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On November 30, in the Congress Hotel on the initiative of the RA NA Standing Committee on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport the conference with the heading Vocational Education and Labor Market: Challenges and Perspectives organized by the RA National Assembly and International Cooperation Agency of Japan began its work. Representatives from the RA Government, higher educational institutions, directors of colleges and secondary vocational educational institutions were invited at the event. The goal of the conference is to debate the perspectives of the vocational education and raise the existing problems.

Let us inform that within the framework of the vocational education reform program two years ago in Japan courses were organized, where representatives from Armenia took part. Today’s conference is the development of that program by the participant countries.

Let us note that a collection of materials written by the NA Standing Committees and conference participants concerning the vocational education was printed.

Welcoming the participants of the conference the Deputy Chair of the RA NA Standing Committee Karine Poghosyan has underlined that such events promote the comprehensive study of the system, the revealing of the problems and their solution. In her opinion, the issue of the vocational education reforms is topical in local and international platforms: today there is a problem of making the workforce consonant with the labor market demands. She expressed conviction that this working meeting will be effective in terms of the debate of practical issues and the establishment of the partnership relations.

In the development of our country and economy the Member of the NA Standing Committee Ruzanna Muradyan highlighted the development of this sphere and touched upon the state care in the solution of the problems. By the deputy’s conviction, in the changing world the professions are also changed, new challenges and demands are put before the organizers of the educational sphere. In the effective organization of the vocational education Mrs Muradyan emphasized the comparison of the practical and theoretical knowledge, the conveying of knowledge and skills consonant with the requirements of time to the generations. The speaker considered necessary the importance of the patriotic upbringing in the state program of the RA educational development for 2015-2025.

During the discussions the Head of the Vocational Education and Teaching Division of the RA Ministry of Education and Science Karen Manukyan, the Expert of the NA Standing Committee on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Marina Vardanyan and the representatives of the vocational educational institutions touched upon the reforms made in the sphere, the order of the entrance to the vocational educational institutions, the list of the professions designed by the program of the preliminary professional educational program, the directors’ accreditation and specialists’ training processes. The provision of the relevant conditions in all institutions for children with special need of education, the strengthening of educational institution-employer connection, the development of the professions with demand in the labor market was highlighted. The participants touched upon the practical and experimental readiness in the vocational educational institutions, the compilation of the necessary logistics for the organization of the practical courses, the organization of the professional technical courses and other issues.

The representatives of the NA Standing Committee urged those responsible for the shere to submit recommendations requiring legislative regulation in future.