Dmytro Tabachnyk: Quality Education—Guaranteeing our Students’ Futures

Friday, 16 July 2010

The Minister of Education and Sciences, Dmytro Tabachnyk is convinced that specialization in establishments of higher education guarantees a quality education.  The official made this statement yesterday to journalists during a press conference. 

According to Mr. Tabachnyk Ukrainian Diplomas from higher education are not recognized because the process is controlled by a countless number of Ministries.  “What is the purpose of even the Cabinet of Ministers regulating any establishment of higher education (HEI) when these bodies do not have a Department of Higher Education and have no methodological capacities?” questions the Minister.   

He feels that all HEIs in Ukraine should be regulated by one entity.  “This is a requirement of the European Union and the Council of Europe,” stated Mr. Tabachnyk. The Minister also stressed the need for specialized HEIs.   “Attorneys for example, should be trained in legal and traditional universities, medical personnel in medical HEIs, economists in economic and traditional HEIs, agrarian specialists in agrarian HEIs,” he detailed.   The Minister noted that up until 1991 only five HEIs had law departments in all of Ukraine, today there are nearly 160 law departments in Ukrainian HEIs. 

However, Mr. Tabachnyk noted “if a generalized HEI has already obtained a license to establish a Law Department, it will not be recalled, but legislatively mandated reviews and inspections will occur.” 

He is convinced that specialization guarantees quality education, and that quality education guarantees the future of our students.  “My guess is that offering a large number of majors and providing a mediocre education in them is a way to make some money off the enrollees, but it accomplishes nothing else,” stated Mr. Tabachnyk. 

The Minister also announced that the Ministry will soon create a data bank of lecturers.  The data bank will include teacher's full names, date of birth, specialty, and the name of their Master's or PhD thesis.  It will be used to identify situations where an elderly professor for 70 years has been employed simultaneously by several HEIs who are located 500 or even 1000 kilometers from one another.   Mr. Tabachnyk believes that it is realistic to assume such “a person cannot ensure quality teaching simultaneously in Kharkiv, Luhans'k and Zakarpattya...this cannot be called teaching.    One cannot simply “migrate to the Tavriya Province” as in Gogol's Dead Souls.  This is incorrect and it discredits higher education.” 

Party of Regions Press Service