New School Year Almost There…

Current school year 2013/1014 is going to be a little bit shorter as in most schools it’s going to begin not on the 1^st but on Monday, the 2^nd of September.

In a few days time everyone’s starting to compete in this school marathon: first graders – with a slight concern and curiosity what awaits them behind school doors , twelfth graders – with mixed emotions, because in a year they have to leave their safe school and fly in a wide world, teachers – almost rested (these short summer holidays!), with new conceptions and ideas. Schools are ready for students’ arrival, it smells paint in the school corridors, and desks are missing pupils.

How did the old school year ended? What are the new year’s changes at schools in the Vilnius and the Šalčininkai districts?

In the Šalčininkai district the number of students for the 2013/1014 school year is being initially estimated (according to data from March this year) for 3 457 persons. 307 children is being awaited for in 29 preparatory groups, the so-called “prelims”. Specific data concerning the number of first graders are going to be known after the school year’s inauguration, when parents make the final decision on the choice of the school. This is because, as says Regina Markiewicz – the head of department of education of the Šalčininkai district’s local government, sometimes there are cases that parents apply for their children’s acceptance in three places simultaneously, so it’s quite hard to count a total number of the new recruits.

-Generally, the number of students at schools is decreasing – says Regina Markiewicz – It is going to be about 87 students fewer than last year. The statistical data on how many children go abroad with their parents is missing, but the main cause of this decrease is demographic decline.

In the Šalčininkai district not three, but now four middle schools are starting this school year. On Sunday, the 1^st of September, new school year’s inauguration is going to take place in a new middle school the name of Anna Krepsztul in Butrymance. Learning also starts in the nine secondary schools of this district, three of which are multifunctional centers. The preschool group of the Šalčininkai middle school the name of Jan Sniadecki is going to operate in the multifunctional centre in Kamionka. Four schools of extracurricular teaching are going to operate, too – School of Fine Arts the name of Stanislaw Moniuszko in Soleczniki, Music School in Jašiūnai Manor and Music School in Ejszyszki, Sports School the name of Antoni Ratkiewicz in Ejszyszki. Furthermore, ten kindergartens is opening their doors for the youngest.

-This year the kindergarten in Jašiūnai Manor has received the status of a multifunctional center – tells the head of department of education of the Šalčininkai district. – We hope that it starts working in a new building later in this calendar year. Renovations has already been finished but we have been still buying equipment and furniture.

As regards kindergartens, Vilnius people know well the problem with finding a vacancy in kindergarten, to which other parents apply for several years ahead. This problem is known also at the government level, prime minister Butkevičius is aware of the fact that preschool education is “not available for everyone”, as he says. Parents from the Šalčininkai district are free from this preschool rush. Thanks to the wise education policy of the Šalčininkai district’s local government, the problem of preschool education is solved.

-Each child, despite the fact of living in the city or village – says Regina Markiewicz – has an access to school and preschool education. In villages, where there are no schools left, we made preschool education available. There are 29 such groups.

Many children are going to start this new school year with new experiences, connections, knowledge. Summer semi-colonies took place at schools of the district, where 280 children were resting and participating in educational activities. They were financed by “Polish Community” Lomza Department due to its president Hanka Galazka, who has been exercising patronage over education in the Šalčininkai district for many years. Thanks to her there was “Summer with Poland” organized that enabled children from Turgiel and White Wacke going on holidays to Macierze.

Children from Butrymańc via Warmian-Mazurian “Caritas” were resting in Frombork, participating in sightseeing tours to Druskienik, Dziewieniszek and Pawlow.

The embassy of Poland in Vilnius funded a trip for children called “Literary Vilnius”.

Children from Ejszyszki also spent their summertime in an interesting way: on the invitation of the commune they were hosted in Ozarow, participating in an international football tournament in Hude, Germany, spent “Holidays with God” in Zakopane, Poland, made a pilgrimage on a trail of sacred places in Poland, Germany and Lithuania.

What is going on in education of the Vilnius region? On a working conference with the participation of the directors of educational institutions on the 29^th of August, the head of department of education of the Vilnius district Lilia Andruszkiewicz explained the situation of education in the district.

-The number of educational institutions didn’t change over the last year, only the number of middle schools increased. Decided by the local government in February this year the type and the name of the school in Awizenie were changed. It is now called the Middle School in Awizenie. The city also saw a new kindergarten accommodating two Polish and two Lithuanian groups – said Lilia Andruszkiewicz.

The network of educational institutions include now 49 comprehensive schools (9 middle schools, 17 secondary schools, 11 primary schools, 3 starting schools, 6 schools-kindergartens) and 24 non-public educational centers (20 pre-school education centers, 2 music schools, 1 school of fine arts, 1 sports school).

