YEREVAN. – More than 40,000 children will attend school in Armenia for the first time this year.

Head of the Public Education Department at the Ministry of Education and Science, Narine Hovhannisyan, stated the above-said at a press conference on Monday. She noted that the number of first-graders in the country has increased in 2015, as compared to the year past.

“Last year, for example, we had 38,000 schoolchildren,” she added. “But the exact number of schoolchildren [for this year] will be determined after September 10.”

Hovhannisyan also noted that the books for Armenia’s first- to fourth-graders will be provided at no cost.

The Public Education Department head informed that one hundred more schools will join the Armenian National Song and Dance subject in the forthcoming academic year in the country.

“At the moment, teachers are undergoing training,” added Narine Hovhannisyan. “And they will undergo training on a regular basis also throughout the year.”