Teachers, Teacher Education, and Professional Development
Teacher Education Specific to Reading
The Azerbaijani language subject sets out four content areas regarding new subject curricula: Listening Comprehension and Speaking; Reading; Writing; and Language Rules. Azerbaijani language teachers learn methods of teaching reading and developing students’ reading and strategic reading skills as part of teacher education and professional development.
The Minister of Education signed an order on measures related to the improvement of reading habits of students and creating reading culture in 2014 to improve tested traditional skills of students’ reading, enhance reading motivation, and develop the reading habits of students. Pursuant to this order, school libraries were enriched with new books and periodicals, meetings between modern Azerbaijani authors were held, students performed parts of the works they read at schools, and winners of contests like most active reader, best essay, and best review were awarded. Students also were encouraged to share their book reviews online.
Furthermore, a website was created to make teachers and students more active in the education process, giving them an opportunity to use Information and Communications Technology (ICT) efficiently and to enjoy electronic books. By entering the portal, users are able to read school books online and offline, take notes on certain pages of the books, and search the text later.10
Requirements for Ongoing Professional Development in Reading for Teachers
Methods of Teaching Reading was included as a special module to professional development programs for teachers. It includes:11
- A 14 hour module on Teaching Reading Strategies in a 120 hour professional development program for primary school teachers who have passed diagnostic assessment in Baku
- A 20 hour module on Methods of Teaching Strategic Reading in a 120 hour Tamal professional development program for primary school teachers
- A 14 hour module on Methods of Achieving Standards of Reading in a 120 hour professional development program for Azerbaijani language teachers of Grades 5 to 9
- A 60 hour mentoring service for primary school teachers within the Zardabi—Development of Primary School Students’ Reading Skills project
- A 60 hour professional development program called Development of Students’ Reading Skills for primary school teachers from the regions