"Armenian is the only language to speak with God"
Today the Armenian parliament continued the discussion on the draft laws on making changes in the RA laws "On Language" and "On Public Education" which was interrupted yesterday.
Yesterday RA Minister of Education and Science Armen Ashotyan informed that the article added in the RA law on "Public Education" proposes alternative, authored, experimental and international education programs.
The alternative program is an educational program that includes curricula, lesson plans and a variety of methods for organizing instruction and ensures results established by the state standard for public education.
The authored program is a type of alternative educational program which is recognized based on international standards and as an authored program or created, developed and introduced by educators or governmental bodies.
The experimental program is an alternative educational program introduced for a certain period with the purpose of ensuring a variety of ways of organizing education, as well as identification and introduction of systems for organizing education in an efficient manner.
The international education program is an alternative program that is based on an inter-governmental or inter-departmental or is implemented in ten or more foreign countries.
After discussing the above mentioned article by a first reading, the parliament organized a discussion on the legislative package by a second reading. RA Minister of Education and Science Armen Ashotyan mentioned that the package of draft laws has been modified based on proposals from the National Assembly, mass media outlets, citizens and intellectuals. According to him, the provisions stated in the legislative package correspond to the RA legislation and the logic of educational reforms and they are based on international experience.
Today NA Chairman Hovik Abrahamyan delivered a special speech in the middle of the speeches by the oppositional ARF and "Heritage" parties. He recalled that on 27 September it was proposed to revise the draft law and that today he is convinced that all doubts have been dispelled, that the draft law is not weak in legal terms and will allow more flexibility from the angle of organizing education while preserving the mother language. Abrahamyan welcomed the changes that were literately made, as well as the fact that the instruction of subjects of Armenian studies will be maintained at 11 foreign language schools and that the government will provide funding for those schools.
Secretary of "Heritage" faction Larisa Alaverdyan reminded her colleagues that "Armenian is the only language to speak with God and this road is not leading to the temple." Head of the "Heritage" faction Stepan Safaryan rhetorically asked whether the Armenian state is formed by violating laws and turning foreign language schools into a lifesaver for Armenia.
