In the 1940s, the Shumen Semi-Higher Teachers’ Institute “Dr. Petar Beron” was established in the city of Shumen, and a little later and in parallel – the Higher Pedagogical Institute.
In 1983, the establishment of a Faculty for the Training of Pre-school and Primary School Teachers was authorized at the Higher Pedagogical Institute, and in 1984, by Decree of the Council of Ministers, the Semi-Higher Institute “Dr. Petar Beron” merged with the Faculty. Educational activities began with two specialties: for primary and pre-school teachers. Later, the Faculty was renamed and restructured into the Faculty for Training of Primary Teachers, and the structure of the Shumen University was supplemented by the Faculty of Preschool and Special Pedagogy and the Faculty of Pedagogy of Fine Arts.
Today’s Faculty of Education is its successor and is one of the seven main structural units of the University of Shumen, where over 3,000 students are educated in Bachelor’s and Master’s programs and over 70 doctoral students in the Doctoral program.
The collective work of generations of teachers, employees, students and public figures has established the Faculty of Education as a balanced organisational structure that allows for the implementation of a flexible educational policy, consistent with:
- the dynamics of the labor market;
- changes in the attitudes, needs and requirements of students;
- national regulations;
- trends in the educational system.
Over the years, a balance has been achieved in actions in several directions, including: student application activity, learning process, educational documentation, the student’s life cycle, development of the academic staff, internationalization and international dimension, material resources, financial security, scientific research and artistic creative activity.
The mission and purpose of the Faculty of Education correspond to the subject and content of its activities, in line with the requirements and values of higher education, aimed at satisfying the public needs in education, culture and science of Northeastern Bulgaria and the entire country.
Combining in its functions educational and scientific activity, transfer of knowledge and technologies, the Faculty takes into account the importance of each element. The Faculty of Education shapes its academic profile by successfully combining the traditional pedagogical heritage with the modern scientific directions and priorities of its educational, scientific research, artistic and sports activities, which are expressed in:
- the preparation of highly qualified, mobile and adaptable to modern pedagogical realities teachers from all specialties in accordance with the requirements and dynamics of the development of education and the labor market;
- ensuring the pedagogical training of students from teaching specialties of all faculties for the acquisition of teaching qualifications;
- creating conditions for the preparation of students as specialists, possessing professional knowledge, skills and competencies, providing them with the opportunity to cope with the practical peculiarity of pedagogical activity in regions with a population of multi-ethnic, multicultural composition and different religions, by educating and training in a spirit of tolerance and respect for different ethnic values;
- carrying out applied research in response to the needs of society related to increasing the effectiveness of the educational process and the professionalism of future specialists and teachers;
- integrating into the European research area by expanding inter-institutional national and international cooperation and partnership with scientific and educational organizations;
- involving students and doctoral students through the educational, research and artistic creative process in achievements in the educational sphere;
- creating an optimal educational environment for increasing the level of education, qualification and retraining of university graduates and other personnel from the region and the country on the path of continuing education and lifelong learning;
- organizing international scientific forums and ensuring the dissemination and publication of the scientific and creative achievements of teachers, doctoral candidates and students.
Our mission is for our graduates and staff involved in training to be confident and sensitive in a different cultural environment, to understand different perspectives beyond the limits of their own regime, to have solid experience, to be flexible, curious, adaptable, capable of effective communication in a multicultural environment.