“This is by now the best way to connect a student to a lesson… it’s a lifeline for schools,” a conversation with the principal of Gyumri School No. 7

Gyumri School No. 7, situated on Alex Manoogian Street, has a deep-rooted connection to the philanthropic Manoogian family. Principal Gagik Karapetyan recalls the devastating 1988 earthquake, which left the school operating out of temporary shacks. It was then that he had a life-changing encounter with Louise Manoogian Simone, who succeeded her father, Alex Manoogian, in becoming the President of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU). She pledged to help the students get a proper school building. True to her word, an abandoned music college was reinforced and completely renovated. A decade after the earthquake, the school, under Karapetyan’s leadership, celebrated the grand opening of its new building, with Louise Manoogian Simone in attendance.

Decades later, the paths of the school and the Manoogian Simone family crossed again. This time, the benefactor is Christine Simone, Louise Simone’s daughter. Gyumri School No. 7 participated in and won the “Smart Boards for WorldView Schools 2024” competition. Thanks to “Visual Armenia” and its main supporter, Christine Simone, the President of the Manoogian Simone Foundation, the school was equipped with a new-generation smart board.

“Thanks to the smart board, we’ve taken a huge leap forward,” notes Principal Karapetyan. He connects the new technology to the school’s motto, “Dream, learn, conquer,” calling the board both a “dream and a conquest.” I have always believed that education in the 21st century cannot be organized with archaic methods – with chalk and a regular blackboard. The learning process should be interesting for the student, and this smart board doesn’t let the learner get bored and ask, ‘When will the bell ring?’ They are constantly immersed in a world that is interesting to them.”

Karapetyan has not yet met Ms.Simone, but he is eagerly awaiting the opportunity. First, he wants to thank her in person and then urge her not to stop. “If our sponsors knew what a great mission it is to equip a school with an electronic whiteboard, they would put in more effort. This is a more powerful method than computer-based learning. For the student, everything is more visible, more engaging, and more heartfelt. This is a lifeline for schools, especially in rural areas. WorldView allows for simultaneous development in both cities and villages.”

Gagik Karapetyan, who has been a principal for 40 years, considers the introduction of WorldView and smart boards into the school a breakthrough from an educational perspective. The lessons have become more interesting and student-centered, and the number of students skipping class has sharply decreased. “I tell them, ‘Come to class tomorrow, we’re going to use the smart board.’ And they come,” he says with a laugh.

Karapetyan is even more enthusiastic than the students. He says that good students always find their own way of learning, but the way of learning must be shown to those who struggle. “This is by now the best way to connect a student to a lesson. With WorldView, the learner feels like a citizen of the times, a modern person; they participate in the lesson and start making suggestions. Instead of getting tired and waiting for the bell to ring, they get motivated. I have always thought that we should have a national school with a modern look. These tools convey the spirit of the times to the student. If you could only see the joy of my grandson that they have a smart board in their classroom and how they feel as participants in their own learning process.”

It is no longer possible to imagine a lesson or a project-based lesson without a smart board. The most in-demand classroom in the school is the one with the smart board. For now, it is the only one at Gyumri School No. 7. Karapetyan jokes, “The bad thing about this board is that the students argue with me about why they don’t have one in their classroom.”

True to his school’s motto, Gagik Karapetyan envisions a future where all schools are equipped with as many smart boards as possible.