The Azerbaijan education code requires that teachers in grades one-eleven complete 156 clock-hours of inservice education every live years. Courses are offered for teachers in the regions outside of Baku by the Azerbaijan Inservice Education Institute and for teachers in Baku by the parallel Baku Inservice Institute, both branches of the Ministry of Education. Approximately 20% of Azeri teachers are excused from this requirement because of illness, pregnancy, young children in the home, warinjuries, and other reasons. Current practice results in the scheduling of inservice education for about 16% of teachers every year. This is usually a month-long course offered during the summer months, but it may also be offered one day each week from October through May. Additional courses are discipline-specific and may be conducted in three six-hour days, six days, or eighteen days, depending on content.
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Alan N ( RAW I OKI)
ASI
The selection of content for inservice education is based on changes in curriculum emanating from the Azerbaijan Pedagogical Research Institute ami the Scientific and Methodological Center on Educational Problems, on questionnaires sent to regional educational departments, and on input from instructional staff in the inservice institutes. In addition, teacher opinions and suggestions about content and strategies are solicited by trainers in the inservice institutes.