Involvement of universities in the process of introducing a new national curriculum

Abstract

The Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia is introducing a new, third-generation national curriculum in Georgian public schools in the form of a "New School Model", which is an important part of the education system reform. It aims to create a student-centered educational environment.Eight Georgian state universities are actively involved in the process of implementation of the new third-generation national curriculum within the USAID Basic Education Program. These universities are implementing Teacher Training educational programs and the program graduates will be employed in such schools. The program promotes the student-centered reform in primary schools; It supports the “New School Model” in introducing a third-generation national curriculum and aims to institutionalize the student-centered teaching through the teacher training and the professional development reform, as well as through getting the education policy and learning process based on the research. The activities carried out by the partner state universities have had a great impact not only on the teachers but also on the principals as educational leaders. Within the project, teachers were trained and they were provided with the thematic units in Georgian language and Mathematics at the primary level created by the universities.