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Educators attend professional development sessions |04 September 2015

A series of professional development sessions for educators and other officers of the Ministry of Education are taking place at the Seychelles Institute of Teachers Education (Site). 

The sessions, which were launched yesterday and will continue today, tomorrow, as well as on Thursday, Friday and Saturday next week, are being attended by primary and secondary teachers, childminders and day care personnel, teacher trainers, curriculum and assessment developers.

Professor Mick Waters from Wolverhampton University in the UK is conducting the sessions sponsored by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the Children’s House, the Vimentis Group, Air Seychelles and the Seychelles Young Leaders Association and Young Africa Leaders initiative.

“The Ministry of Education firmly believes in investing in the professional development of teachers so that they are empowered to transform the teaching and learning environment to bring about positive change in the learners,” said Merida Delcy, the principal secretary for early childhood, primary and secondary education. 

“It is from this perspective that one of the priorities of the education sector’s medium-term strategy 2013-2017 and beyond focuses specifically on the professional development of teachers across all levels,” added Ms Delcy. 

According to Ms Delcy, the series of sessions under the theme ‘Teaching and Learning Matters’ is special because it is targeting early childhood educators and care givers, secondary teachers, teacher trainers and curriculum developers from state and private schools and child care institutions.

“It is equally special because it is the first time that such a workshop has been organised at national level for over 500 educators from schools, day care centres, childminding services on Mahé and Praslin,” noted Ms Delcy.

She said that for some, a one-day session for each group may be perceived as relatively short, but research shows that professional development for teachers offered in short duration sessions followed by classroom implementation is more effective than longer sessions.

“This professional development programme also demonstrates the special collaboration between the Ministry of Education and its partners and the commitment of the private sector,” said the PS.

Professor Waters, who has extensive experience in the education field, noted that   “teachers never stop learning”.

“With these sessions we will learn together how to make a better future for our children and we will see how to teach pupil to learn language and mathematics in a more interesting way,” he said.

“I also want the teachers to think about the latest research and developments in the education field and will address how to help children behave at school and within the family. For sure there will be a lot of thinking on how a child behaves in class,” added Prof. Waters.

The director of Children’s House, Lucy Talbot, was the one who invited the Professor to Seychelles.

“After viewing one of his talks online, I wanted him to come and share his experiences with our teachers. Then I wrote to Ms Delcy to see how other teachers can benefit from his experience. As teachers we need to develop our skills and we are in a learning path that never stops. The private sector with the government need to work together to help the children of Seychelles have a better future,” said Ms Talbot.

Delegates from day care and childminding services will focus on “looking after the little ones”; the primary teachers will concentrate on “making learning irresistible in the classroom”; and the secondary teachers will focus on “where learning meets the learner”.

This, according to Ms Talbot, further illustrates that the responsibility of educating the nation does not rest solely on one entity and that in this 21st Century, all stakeholders have an important part to play in the education of our children, no matter what age they are or in what learning context they are placed. 

All sessions are being held at the Site auditorium except for the one on Thursday next week which will take place at the Baie Ste Anne school from 1.30pm to 3.30pm for childminders on the island.

 

 

 

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