BSC Business Support Center with support from the Center for International Private Enterprises (CIPE) implements the “Shaping the Digital Economy Agenda in Armenia” project. On December 15, in the frames of the project the 7th public-private dialogue (PPD) meeting of “Digital Education: public-private dialogue” was conducted.
The speakers of the “Digital Education: public-private dialogue” meeting were representatives of the RA Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports (MoESCS), other educational organizations, IT academies and private sector companies involved in digitalization.
At the beginning of the meeting, Parkuhi Ghazaryan, a chief specialist of the Entrepreneurship department of the RA Ministry of Economy, delivered a welcome speech, emphasizing the importance of public-private dialogue and close cooperation in development and digitalization of the country's economic environment.
Below are the details of panelists:
Tatevik Gasparyan – Director of the National Centre for Vocational Education and Training Development (MKUZAK),
Ruzanna Stepanyan – Specialist of the Department of Development of Training Programs and Evaluation of Training Effectiveness of the National Center for Education Development and Innovations (KZNAK),
Zhanna Gevorgyan – ISTC Foundation, Acceleration Programs Coordinator,
Suren Edilyan – National Polytechnic University of Armenia, Lecturer of Professional Mathematical Education,
Hrant Harutyunyan – French University in Armenia, Dean of the Management and Finance Faculty.
During the meeting, the role of education in the processes of business environment digitalization and the role of digitalization in educational processes were discussed. Spokespersons of the RA MoESCS presented the ministry's involvement and scope of activities within the framework of the 2021-2025 digitalization strategy of Armenia. Attendees and representatives of educational institutions voiced their suggestions and problems in the question-and-answer portion of the panel discussion, ensuring an effective public-private dialogue.
During the panel discussion, the moderator Emma Kirakosyan asked guiding questions based on the 2021-2025 digitalization strategy of Armenia. Each speaker reflected on their activities in the field of education, presented the achievements of their institution in the direction of digitalization, and discussed the avenues of cooperation with the state.
Below is a summary of the panel discussion and Q&A:
QUESTION 1
To enhance the efficiency of organizing and implementing the dialogue between the state and the private sector, it is crucial to understand the mutual expectations of both parties. Could you please share the advancements your organization has made in digitalization since 2021 and elucidate the state's expectations from the private sector?
Ruzanna Stepanyan, the specialist of the Department of Development of Training Programs and Evaluation of Training Effectiveness of the National Center for Education Development and Innovations (KZNAK), answered the question and presented that the most important of the initiatives of the RA MoESCS is the piloting and implementation of new standards and new educational programs from 2021. In particular, the subject of Informatics was renamed Digital Literacy and Computer Science. The change here is that the subject will be taught in school starting from the 2nd grade. Significant program changes have occurred, with a key emphasis on aligning practical assignments for students directly with real-life scenarios, incorporating examples from everyday experiences. Ruzanna Stepanyan highlighted that the implemented programming languages aim not only to train future programmers but also to foster the development of students' algorithmic thinking. It is evident that, in current employer requirements, when selecting an employee, emphasis is placed on algorithmic and logical thinking, which is deemed more crucial than mastery of a specific programming language.
Ruzanna Stepanyan, addressing the collaboration between the public and private sectors, proposed that through closer cooperation with the private sector, the state could address the challenge of broader integration of modern technologies into educational structures. For instance, this collaboration could facilitate the introduction of students to technologies such as AI, VR, and similar solutions, which schools may lack the resources to acquire and test independently.
QUESTION 2
The deadline for achieving the new goals outlined in the digitalization strategy is December 2025. The responsibility of the RA MoESCS is as follows: by December 2025, at least 60% of our population aged 16-65 should possess basic skills in using digital tools. How can the private sector contribute to the broader adoption of state digital services and digital platforms?
Zhanna Gevorgyan addressed the issue by presenting the programs implemented by ISTC. It was mentioned that ISTC implements a Digital Science program, within the framework of which two master's programs are implemented with Yerevan State University. These initiatives serve a dual purpose for ISTC: firstly, to foster the growth of data science in the business domain, and secondly, to contribute to the advancement of data science in programming. An average of 20-30 students graduate from this master's program every year, with the majority securing employment in the months following graduation. The program is founded on the principle of transferring applicable skills and knowledge. In addition to data science, students also get familiar with startups, acquire business knowledge, and study the application of data in business. The program is supported by the IBM, and high-achieving students in the first year of their master's degree are provided the opportunity to continue their second year of education in the USA.
