KHACHATUR ABOVYAN ARMENIAN STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY

From 21 to 25 October, a delegation of Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU) headed by Marianna Harutyunyan, Vice-Rector for Human Resources Management and International Cooperation, was at the University of Granada (UGR), one of the largest universities in Spain, within the framework of the Erasmus+ DeSIRe (Development of Soft Skills at Higher Education Institutions of Armenia and Georgia in Compliance with the 21st Century Labour Market Requirements) project.

The coordinator of the project is Vanadzor State University after H. Tumanyan. ASPU is one of the local partners. A number of higher education institutions and organizations from Armenia, Georgia, Spain, Finland, Germany and Ireland are included in the project.

During the working visit, the ASPU delegates participated in onsite capacity building trainings at UGR. The main focus was integration of soft skills into existing higher education programs to facilitate professional development and professional learning roadmap.

During the trainings, the participants discussed the practices and tools within the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), based on the successful example of UGR.

The representatives of the Spanish university also touched upon different methods of introducing soft skills, as well their development and assessment methods.

The participants were introduced to a number of current topics, including the development of soft skills at the workplace, in the university-employer relationships, during the implementation of research, in the framework of project-based learning, as well as through digital resource platforms.

“Introduction and development of soft skills in the education system and, in general, in the wider context of the 21st century skills is under consideration. The aim is to promote a full set of skills: combination of professional knowledge, practical skills and abilities, establishment and promotion of specialists, their easy integration into the professional field,” ASPU Vice-Rector Marianna Harutyunyan said in conversation with aspu.am.

She thinks that development of soft skills is a necessity in the context of general skills of the 21st century. Their teaching and assessment are also necessary in the new paradigms of the modern educational system, along with additional practical skills and abilities.

The primary goal of the Erasmus+ DeSIRe project is to enhance the education systems in Armenia and Georgia by focusing on soft skills-based teaching and learning methodologies, strategies, and technologies. By aligning academic knowledge and skills with 21st-century labor market demands, the three-year project aims to improve students’ career prospects and enhance the competitiveness and entrepreneurial abilities of graduates.