The process for joining the Araratian Baccalaureate (AB) high school program officially kicked off on December 20 – an epic milestone for the entire Ayb community! Schools in Armenian regions are entitled to apply to offer this Armenian-language and internationally recognized educational program to their students.
To this end, the Ayb Educational Foundation and the Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia held a joint press conference to announce the launch of the process. Members of the AB candidate school selection committee Davit Sahakyan, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Armenia, Fr. Mesrop Aramian, Director of the National Program for Educational Excellence, and Vasken Yacoubian, AGBU Central Board member, AGBU Armenia President, delivered speeches at the press conference.
Fr. Mesrop Aramian gave an opening speech focusing on AB’s major achievements.
“Today AB enjoys the international recognition of such leading educational institutions as Cambridge International Examinations and UK NARIC, the major agency for the recognition and comparison of international qualifications and skills. And recently, the Armenian Government passed a decision on allowing to roll out the Araratian Baccalaureate in general education schools in Armenia.
The second important achievement is the Teacher Development Program which has been developed along with the University College London (UCL) Institute of Education (IoE).
And last but not least, now Armenia has internationally recognized exams, which grant Armenian students the chance to take international exams in Armenian and, based on their results, get admitted to top universities around the world or be granted credits in those universities.
With these three key components in place, the AB is now ready to expand to schools in Armenia,” said Fr. Mesrop.
Speaking about joining the AB, Davit Sahakyan underscored that in this phase, the program targets at schools in Armenian regions that offer the high school program, are motivated to develop and stand ready to take all necessary efforts and steps toward that development path.”
According to him, once the application forms are submitted, the Ayb Educational Foundation will start working with candidate schools in terms of the teacher development program and the schools’ institutional development. The first classes to offer the AB program are expected to open as early as September 1, 2018, and education in those classes will be free of charge.
In his turn, AGBU Armenia President Vasken Yacoubian spoke about the pivotal role of a top-notch internationally recognized Armenian-language educational program for the Diaspora. “It is not an achievement for just the Ayb Educational Foundation or the Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia, but rather for the entire Armenian nation, as it will make Armenia attractive for those Diaspora students that wish to get education in the Armenian language and in a safe environment, where they will be reared up with the Armenian spirit.”