Addressing the issue of digital literacy, Zhanna Gevorgyan proposed pooling the resources of the public and private sectors to organize small, local events. These events may introduce people to new digital tools, emphasizing the necessity of utilizing digital solutions as practical tools.
During the discussion, Sergey Vardanyan, co-founder of an online course platform and an organization that facilitates digital transformation of educational products, raised the concern that some higher education teachers struggle to digitize their educational resources and often turn to external services for assistance. Sergey Vardanyan recommended that representatives of higher education institutions and the RA MoESCS collaborate with the private sector to offer digitalization and digital transformation solutions within universities, facilitating the digitization of educational products.
Suren Edilyan, representing the National Polytechnic University of Armenia, highlighted the formation of a Media group at the Polytechnic University. With support from the European Union, this group engaged in an exchange of experiences, visiting Germany and Latvia to study the practices of those countries, subsequently implementing them at the National Polytechnic University of Armenia. Currently, the Media group provides support to the university's teaching staff in the recording, digitization, and design of courses and materials.
QUESTION 3
Suren Edilyan, as a professional mathematical education specialist, raised the issue that the RA MoESCS does not allow full course conduction in an online format due to certain legal restrictions.
Referring to this question, Ruzanna Stepanyan mentioned that there is such an experience at the National Center for Educational Technologies (KTAK). KTAK offers schools an online course for those regions of Armenia that do not have a teacher of the given subject. During those online classes, teachers are recruited from other schools. Ruzanna Stepanyan suggested to formulate the proposal of online conducted classes clearly, send it to the ministry for discussion, and permission. Addressing this question, Tatevik Gasparyan, the director of the National Centre for Vocational Education and Training Development (MKUZAK), noted that when conducting online education, it is paramount to ensure the end results of the educational program. In the world, it doesn't matter anymore whether the class is in the existing format, online, in virtual or another reality. Now it is important how far the defined learning objectives have been achieved at the end of the course, what the student can accomplish, what they have learned after completing the course. In order to conduct a full course in an online format, a control mechanism should be developed and implemented, because many people use online access by conducting low-quality courses. In the field of Vocational Education and Training (VET), MKUZAK is currently in the process of discussing the implementation of an online course. Tatevik Gasparyan expressed his willingness to guide and support those organizations that aim to receive the state accreditation for conducting their course online.
QUESTION 4
How does the university determine the enrollment capacity for a specific faculty? Do you receive guidance from the state on the preferred directions of study and how to align the curriculum with the needs of students and the job market?
Suren Edilyan mentioned that allocating state-funded places is the mechanism by which the priorities of the state are expressed. The National Polytechnic University of Armenia has a long-standing cooperation with the Synopsys company, which is one of the best companies in the world in chip design. In the frames of the cooperation, senior students are offered to transfer to a special study group of the Synopsys organization, to continue their further education and work in that organization. Suren Edilyan announced that, starting from September, their university will accept up to 60 students majoring in data science. Being one of the authors of the developed educational program, Suren Edilyan noted that quite a lot of work is being organized in connection with the digitalization of the management system of the university, starting from the admission stage to the learning process organization.
Hrant Harutyunyan, the dean of the Management and Finance Faculties of the French University in Armenia, mentioned that quite recently the implementation of the digitalization subject was initiated at the French University. The demand came especially from the banking system, having close cooperative relations with them. The challenge was to have professionals who would not only visualize the palette of digital possibilities, but also be able to make transformations to achieve it. There is a severe lack of such specialists in Armenia, who will be able to see the new opportunities, initiate and implement them by mastering the digital transformation processes. At the moment, about 300 students study this subject in a year. Digitalization is not a separate profession, but is embedded in the faculties of management, finance and marketing as one of the important subjects.
The series of public-private dialogues (PPDs) is carried out within the framework of the “Shaping the Digital Economy Agenda in Armenia" project conducted by the Business Support Center (BSC) with support from the Center for International Private Enterprises (CIPE). You can see the initiatives implemented within the framework of the project at this link…
