TEHRAN Millions of students in various educational levels went back to school Saturday morning, the start of the new academic year.
President Khatami struck the bell at a Tehran high school to mark the opening of classes, and later spoke briefly to the students in which he underlined the role of the young generation in the development of the country.
Some 1.520 million elementary school students went back to classes throughout the country on Thursday amidst ceremonies dubbed the "Feast of Blossoms".
The Education Ministry announced that this year 648,000 first grade elementary students in rural schools will also be attending classes.
A total of 18,885,770 students are enrolled in schools and universities throughout the country for the new academic year, an increase of 240,788 over the preceding year.
According to a new regulation adopted by the Education Ministry, elementary school students, for the first time since the revolution, can choose to wear bright-colored school uniforms.
In his message for the occasion, Minister of Science, Research and Technology Mostafa Moin underlined the outstanding role and status of universities in the realization of national unity and security.
"Through the inculcation of a scientific ethic and spirit, institutionalization of a culture of dialog and reinforcement of mechanisms for the settlement of differences, universities can leave lasting effects (on the minds of students) of the need to maintain social order and national security," the message further read.
In a similar message, Education Minister Hossein Mozaffar said that decentralization, public participation and optimum employment of available potentials are the pivotal policies of his ministry.
In addition to the millions of students who are in state universities, a roughly equivalent number are enrolled in various courses in the Azad University for this academic year.
Chancellor of the Azad University, Abdollah Jasbi, in a message on the occasion of the opening of classes, called on students and all academicians to work for unity and national convergence.
Meanwhile, Addressing the ceremony held on the occasion of the nationwide beginning of the new academic year, the president said faith and science are two main pillars of life but stressed that the students themselves as champions on the stage play a determining role.
Underlining the important status of teachers in the field of education, President Khatami said that students should be encouraged to raise their questions freely.
He told the students that they belonged to a nation who was experiencing religious democracy within the country and the proposal for dialog among civilizations at international arena.
Stressing that Islamic Iran was paying heed to a type of democracy based on its historical, religious and cultural identity, the chief executive called on students at various stages, especially those at high school and vocational training levels, to respond to his two questions.
He raised the two questions as: Where does religion and freedom stand in the Constitution which is the basis for national unity and, how the world can become more pleasant through dialog of civilizations? Prior to the president's remarks, Education Minister Hossein Mozaffar delivered speech in which he said that 1.062 million teachers, educators and staff will be active in educational field by running 118,000 educational centers.
(IRNA)