A Command of English Will Be An “Indispensable”

A Command of English Will Be An "Indispensable" Requirement For
University In Cuba / 14ymedio, Orlando Palma
Posted on September 10, 2015

14ymedio, Orlando Palma/EFE, Havana, 7 September 2015 – In the coming
years, the command of English will be an "indispensable" requirement to
receive a university degree in Cuba, according to an announcement made
this Monday by the Minister of Higher Education on the island, Rodolfo
Alarcon.

The education minister made it public along with the other changes that
will begin to take effect in the 2016-17 school year, and will also
include the creation of two-year programs of study. From now on English
will disappear as an obligatory subject in the university class
schedules, but the new rule will be implemented to the extent that the
conditions are created in every province in the country.

Even though a university student has complied with all the requirements
of their specialty, according to the minister, they will not receive
their diploma "if they have not taken the exams to qualify as an
independent speaker of this language."

Alarcon confirmed the words offered by Cuban vice president Jose Machado
Ventura about the learning of English. "We have to resolve the problem
of Cuban professionals not being able to express themselves in the
universal language of our time," said the official. The lack of teachers
in this subject in general education cannot continue to impact graduates
of higher education from arriving at their professional life without the
power to sustain a simple conversation in a language that is universal
in the academic environment.

To achieve this objective, the universities will offer the students
"courses and access to computer platforms to allow them to learn
independently," he added. However, he admitted that the measure will be
applied gradually because first, "we have to create the conditions to
apply them."

Alarcon said they will work to achieve an international standard for the
English degree that Cuban universities will offer.

Among other changes, a new educational level called Non-University
Higher Education will be created. Admission will require mastery at a
high school level. "The programs will last two, two and a half, or three
years, according to the case," the minister detailed, and "will be used
to prepare people for specific occupations in the labor market."

The main changes will affect access to the encounter courses and
distance education. The current application of entrance exams for this
form of education "has become a barrier not only cognitive, but also
psychological, for these people who are workers and who have not studied
for years." In the near future, the student could enter with a high
school diploma and move directly to the education without an entrance exam.

Directors and specialists of the Ministry of Higher Education will be
available to answer questions about the new measures through the digital
site of the newspaper Granma starting at 3:00 pm on Tuesday.

Source: A Command of English Will Be An "Indispensable" Requirement For
University In Cuba / 14ymedio, Orlando Palma | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/a-command-of-english-will-be-an-indispensable-requirement-for-university-in-cuba-14ymedio-orlando-palma/