Lunga, which, besides the already existing four first classes, it will open the first class of the fifth form, thus ensuring the continuation of the studying of the Romanian language in this school.