"Treasury", national reader no. 1, which is intended for first and second grade elementary students, has started to be distributed in schools in Serbia. According to information from the field, "Treasure" arrived in Vrnjačka Banja on Tuesday, and its arrival was also announced in Kraljevo.
So, instead of September 2, the first day of school, in the best case scenario it will reach all students by the end of October.
The Minister of Education is Slavica Đukić Dejanović before the start of this school year announced that first and second grade students will receive national reading books during the school year, and after them successively other students.
Then on September 24, she presented "Treasury", the first of four national reading books, which is intended for first and second graders and announced that it will be distributed to students in the following days.
When "Vremena" inquired through the viber group of reference trade unions of educators whether the national reader reached the schools during the weekend and Monday, the answer was no, but they expect it.
At the same time, when "Vremena" asked the Institute for Textbooks, the publisher of the national reading book, whether "Treasury" was distributed to all elementary schools in Serbia, they answered on Monday that it was, that "it was distributed to all elementary schools."
Since the the goal and intention of the national readership to awaken national consciousness and patriotism among students, educators commented that it is more necessary for students in older grades than for first-graders who are just learning to read, and for whom topics about Serbian history and other Serbian things can be a burden, and that is why this whole project can produces the opposite effect.
The national reading book cannot be bought in a bookstore, because it is free and distributed directly to students.
We are waiting for what teachers and other experts will say about its content and the way it teaches children patriotism.