CC BY
71
LIFELONG EDUCATION IN UZBEKISTAN
M. N. Tsoy
Education cannot be stereotypically attributed to an area of departmental or sectoral policy, but should be approached as a nationwide, strategically important issue [1]. The initial significance of education for socio-economic development is defined at the governmental level: the system of lifelong education in Uzbekistan has all the conditions for the renovation of both traditional and innovative forms of education, developing life-long learning activities and becoming an integral part of everyday human life. Let us consider the stages of lifelong learning, established in Uzbekistan.
Preschool education is the initial stage of lifelong learning. It is carried out in different forms such as preschool education, family education, weekend schools, private pre-school educational and family tutorship. Kindergartens create the conditions for spiritual and moral upbringing of children, receiving qualified advice on pre-school training of children and systematic training at school.
Uzbekistan has implemented a unique system of universal 12-year secondary education: after 9 years of training in secondary school, students are trained in specialized professional colleges and academic lyceums in the next three years. The system of general secondary education provides all citizens of the Republic of Uzbekistan with the opportunity to implement the constitutional right for free secondary education within the state standards.
School education and upbringing: 9-year education at secondary school or school with detailed study of a subject. Secondary schools are free. They are divided into primary (3-4 years) and secondary (5 years) school and are a key element of lifelong learning, in which efficiency is measured by the extent to which it ensures the readiness of an individual for post-school education.
Secondary special and vocational education is also compulsory and free. In academic lyceums and professional colleges students receive, along with their basic general education, intellectual development intensive, in-depth specialized education and are trained for 2-3 specialties. The establishment of high schools and colleges and close relationship of educational institutions with specific businesses can eliminate the imbalance in the distribution of qualified personnel in the country.
Higher professional education. After compulsory education, each graduate may continue their studies in 59 institutions of higher education and obtain a bachelor’s or master’s degree. A flexible system of education makes it possible to promptly respond to the needs of the social and economic development of society, taking into account individual abilities and needs.
Post-graduate education. The Republic has an effective system of training, retraining and the lifelong training of personnel in accordance with the changes in the structure of the economy and the needs of society. Great help in the development and improvement of lifelong education in different countries is provided by embassies of various countries in the Republic of Uzbekistan and international organizations. Thanks to this fruitful cooperation, students and
83
professionals are being trained, and improve their skills at leading universities, companies and firms abroad.
In the era of globalization, education becomes an essential component of economic development and the accumulation of national wealth. The high spiritual level of the population can organically create a legal culture, the ability of people to live and work in a democratic state, being aware of their rights and freedoms, and being able to use them in the interests of individuals, state and society. The state is interested in the development of the intellectual and spiritual potential of the country: about 35% of Uzbekistan’s population is aged 16 and more than 62% is under the age of 30. The government expenditures on education are considered to be the most important investment in the growth of national wealth: Uzbekistan annually spends 10-12% of GDP and 35% of the costs of the state budget on the development and reforming of the education system. The prestige of the pedagogical professions is increasing, and thus teachers’ salaries also increase, with the growth in wages of teachers and professors over the past 10 years being 1.5 times the average rate of wage increases in other sectors of the economy. At the heart of educational reform is the establishment of a sense of prestige of knowledge, education and high intelligence in society. Only people who are aware of the need for harmony in national and universal values and have the latest knowledge and intellectual capabilities as well as advanced technologies can achieve the strategic goals of development.
At each stage of lifelong education we can guarantee further improvement of lifelong education in the country, which in turn, promotes tolerance and mutual enrichment of cultures in the process of learning and communication, the establishment of the willingness of society to enter into multicultural dialogue with the world.
84
