KHACHATUR ABOVYAN ARMENIAN STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY

Realization of educational programmes

In 1982, with the efforts of Arsen Minasyan, Head of the Department of Special Schools and Orphanages of the Ministry of Enlightenment the Armenian SSR, the Chair of Defectology was founded in the Faculty of Pedagogy and Elementary Teaching Methods.

Hovhannes Aghavelyan, Narine Lutonyan, Kimik Sarukhanyan, Vachagan Khalatyan, Spartak Palikyan began to study and offer solutions to the issues and problems in special pedagogy and psychology, speech therapy, compiled and taught subjects, at the same time preserving the professional traditions of the Russian special pedagogy.

In 1993-2000, the Chair of Defectology of the Faculty of Pedagogy and Elementary Teaching Methods was headed by Associate Professor Spartak Palikyan, Candidate of Biological Sciences, who in the next ten years headed the Faculty of Preschool, Primary and Special Education and made a great contribution to the development of special education in Armenia.

For more than 30 years, from 1992 to the present day, the Chair of Defectology of the Faculty of Pedagogy and Elementary Education (later the Chair of Special Pedagogy of the Faculty of Preschool, Primary and Special Education) dealt with issues in special psychology, speech therapy, ergotherapy, special pedagogy (oligophrenopedagogy, deaf pedagogy, typhlopedagogy), as well as development, and teaching of subject courses.
Today, the dean of the Faculty is Gohar Hovyan, who in 1994 became the first specialist to be awarded the degree of Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences in the field of ‘Special Pedagogy.’

The activity of the Faculty and individuals who have made great contributions to special education in different years is presented below.

While adhering to the traditions of the scientific school founded by Arsen Minasyan, the teaching staff of the Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education also carries out international and regional trainings, scientific works, covers and tries to localize best practices, contributing to the coverage of the fundamental problems in special pedagogy and psychology, speech therapy and rehabilitation therapy and preservation of scientific methods.
The Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education was founded in 2011 on the initiative of ASPU Rector Roben Mirzakhanyan. It is the only faculty in Armenia that trains SEN specialists, speech therapists, art-therapists, occupational therapists, and special psychologists.

The mission of the Faculty of Special Education is

• to train quality SEN (special education needs) specialists
• to provide an accessible environment and support for students and employees with disabilities

In contemporary special pedagogy and psychology, including speech therapy and ergotherapy, special emphasis is laid on the formation and development of internal regulation mechanisms of social behaviour of persons with special education needs. That is why modern studies are more focused on the research of motives of activity, value system, self-awareness and mechanisms of perception of interpersonal relationships.

The lecturers of the Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education try to ensure the quality of professional education, institutional self-evaluation, development of state standards of higher professional education, organization and implementation of professional trainings and conferences, and improvement of teaching methods.

Marianna Harutyunyan, ASPU Vice-Rector for Human Resources and International Cooperation, Associate Professor at the Chair of Speech Therapy and Rehabilitation Therapy, has had a significant role in the development of Ergotherapy [as a subject] in Armenia.

Most of the professors of the Faculty also work in other educational and medical institutions of the country, actively participate in international conferences, workshops and courses, publish articles in international peer-reviewed journals and scientific collections in Armenia. The Faculty regularly organizes workshops, webinars, seminars, open classes, master classes, online lectures and other events.

The vision of the Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education is to develop students’ practical skills and ability to conduct research, as well as expand cooperation with local and international organizations.

Our graduates work in inclusive and special schools, kindergartens, polyclinics, departments of neurology, NGOs, centers for psychological and counselling services, medical psychology assessment centers.

In the Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education, student life is active, dynamic and cheerful. The Faculty regularly organizes intellectual, sports and entertainment events, flash mobs, offers volunteering opportunities in the relevant institutions, summer schools, student exchange international programs, and international Olympiads.

Thus, Special Education multifacetedly and thoroughly studies regulation of interpersonal and social interactions of persons with developmental disorders, as well as social consciousness. Special Education is thus inevitably linked to social sciences and has a leading role among other pedagogical sciences. It is also due to a number of issues encountered in psychology and special pedagogy of persons with developmental disabilities.

Therefore, this science is inevitably related to social sciences and today it has taken a leading role among other pedagogical sciences. It is also due to a number of modern issues faced in the psychology and special pedagogy of persons with developmental disabilities.

The Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education provides education in line with the European standards, applying the latest innovative methods and technologies.

The Faculty has a three-cycle education system consisting of bachelor's, master's and doctoral studies with full-time and distance-learning classes.

All international applicants have to pass two entrance examinations to study at the Faculty - Armenian language and Biology.

The Faculty carries out educational, scientific-methodical and research activities. It publishes “Armenian Journal of Special Education” / https://specedjournal.aspu.am/index.php/se/ which is unique in the field of Special Education and has been included in the ERIH PLUS international scientometric database.

In 2016-2018, three webinars were organized as a result of cooperation between Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU) after Khachatur Abovyan and the University of Minnesota, USA. An Armenian-language textbook was published as a result. By the way, the cooperation was carried out under the auspices of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

The webinars contain rich material and information on practical aspects of inclusive education in Armenia. The webinars are important not only for working teachers but also for future teachers. They aim to help each and every person.

The webinars are available in English with Armenian subtitles. For the Armenian text, click “Setting” (the second button in the bottom-right corner of the slide), then click the "Subtitles" section and select the Armenian language.

The formation of scientific foundations is necessary for the establishment of any field. However, just like any field of science, Special Pedagogy, as the main driving force of Special Needs Education, has passed a unique path, reached our days and laid the foundation for the formation of such a scientific educational institution as is the Faculty of Special and Inclusive Education…