Digital education to be studied in schools

Chisinau, 23 April /MOLDPRES/- The development of digital education and human capital in the IT sector are the topic of Moldova ICT Summit of this year. Attending the event, Prime Minister Pavel Filip said that the IT tools are the basis for the development of all areas, and education of the young generation is decisive in this respect, the government’s communication and protocol department has reported.

“IT industry, education represent the future of Moldova. In the information age, the purpose of education is not only to generate knowledge, but to provide opportunities for a child to invent, discover, so as to produce generations capable of creating, generations showing creativity, ingenuity and thinking out-of-the-box,” he said.

In this context, the premier pointed out the need to revise the school curriculum so that children are adapted to live and develop in the information age. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Research is currently working out the concept of digital education module, a component part of the technological education subject, which is be studied starting from 1 September by first form pupils. At the same time, for training the teachers, the pilot project „Clasa viitorului” (Future Class) will be launched at the Ion Creanga State Pedagogical University. It involves the creation of a training centre equipped with modern equipment.

“Investments in education cost, it is true, but we have to understand that the lack of these investments costs us as much or even more. We are aware of these things, the government is completely open and you will feel this support further,” he said.

The premier also referred to the goals of the Digital Moldova 2020 Strategy – the development of IT infrastructure, digital content, digital competences and cyber security. Also, another important document is Strategy to increase competitiveness of IT industry. To this end, the first IT park has been created in our country and opened the Tekwill Centre of Excellence. In the future, it is planned to open similar centres in Balti and Cahul, and one in the capital.

At the same time, the premier said that elaboration of policies and regulations for IT is a difficult exercise, given that the sector is growing much faster.

This year, Moldova ICT Summit 2018 brought together over 400 participants. The event is organized by the National Association of ICT Companies, in partnership with the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research, with the support of the United States Agency for International Development and the Swedish government.