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The Republic of Belarus (the former Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic) became an independent state in 1991, after the disintegration of the Soviet Union. Situated on the crossroads between Russia, the Baltic states, Poland, and Ukraine, Belarus has an important geopolitical location and covers a territory of 80,134 square miles (207,546 square kilometers) with a population exceeding 10 millio…
The legal foundations of the Belarusian educational system are in the Constitution adopted in 1994 and further revised in 1996. Article 49 guarantees every Belarusian citizen the right to a free general secondary education and vocational training. Secondary specialized and higher education can be obtained free of charge in state educational institutions on a competitive basis. The principles and f…
The educational system of Belarus combines the structure inherited from the Soviet Union with a new content developed as an independent state. Preprimary education, which includes nursery schools and kindergartens, is optional. Primary education (three or four years of instruction), basic secondary education (five years of instruction), and upper secondary education (two years of instruction) usua…
According to the Law on Education (1991), the main aim of preprimary education is the stimulation of a child's natural desire to learn about the surrounding world. While the leading role belongs to the family, preschools are expected to contribute to children's moral and physical development, and provide them with access to the Belarusian language, culture, and folk traditions. Yasli…
General secondary education is the main part of the system of continuous education in Belarus. It is represented on three levels: The primary and secondary level institutions sometimes function separately (predominantly in rural areas); in the city they are usually combined within one school. The academic year begins on September 1 and continues through the end of May, and they have an examination…
The Belarusian system of higher education consists of universities, academies, and institutes. It comprises 42 state and 15 non-state higher educational institutions (VNU) with a total of 243,700 thousand students. Universities and academies offer graduate and post-graduate programs and are engaged in fundamental research. Whereas universities offer education in a wide variety of areas, academies …
The Belarusian educational system is administered by the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus (legislative function), the Council of Ministers (executive function), the Ministry of Education, and the local administrative organs. The state organs define the educational policy; formulate the requirements to educational institutions; authorize the order of their establishment, reorganization,…
According to Article 17 of the Law on Education, state organs, enterprises and public organizations are encouraged to establish extra school cultural, aesthetic, scientific, technical, and sports facilities, in order to satisfy the individual requirements of children and youth. In 1996 Belarus had 3,318 different nonformal educational facilities. They provide an elaborate arrangement of instructio…
The Law on Education guarantees teachers adequate working conditions, protection of their honor and dignity, and salaries at least 1.5 times higher than average wages in industry. In the 1990s, though, the state of educational institutions was steadily deteriorating because of inadequate financing. Teachers' salaries were humiliatingly low, with long delays in their payment. In spite of all…
Belarus' independence, the transitions to a market economy, and the quest for democratization have initiated important changes in Belarusian education. It was restructured and most of the educational institutions were subordinated to the Ministry of Education instead of to numerous ministries and agencies. Family and special education were included in the educational system. Courses indoctr…
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