My WorldView. Rediscovering Yeghvard

Radio Arevik continues its series on winning projects of Visual Armenia’s “Smart Boards for WorldView Schools 2024”. It’s show Alarm Clock recently featured Manya Sahakyan, an Armenian language and literature teacher from Yeghvard No. 1 High School, along with her students Tamara and Milena. Their project, titled “Discovering Yeghvard: A New Lens with My WorldView,” was one of the winners of the Smart Board competition, which promotes innovative educational projects across Armenian public schools.

The timing and the theme of the interview were not chosen accidentally, it aligned with World Cities Day on October 31 – a UN-recognized event celebrating urban spaces since 2014. Yeghvard team’s project addressed themes of community, identity and the future, casting fresh light on their city. In discussing the project, team leader Manya Sahakyan explained that the goal was to explore Yeghvard from a younger generation’s viewpoint, engaging students, residents, and the broader community to envision its potential growth and evolution. Rather than focusing solely on the city’s historical and cultural landmarks, students used the platform to express their ideas about Yeghvard’s future development and role as a living, evolving place.

Ms. Sahakyan highlighted how the project enabled students to uncover aspects of Yeghvard that often go unnoticed. For instance, an ancient gospel from Jerusalem, dating back to 1464, is preserved in the home of a Yeghvard resident. The town also has a little-known open-air theater, and the music for a song dedicated to Yeghvard—featuring lyrics by the Armenian poet Silva Kaputikyan—has been rediscovered and re-arranged after years of obscurity. Through this process of discovery, the project reconnected students with their roots, enriching their understanding of the city and deepening their sense of appreciation and pride. The students reflected on how the project inspired them to consider tangible ways to contribute to Yeghvard’s growth, support tourism, and amplify its presence on a larger scale. They shared how the experience transformed how they see and cherish their hometown.

Tamara and Milena spoke about how the smart board has revolutionized their learning experience, bringing dynamic, interactive elements into the classroom. They described using it across subjects to explore diverse educational materials and watch multimedia content. “We engage in active learning with the platform’s interactive maps and measurement tools,” Ms. Sahakyan added. “The ability to annotate, save, and revisit our work not only enhances engagement but also saves valuable time. With the smart board and WorldView platform, students work collaboratively, present ideas and solutions, and visualize their analyses in real-time.”

Listen to the full interview here: https://bit.ly/3AnSc6s, or listen to it below: