USAID Basic Education programme launching for thousands of schools, teachers in Georgia

Over 2,000 primary schools and 23,000 teachers across Georgia, and their students by extension, will benefit from a USAID Basic Education programme launching with the start of the new academic year in the country.

The wide-ranging project, to be implemented by RTI International research institute, will cover all public schools in the country and involve 2,075 institutions and teachers while aiming to support establishment of "strong institutions for professional development of teachers and school directors" in both capital Tbilisi and other regions.

The programme will involve eight universities and two non-governmental organisations over the next four years in creating the programmes for teachers and directors, and preparing trainer teams to create "powerful human resource bases" in their localities.

Partner universities and NGOs will also hold trainings, webinars and coaching sessions for school directors and "leader teachers" to establish the "new school models" and "student-tailored educational environment", a release by the USAID noted. The project will include Armenian and Azerbaijani public schools.

The release also said the Basic Education programmes were focused on developing problem-solving and critical thinking skills, among other goals. The organisation said it would also include special educational needs of students to enable them to fully take part in classes and other activities at their schools.

The project was formally started earlier this year when US Ambassador Kelly Degnan joined Education Minister Mikheil Chkhenkeli in unveiling the programme. The ambassador said she hoped it would "further strengthen Georgia’s educational programs, reaching primary school students with student-centred learning."