July 14, 2015 / The National Association of European Trainers of Moldova launched on Tuesday during a conference held in Comrat, the program “Learning Romanian and Gagauz languages simultaneously.”The program will be implemented over 24 months with the support of the High Commissioner on National Minorities in the The Hague OSCE in cooperation with Gagauzia Governor, Interethnic Relations Bureau, Ministry of Education etc.

“Currently, there is a huge interest both from the management autonomy and its inhabitants to learn the state language. We want to participate in all public processes in Moldova and I must say that initiatives in this regard come from people, every day we have such appeals”, said Irina Vlah, the Governor of Gagauzia.

It is an important program which could later be extended over another national minorities, noted Elena Beleacova, director of the Bureau of Interethnic Relations.

A draft strategy for integrating national minorities of the Republic of Moldova for 2015-2020 was elaborated recently and submitted for public consultation. The document proposes learning the state language along with protection and promotion of languages spoken by minorities, added Elena Beleacova.

In turn, Lucia Cucu, ANTEM Director, said that the purpose of the program is to ensure a simultaneous study of Romanian and Gagauz Languages to at least 150 beneficiaries. They include parents and their children aged three to six years old from 10 kindergartens in Comrat, Ceadâr-Lunga and Vulcanesti. This way proffessional, social and linguistic integration and cohesion will be encouraged as well as the ethnic identity and cultural heritage will be kept, said Lucia Cucu.

For a successful implementation of the program of simultaneous learning there will be developed more teaching materials, including a methodological guide for trainers, a training curriculum on simultaneous leaning, a training manual for learners and educators. There will also be edited collections of short stories and songs in Romanian and Gagauz Languages, and also, illustrated cards that include vocabulary in both languages.

At the initial stage, ANTEM experts with national and international qualifications will prepare local trainers from among managers of kindergartens and teachers, so that later they can instruct the final beneficiaries. Training courses for parents and their children will be carried out over six months. Meanwhile, nine workshops will be organized for the final beneficiaries of the program.

In Gagauzia currently operate about 50 kindergartens. This program of simultaneous learning of Romanian and the native language provides further expansion to all preschool institutions in ATU Gagauzia, as well as other national minorities, including Bulgarian and Ukrainian speakers.

The program “Simultaneous learning of Romanian and Gagauz Languages” was initiated in response to an earlier statement of Irina Vlah, the Governor of Gagauzia, where the central state authorities have been requested to create necessary conditions for learning the official language of the Gagauz minority in our country.

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Established in 2005, ANTEM became a promoter of learning the official language speakers of other languages in our country, with a responsible, competent, and proffessional approach to integration of national minorities through cultivation of the communicative skills.

ANTEM opts for opening a dialogue and intercultural and interethnic communication by offering services of teaching the state language to different categories of beneficiaries.

For more information, contact:

Tel.: 022 24 57 12, 069245189 (Lucia Cucu)

Email: antem.moldova@gmail.com