Education Minister: Romanian language must be bridge, and state must give everyone chance to learn it

The Romanian language must be a bridge between citizens, and the state has the responsibility to create conditions so that every person can learn and use it, through access to education, courses, and training programs, said Minister of Education and Research Dan Perciun.

“The Romanian language must not be a barrier, it must be a bridge. Knowing the Romanian language means the possibility to participate fully in the life of this country; it means access to education, to work, to culture, to institutions, the possibility to speak to one another and to build together the same society,” said Perciun.

The minister noted that the authorities are implementing the second National Program for studying the Romanian language and continue to provide access to courses for adults who want to learn the language or improve their level of proficiency.

“We continue to ensure access to Romanian language courses for adults who want to learn it or speak it better. But in this new stage we are going further. We are placing a much stronger emphasis on access to the Romanian language starting from kindergarten, because we know how important early contact with the language is. We want to fundamentally improve the experience of learning Romanian in school. The new curriculum will place a much greater emphasis on real communication and on the child’s ability to use the language in everyday life, not just on memorizing rules,” the minister noted.

Dan Perciun mentioned that solutions will also be sought for communities where there is a shortage of Romanian language teachers, including in Gagauzia and Taraclia.

“We will improve the assessment of Romanian language competences, we will invest in teacher training, we will have new textbooks, we will expand visits, exchanges of experience, and the transfer of good practices with Romania. And where communities face a lack of Romanian language teachers, including in Gagauzia and Taraclia, we will encourage experienced teachers to go and teach there, including through support mechanisms and relocation allowances when there are not enough specialists at the local level,” the minister added.

At the same time, the minister stressed that promoting the Romanian language also involves openness toward citizens who have a different mother tongue.

“Each of us, through the way we speak and write, contributes to preserving, passing on, and developing the Romanian language. But precisely because we see the Romanian language as the foundation of our common space, we also have an equally important duty: to open this community as widely as possible, to welcome into the great family of Romanian speakers our fellow citizens who have a different mother tongue, regardless of their age, ethnicity, or the locality in which they live,” said Dan Perciun.

The statements were made during the Great National Dictation, held today in the center of the capital, in the Great National Assembly Square. Now at its fourth edition, the event brings together over 3,000 participants from Chisinau and from across the country.