Will education in Azerbaijan switch to electronic format?

Baku/15.12.21/Turan: In the leading countries of the world, schools are already switching to the system of electronic textbooks. In South Korea, conventional paper textbooks have replaced electronic textbooks, and this process continues in the United States. Experts from the United States note that this can both save money (the cost of a paper textbook in the country is about $ 30-100, and an electronic one is $ 4), and it is also possible to learn the lesson better. Russia has already announced the transition to a system of electronic textbooks.

In Azerbaijan, opinions are often expressed that there are mistakes in ordinary paper textbooks, books become unusable within 1-2 years. Some experts argue that textbooks are being used for political purposes as an ideological tool. What is the situation with textbooks in the country?

The Turan Ministry of Education said that for the successful implementation of the educational policy, the institution is constantly carrying out important work aimed at improving the quality of the textbook content. “According to current regulations, all textbooks used in secondary schools go through a quality assurance procedure. Then the public opinion survey begins about the textbooks, the quality of which is assured. Along with this, a pre-publication examination is carried out. Based on the feedback, the textbooks are improved, revised and then printed.” 

It was noted that since 2016, the Ministry of Education has begun to study public opinion on draft textbooks and teaching aids. “After the start of classes, due to the use of textbooks by students, it is no longer possible to return textbooks for revision. To avoid these problems, a public opinion poll process is underway on new or improved textbooks to be used in the next academic year.”

The department stressed that textbooks are being published for use for several years in accordance with the relevant government decree. "After a certain period of time, the expiration date comes to an end, and besides, it becomes obsolete in terms of the content. At the same time, textbooks are either improved or replaced with new ones depending on the work on the content. According to the rules, textbooks are collected from students at the end of each academic year. Only after that the number of unusable textbooks is accurately determined. Then these textbooks, in accordance with the current rules, are excluded from the library fund and replaced by the state with new ones based on the order made. The average number of textbooks that become unusable during each academic year does not exceed 15 percent of used textbooks".

The ministry said that in the 2021-2022 academic year, 7,030,264 copies of textbooks for 270 titles were published for use by students. It was emphasized that in 2014 the Ministry of Education created a portal of electronic textbooks (www.e-derslik.edu.az) and put it into operation. “The purpose of creating the portal is to activate students in the educational process, give them the opportunity to effectively use ICT, read textbooks in electronic format. This system increases the mobility of students in the use of textbooks, students can access textbooks anytime, anywhere. There are about 260 electronic manuals on this portal, including more than 230 electronic textbooks, more than 20 methodological manuals and materials for extracurricular reading ”.

Education expert Kamran Asadov said that according to the policy on textbooks, they are changed every 5 years in Azerbaijan. “Not a single textbook changes until these 5 years are completed. As an exception, if there are any major errors in the tutorial, the text is edited and reused. The change of textbooks every 5 years is associated with innovations, discoveries and inventions in science and technology”.

The expert suggests that when textbooks are printed, there may be certain exaggerations in their price, but since 2003, textbooks have been provided to students free of charge. At the same time, there is an electronic version of all textbooks on the corresponding portal of the Ministry of Education”.  

According to him, if lessons in Azerbaijan are conducted using electronic means, editing them will be easier and cheaper. “But the transition to e-learning is not possible with us. We saw this during the pandemic. Even for online classes, not all of our students have tablets, phones and Internet access. This is a serious problem."

Asadov believes that the most serious problem of textbooks in Azerbaijan is the large information load. "The textbooks are not appropriate for the age and psychology of the students. Textbooks written for primary grades cannot be accepted by these students. Because there is too much information that is intended for older students. At the same time, the font sizes are very small and the paper is of poor quality.” 

Textbooks fail quickly, he said. “It even varies between urban and rural areas. There are places where humidity is high, which means that textbooks quickly fail. 12-15 percent of textbooks are republished annually. Because the books go bad. Almost 50-60 million books are published every year. The document may indicate good paper quality, but in reality, paper with a lower quality may be used.” - 0 -