Օրակարգ. հարցազրույց. Դեն Բրեյ / Cambridge International Examinations Deputy Director Dan Bray's Interview on Araratian Baccalaureate

Հայաստանի հանրային հեռուստաընկերություն 2017
http://www.1tv.am

Deputy Director at Cambridge University's Cambridge International Examinations Dan Bray's interview to Public Television of Armenia. Mr. Bray talks about their work in Armenia within the framework of the Araratian Baccalaureate, the first internationally-recognized Armenian-language high school program.

The National Program for Educational
Excellence and the Araratian Baccalaureate

are one of the most talked about topics
in our country today.

However, not many people
are well aware of the

peculiarities of what the
Araratian Baccalaureate offers.

To sum up briefly, presently
there are two state-approved

educational programs in our country –
the first is the one

we had before and we have today, and

the second is the
Araratian Baccalaureate.

What makes the Araratian Baccalaureate
stand out and what we should expect

after it's rolled out to schools? These
are topics we will talk about

with Dan Bray,
Deputy Director of Assessment at

Cambridge University’s
Cambridge International Examinations.

Hello.

Dan Bray is the Deputy Director of

Cambridge International Examinations of
Cambridge University

one of top educational institutions
in the world.

He has been with Cambridge International
Examinations for 10 years.

Dan Bray and his team deal with various
international education reform projects.

that relate to assessment.

The Cambridge International Examinations

implements major projects in 160 countries
among which Armenia has its unique place.

The Cambridge International Examinations
has found the Araratian Baccalaureate

high school program comparable to
international standards and qualifications

Mr. Bray is in Armenia to participate in

the grading of the Araratian Baccalaureate
graduation exams

as well as to discuss
future cooperation programs.

Hello, Mr. Bray.

Hello.

As I am informed this is your
second visit to Armenia,

your first visit lasted only six hours.

That’s right.

Which was the reason of your first visit?
And how cooperation with Armenia started?

Well, we’ve been working with the
Ayb Foundation for three years now,

at first, we helped do some reviews
of the curriculum they developed

for the Baccalaureate so that it meets
international standards,

and then for the last 18 months
we have been working directly

with the Araratian Baccalaureate
Examination Center

to help them make sure that the
qualification, the assessments,

the examinations for the Baccalaureate
meet international standards.

But last time I came, I came for a visit,

unfortunately, the airplane was delayed,

so by the time I arrived in Armenia
it was almost time to leave

so this is my first time actually
to spend any time in Armenia.

Your Center cooperates with 160 countries.

Certainly, each of them has its own
national, economic, and other features.

Which are the Armenian features, and
what kind of work do you do with them?

What’s really important about the
Araratian Baccalaureate

is that this is a solution that’s been
designed for Armenia, in Armenia

by the Ayb Foundation and by Araratian
Baccalaureate Examination Center.

This is not something that’s designed
in Cambridge. We act as support,

we act as consultancy, we make sure that
the qualification will be recognized

internationally, we make sure that in
every step as they develop the new

processes, they are always done
to the highest standard,

but this is not a process done
in Cambridge,

this is a solution designed in Armenia.

One thing that we know from working
with so many countries is

that if you take a solution
from one country

and move it to somewhere else,

even if it was a good solution
for the first country

it’s unlikely to have the same
positive effect in the new country.

So, one of the really positive things
about working with Ayb is

that they are designing something
specifically for the Armenian market.

You think it works?

Yes, definitely, it’s essential.

It couldn’t work any other way,
what our job is to make sure that

those specialists in Armenia, have the

technical skills and the technical
experience that we can bring to that.

But it’s essential that the qualification
is created by Armenians, in Armenia,

because it’s only people locally
that understand

how the questions will be interpreted,
how the learning will play in Armenia,

we can’t know that from Cambridge.

Which will be the differences between our
old program graduates and

Araratian Baccalaureate graduates?
What we hope to see? Anything new,

anything good? What will it be?

The Baccalaureate has been designed

to provide opportunities for students,
so it works on a number of principles,

first of all it’s very carefully thought
about the skills, talents and aspirations

that students have, and that will be
recognized by universities and employers

both in Armenia and internationally, so
we’re thinking about high thinking

skills, creative skills, analytical
skills, evaluation, those kind of

internationally recognized skills.
Those are things that are present in the

very best, world class international
curricula and they are present

in the Araratian Baccalaureate. And by
encouraging those skills in students

those students will be valued in the
workplace and internationally by

universities. The second part is that we
are operating to standards that

are equivalent to qualifications
internationally, so we benchmark the

standards to international qualifications,

and we have designed the
qualification specifically to do that,

we have also had that recognized
by extra or third party agencies

to make sure we have that
recognition by universities.

So, we can tell a very powerful story
about the skills and talents

of students taking the Baccalaureate.
And those are recognized by universities

and that provides opportunities for the

students taking the qualification.

Our President announced about creating

new school network offering the Araratian
Baccalaureate.

What will it change in our country?

One of the key things in the very best
education systems is a concept that we

refer to as “coherence.” And what I mean
by coherence is that there is a

vision of what’s trying to be achieved and
then all aspects of the education system

are aligned to that vision –

so the curriculum, the teacher training,

pedagogy in the classroom, the school
facilities, the assessments, the funding –

everything is aligned to the vision,
that’s true of the Araratian Baccalaureate

and that’s what we’re hoping, that not
only the people taking the qualification

directly but also the other schools can
benefit from that vision.

Examinations in Armenia are conducted by
Araratian Baccalaureate Examination Center

but you sign up for it.
What do you think about quality of

examinations, and the education of the
pupils?

When it comes to the Araratian
Baccalaureate Examination Center it’s

my job and my team's job to make sure that
the standards that they operate

are the same standards that are operated
on Cambridge’s own international

qualifications. And we wouldn’t sign to
put our support behind unless

we believed that was true.
And they were working really hard and

to a very high standard, to a very high
quality and I am very happy

to support that.

The Araratian Baccalaureate is an
internationally-recognized

Armenian-language educational program
intended for high school students.

Thus, after completing basic school
students can opt for one of the two

state-approved programs: if students
opt for the current educational program

they automatically move to high school,
while in case of the

Araratian Baccalaureate, all students are
expected to take admission exams.

Upon successfully completing the

Araratian Baccalaureate high school
program, students receive a certificate

bearing the logo of the Cambridge
University, by which the latter confirms

the quality of the program.
The certificate enables and

facilitates admission to local
and international universities,

in this case, if necessary, students
will be expected to take only

the exams which they did not take
when completing the program.

Presently only Ayb School offers
the Araratian Baccalaureate,

however, by 2018, 20 schools in
Armenian regions and one school in Artsakh

are projected to be certified as
Araratian Baccalaureate schools.

You shouldn’t confuse the Araratian
Baccalaureate with Ayb School.

Education in Araratian Baccalaureate
schools will be free of charge.

The Araratian Baccalaureate is the
only internationally-recognized program

which is delivered in Armenian.

And the last question, non-professional.

What you hope to see in Armenia?
What is interesting for you in Armenia?

After I finish working,
I have invited my wife

to join me for the next three days,
so we’re spending the time touring round.

We’re going to head up the mountains,
we’re going to do some wine tasting and

spend some time in Yerevan. It’s a
beautiful country and I am hoping that

in the next three-four days
I will have a chance

to really get to know some
more of the country.

Thank you for the interesting
conversation.

I would like to remind you that our
today’s guest was Dan Bray,

Deputy Director at Cambridge University's
Cambridge International Examinations,

who is in Armenia to support

the grading of the Araratian Baccalaureate
graduation exams.

Goodbye.