Schools of the Vilnius district can be proud of good Matura exam results. In 2013 777 graduates in the Vilnius district took Matura exam, from which 590 students from institutions subjected to the local government of the Vilnius district. 349 of them took a state exam. The most frequently chosen state exams subjects were Lithuanian (chosen by 59,2%), foreign language (Russian) – 55,9% of students, history – 43,7%, mathematics – 30,5%, foreign language (English) – 20,3%, biology – 11,5%. 100% graduates took an exam in their mother tongue.

-The highest mark received six graduates from the municipal schools – from the following middle schools: the name of Konstanty Parczewski in Niemenczyn, the name of Stanislaus Kostka in Podbrzezie, the name of Ferdynand Ruszczyc and the middle school in Pogiry. Such marks applied to the state exams in Lithuanian, Russian, mathematics, physics, chemistry, and geography – said Lilia Andruszewicz.

Applause received the astonishing result of the students from the middle school the name of Ferdynand Ruszczyc, Mariusz Wojtkun who, as the only one in schools of that district’s history gained one hundred percent for all the taken state exams (Lithuanian, mathematics, physics, chemistry, geography).

In 2013 all the graduates took an exam in a foreign language (English, German, Russian).

Against a background of students having taken exam in computer science or biology, graduates from the local government of this district did the best.

Good Matura exam results enabled the students having got into the university: 336 graduates (58%) got into colleges universities. The most frequently chosen universities were: University of M. Romer, Vilnius University of Technology in Giedymin, Vilnius University, Lithuanian University of Educology, Bialystok University with a branch in Vilnius, Vilnius College, Technology and Design College in Vilnius, International College of Law and Business. The most frequently were chosen such faculties as law, management, economics, Lithuanian and English philology, computer science, banking, architecture, engineering.

A nice touch of the conference of the Vilnius local government’s directors was the choir “Note” performance (the choir from the secondary school the name of J. Slowacki in Bezdany).

-The greatest number of graduates from the following schools got into universities: the middle school in Pogiry (55%), the middle school the name of Ferdynand Ruszczyc in Rudomin (49%), the middle school the name of St. Raphael Kalinowski in Niemiez (47%); from the secondary school the name of St. Casimir in Miedniki (40%), the secondary school in Mariampol (39%), the middle school the name of Constantine Parczewski in Niemenczyn (35%) – said Lilia Andruszkiewicz.

18 graduates of this district got into universities abroad – 4 chose Great Britain, 1 – the Netherlands, and 13 chose Poland.

1200 students participated in summer camps, on which the local government spent 66 933 litas. 42 institutions took part in organizing the camps. During 1-2 weeks sports, sightseeing, artistic, music and art classes were being carried out. Children not only got to know Vilnius and its surroundings, but they could also travel deeper into Lithuania and abroad – visiting different Polish, Croatian and German cities, or participating in different contests, festivals, competitions.

Each first grader from Polish school in Lithuania will receive a beautiful backpack with layette. As our editorial office were informed by the first councilwoman of Polish Embassy in Lithuania Iwona Fraczek in the school year 2013/14 the action of supporting Polish first grades in Lithuania will be continued in much the same way as it was last year – by equipping students and classes.

-As it was last year, our partner is Association of Polish Teachers in Lithuania “School Matrix” that applied to the Embassy for a subsidy to achieve that objective. However, this year fully-equipped backpacks purchasing is not going to be financed by the institution, as they are to be delivered by “Polish Community” association which received funds from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland – informed Ilona Fraczek. – Our role is mainly providing classrooms with teaching and methodological, and various technical equipment according to the needs reported by school administrators. The range of needs being reported are is differentiated, from musical and sport equipment, furniture to electronic equipment, computers and stationery. The next step in supporting the first graders is going to be financing educational services that consist of sightseeing tours (the plan is to visit Troki; visiting the chocolate factory was especially successful last year), visits at the culture institutions, methodology training for teachers of primary education. A set of events, common for every school, was fixed with an agreement of “School Matrix” and the managers of departments of education.

The project of equipping first graders is being implemented using funds of Ministerstwa Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland under the plan of “Cooperation with Polonia and Poles abroad in 2013”.

We are on the threshold of a new school year. We need to wish students interesting and fascinating meetings with science, as to teachers – a lot of patience in performing their daily hard labor.

Source: http://kurierwilenski.lt/2013/08/30/nowy-rok-szkolny-tuz-tuz/

Tłumaczenie by Roksana Kasperek w ramach praktyk w Europejskiej Fundacji Praw Człowieka, www.efhr.eu. Translated by Roksana Kasperek within the framework of a traineeship programme of the European Foundation of Human Rights, www.efhr.eu.