Teachers Demonstrating 90% or Higher Efficiency to Receive 50% Bonus

The Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Armenia has approved the pilot program for the "Voluntary Certification System" through a decree. This was announced by the Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia.

The certification system will be implemented through testing to assess teachers' professional knowledge and skills, with the aim of encouraging teachers. The introduction of the voluntary certification system aims to identify and reward teachers who meet modern requirements, gradually align their compensation with the national average salary, ensure the entry of new teachers into schools who meet modern requirements by offering them competitive salaries, and gradually replace the mandatory certification process with voluntary certification principles. It also aims to create grounds for reforming the granting of teaching categories, linking them with professional standards.

Voluntary certification will operate alongside mandatory certification and will provide teachers working in general education institutions the opportunity to receive a bonus. The certified teacher will receive a bonus for a period of five years. The bonus will be retained even if the teacher moves from one school to another.

Teachers demonstrating 90% or higher efficiency will be deemed certified and will receive a 50% bonus, bringing their average salary closer to the national average. Teachers demonstrating 80% or higher efficiency will be deemed certified and will receive a 30% bonus. Those with 60-79% efficiency will be considered certified, while those achieving 0-59% will be subject to mandatory re-certification after one year. If a teacher does not pass re-certification in the second year, their teaching rights will be suspended until they attend a subsequent training at their discretion and achieve a positive result in re-certification.

In the first year, certification is scheduled to take place for teachers instructing grades 7-12 in the subjects of Armenian Language, Literature, Armenian Literature, History of Armenia, Mathematics, Geometry, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Geography. In the second year, it will be conducted for all subjects taught in grades 5-12, and it will become mandatory for new teachers instructing grades 7-12. In the third year, certification will cover all teachers teaching in grades 1-4 and become mandatory for new teachers wishing to teach grades 1-12.

According to preliminary forecasts, it is estimated that in the first year, 4.2% of all teachers will participate in certification, and 76.8% of them will receive bonuses. In the second year, 13.9% of teachers are expected to participate, with 81.8% receiving bonuses. In the third year, participation is expected to be 23.1%, with 88% receiving bonuses. Thus, based on these forecasts, more than 46% of teaching staff will participate in voluntary certification over three years, over 41% will receive bonuses, and the number of teachers who do not pass certification is expected to be 15%. Based on these predictions, the annual increase in government expenditures for granting a 50% bonus will amount to 10,031,250 drams over three years.