Key to raising standards

PETER Tabichi, a Mathematics and Physics teacher from a remote village in Kenya, won the prestigious Global Teacher Prize this year, beating 10,000 others from 179 countries. He was declared winner of the US$1mil prize at a ceremony in Dubai last month.

Tabichi was faced with desperately limited resources, including books and teachers, at his school where classes were taught in groups of up to 70 or 80 students. Lack of a reliable Internet connection meant he had to travel far to a cyber cafe to download materials for his Science lessons.

Many of his students walk 7km on bad roads, which can become impassable during the rainy season, to reach their school.

On top of that, he donates 80% of his salary to support students who could not afford uniforms or books. Almost all the students are from very disadvantaged families, and many were orphaned or had lost a parent. Drug abuse and teenage pregnancies are common in the village.

Despite all these challenges, Tabichi’s students beat their peers from the best schools to win national and international science competitions, and also received an award from the United Kingdom Royal Society of Chemistry. Many children who were expected to drop out of school and girls who were supposed to be married off early have now gone on to colleges or universities.

Tabichi’s achievement confirms that good teachers who show love and care can make the difference whatever the limitations, and that dedication and concern for the children can overcome all obstacles.

Malaysian teacher Muhamad Khairul Anuar Hussin from Johor Baru was nominated and shortlisted for the 2019 Global Teacher Prize.

In 2017, an English teacher from Sabah, Mohd Sirhajwan Idek, won the prestigious International Innovation and Entrepreneurship Excellence in Teaching Award, beating nine other finalists from the United States, United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Canada, Denmark and Colombia.

Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik himself emotionally paid tribute to his teacher, Ustaz Sakijan Muri, at the Education Mandate 2019 event on Jan 14 for inspiring him to become a politician.

Finland’s education standards are among the best in the world and it consistently achieves outstanding Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) results. Its education policies are highly praised but the real success is due to having good teachers.

In Finland, institutions offering teaching programmes are the most rigorous and selective professional schools in the entire country. Highly prestigious, the teaching profession is so popular that only one in 10 applicants is accepted each year.

The “lucky” successful applicants are selected based on various criteria across a broad spectrum and not just on their academic score. Academically best students are not necessarily the best teachers. Similarly, best students won’t necessarily make the best doctors.

Successful education systems are more about getting the right people to become career-long teachers. This can be seen in the fact that many of the best students do not become great teachers. But they do need to love working with children and have patience to deal with their disobedience and rebellions and also the passion to teach.

Good teacher training is also critical in raising our standards of education. In Finland, teachers are thoroughly trained and prepared for the great challenges ahead of them in their profession. Most parents would understand the challenges involved in handling children from dealing with their own brood at home. Each child is idiosyncratic in his or her own ways.

In Finland, trainee teachers are required to complete an advanced, research-based master’s degree in teacher education before they are allowed to teach. They are also required to participate in in-service training every year to keep upgrading their skills.

Parents must also place their full trust in teachers. Finnish teachers enjoy a high degree of trust and autonomy in their jobs. They are allowed a great deal of responsibilities and unfettered flexibility in what and how they teach.

Every teacher and every child is a unique combination and requires an individual approach. There are no specific pre-prepared plans or instructions, and no sample questions or answers to follow.

The teachers do not need to provide evidence to prove their teaching skills. Instead, annual development discussions with school heads provide feedback on a teacher’s own assessment of his/her strengths and weaknesses. In this way, the teachers can adjust and adapt their teaching to the needs of a particular class and children, and also based on the culture of the community where the schools are located.

Finally and most importantly, good teachers will impart to the children confidence in themselves and the positive attitudes to take up future challenges.

We want our next generation to be educated beyond textbook knowledge and standard examination answers.

In Malaysia, the number of teachers in government and government-aided schools was 422,369 in 2016. So we need many good teachers to bring up our education standards.

In summary, getting good teachers is the key to improving our education standards. To do this, the government must concentrate on making the teaching profession attractive and prestigious.

Teaching is a noble profession but we need to get the most suitable applicants (those who are passionate about teaching), provide them with rigorous training, and trust them by allowing them flexibility to conduct their classes.

We also need to address the concerns of teachers, such as their job environment and promotion prospects, cut down on bureaucracy and paperwork as well as accord them due respect and recognition for their work and sacrifice throughout their career.

DR KO CHUNG SEN Assemblyperson for Kepayang Perak