TOMSK, 29 March – Tomsk community schools participated in the Youth Forum of Civic Initiatives held in the context of the development of public-state governance of education foreseen in the course of the Priority National Project in Education.

The Forum stroke a balance to the inter-regional project "Youth Civic Marathon 'Russia-Democracy-Education'”. The activities of the Forum allowed for broadening the circle of participants and presenting experience of educational institutions in civic education, work with civic education centers, social project development by school students, and in the organization of school students’ self-governance.

The Forum was promoted by the General Education Department of Tomsk region and the Regional Centre for the Development of Education. Among the partners of the Forum there were Zaozernaya School # 16 of Tomsk and other schools of the city and Tomsk region that work as a base of civic education in the region.

The work of the Forum consisted of three main blocks:

• the work of Civic Education Centers;
• school students’ self-governance;
• implementation of social projects.

In March 2007, along with the Forum, various educational activities of Civic Education Centers were carried out by students and educators in the cities of Tomsk, Strezhevoi, Kedrov, Seversk, as well as Asinvosky, Bakcharovsky, Zyryanovsky, Kozhevnikovsky, Krivosheinsky, Molchanovsky and Tomsk districts.

Thus, on March 29, 2007 teams of students and educators of 40 educational institutions from 10 districts of Tomsk region participated in the main activities of the Youth Forum.

• presentations of models of school students' self-governance;
• open defense of social projects at the regional stage of the All-Russian “I'm Russian Citizen" Campaign;
• master-classes on technologies of school students' self-governance;
• presentations of pin board reports of the Civic Education Centers;
• awards to winners of regional stages of various All-Russian competitions.

Contact: Lyudmila Budkova, head of the Civic Education Department of the City Education Board, (3822) 515666, e-mail: ogo@education.tomsk.ru.