It is never too late to learn.

Ukrainian proverb

Historians say that literacy existed before Kyiv Rus was baptized but we know too little about that period to form any definite conclusions. In fact, we can trace the schooling tradition to the time of the baptism of Rus, when the Cyrillic alphabet was given to the Slavs by the great enlightener St.Cyril. Christian monasteries and temples became the first venues of literacy. Every such religious community had a school where monks and priests were the first teachers.

In the 16th-18th c. an increasing number of schools were set up by national religious-educational communities — so-called Brotherhoods. The Greek-Slavonic-Latin Collegium, Ukraine's first institution of higher learning, was founded in Ostroh, in 1576.

At the turn of the 18th c. the level of public literacy placed Ukraine ahead of a number of Western and Eastern European countries. Schools were then to be found in most of the villages.

The first universities appeared in Kharkiv (1805), Kyiv (1834) and Odesa (1865). Later, "specialized institutes" were opened for training industrial, railroad engineers, agronomists, physicians and specialists in the other fields.

It is never too late to learn. - student2.ru Present-day independent Ukraine has got a rather developed system of education, which in many respects answers the standards of the developed countries. General secondary education is free and compulsory. Post-secondary education is acceptable to one and all.

The educational system includes over 23,000 preschool educational establishments (child daycare centers). The basic link of the system is general educational school, of which there are 21,350 now. This school has three stages: primary, basic and senior. Of late there appeared a new type of schools meant for gifted children. There are gymnasiums and lycees, private schools in our country.

An important role in the educational system is played by vocational training schools providing almost 800 qualifications.

Post-secondary education is provided by technical schools and colleges training young specialists and institutions of higher learning: universities, academies, institutes and conservatories, including 14 classical and 45 technological and branch universities, 30 academies and 72 institutes. Ukraine numbers a total of 1,5 million college-and-university students. A multilevel system of training is being introduced based on the junior specialist — B.A. — specialist — M.A. scheme.

The alternative system of higher education is gaining momentum made up of non-government institutions.

Institutions of higher learning enroll some 12,000 foreign students, postgraduates and visiting graduates, of whom 8,000 are on Ukrainian government scholarship.

Ukraine is party to intergovernmental agreements on education with 32 countries and cooperates with more than 50 international educational organizations, programs, and foundations.

COMPREHENSION

Answer the questions:

1. What is the history of Ukraine?

2. What is the climate and geographical position of Ukraine ideal for?

3. What is the role of the Danube?

4. How many administrative regions are there in Ukraine?

5. Are Ukrainians a strongly religious people?

6. Where does the central area of Kyiv lie?

7. When did Kyiv become the capital of the Ukrainian Republic?

8. What are three main groups of Ukrainian dialects?

9. Where are the oldest universities of Ukraine?

10. What is the system of Schooling in Ukraine like today?