Latest update April 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jun 17, 2008 News
In order to ensure that favourable results are derived from the various literacy programmes in primary schools, as well as to determine the efficacy of teachers in this regard, the Ministry of Education has been relying on a recently introduced supervision initiative.
And according to Education Minister Shaik Baksh, the initiative is in fact a broadened inspectorate of the ministry, which is tasked with monitoring, evaluating and reporting on what is taking place in the school system.
The venture became imperative, the minister said, since it was observed that there was a lack of dedication on the part of some teachers.
“It is important…that we have all of the teachers in the primary schools dedicated, and this is lacking and has caused the Ministry of Education to ensure greater supervision of the school system to ensure that the teachers are doing what they are supposed to do — teach the nation’s children, especially in the area of reading and writing.”
For this reason, the minister said, he has asked the inspectorate to overlook the literacy programmes, since literacy is the very foundation of education.
And, according to the minister, a number of things have since been revealed through this process.
He divulged that in the conduct of an added literacy venture in schools, dubbed ‘the literacy hour and shared reading,’ several teachers have been unpunctual and are therefore sacrificing the time that should be dedicating to the students.
“The pupils are arriving on time, but because the teachers are late, they do not get their full hour. They sometimes merely get a half-hour. (This) is totally unacceptable,” the minister asserted.
This problem, the minister added, will not go unnoticed, since intervention measures to remedy the situation will be undertaken.
The intention of this move, he said, is to ensure that there is thorough supervision to ensure that the schools effectively run programmes that are laid down by the ministry.
Emphasising his concern about the literacy level, the minister said that should such practices persist, he will have no choice but to hold the heads of schools responsible.
According to the minister, “There will be no failure in literacy programmes as long as I am Minister of Education…We will not only use local expertise, but also international expertise to ensure that failure is not on the agenda.”
The minister revealed that measures will also be put in place to address the problem of teachers’ absenteeism. He disclosed that while this problem has persisted for some time in the sector, it has been reduced considerably since last year.
This he attributed to a strong policy and policy enforcement through a new policy implementation unit which was set up by the ministry. As such, he noted, teachers attending university are monitored closely.
However, he said, there are still some reports of teachers who continue to absent themselves from school, and the ministry has had cause to write to them.
But, according to the minister, once the ministry is forced to write to teachers on more than two times, the next thing will be to report them to the Teaching Services Commission, a move which could in fact affect their promotional chances, the minister noted.
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Apr 19, 2024
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