Gateway signs MoU with World’s number one Teacher Education Institution at the International Forum for Teachers
Gateway Graduate School entered into a working relationship with the prestigious University of London to offer the Professional Graduate Certificate in Education ( PGCE) to the teaching professionals of Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and Nepal. This programme was officially launched on the second day of the International Forum for Teachers (IFT) 2019.
The fourth consecutive International Forum for Teachers (IFT) was conducted by Gateway Graduate School, the higher education and professional development arm of the Gateway Group, in collaboration with the University of London, Pearson Edexcel and other leading international education institutions such as the University of Nottingham Malaysia, Macquarie University and RMIT University.
The highly successful conference, which was attended by more than 900 teachers, principals and education professionals of more than 40 international, private and state schools, was held on September 20th and September 21st 2019 at BMICH, Colombo. As with last year, due to popular demand, the conference was repeated over two days.
IFT’s mission is to assist in developing world-class teachers through global partnership, collaboration and dialogue. The annual conference of the IFT offers delegates the opportunities to network, exchange best practices and gain better understanding of the rapidly changing environments of school education globally.
The Theme – ‘Reach, Teach, Guide: Teachers Make the Difference’
The 2019 conference specifically considered the imperative role that teachers play in counselling and supporting learners to make decisions and solve problems related to personal, communal, national and global matters. The speakers, panellists and participants at IFT 2019, discussed and debated the increasing expectations on educators to go beyond their subject-matter expertise to help students realise that conventional notions of knowledge, skills and competences are being redefined continuously.
Major Outcomes of the IFT 2019 Conference
Mr. Vikas Singh, Managing Director of Pearson South Asia, was the Chief Guest at IFT 2019. On both days, the conference began with the opening speech of Dr. Harsha Alles, Chairman of Gateway Group, who highlighted the importance of teachers acting as guides to their students in order to facilitate their development as well- rounded leaders and citizens of the 21st century world.
Prof. Ganakumaran Subramaniam, the Head of School of Education at the University of Nottingham Malaysia, acted as the Moderator of the conference and guided the overall direction of the proceedings in a stimulating fashion.
The summary of the conference presentations by the individual speakers is as follows:
Prof. Udith Jayasinghe-Mudalige, Dean – Faculty of Agriculture and Plantation Management, Senior Professor and the Chair of Agribusiness Management at Wayamba University of Sri Lanka, presented ‘The 4-H Framework for Teaching Excellence’ and proposed a holistic approach to the professional development for teachers.
Datin Dr. Cynthia Yolanda Doss, Associate Professor of the School of Education at the University of Nottingham Malaysia and Director of Training at the Malaysian English Language Teaching Association (MELTA), spoke in detail about teachers making a difference in the lives of their students by preparing them for the future world.
Mr. David Kaye, International Teacher Trainer and Education Consultant at Pearson Edexcel, elaborated on the key concepts behind engaging learners through focusing on thinking skills, active learning, classroom management and teacher preparedness.
Dr. Alberto Luis August, Assistant
Professor and Coordinator of the Master of Education Programme at the University of Nottingham Malaysia, delivered an engaging speech which explained the intricacies of understanding the individual needs of students.
Mr. Rukshan Perera, an acclaimed Music Director, Composer and Performer, demonstrated through examples and live performances, the idea of using music as a medium of education for inculcating ethics and values among young students.
The eminent panelists featured at IFT 2019, Ms. Kim Insley, Director of PGCE: Teacher Development Programme at the University of London, Emeritus Prof. Colin N. Peiris, Director of Academic Development and Quality Assurance at SLIIT, Kalashuri Dr. Channa Wijewardene, Founder and Dance Director at UpuliChanna Performing Arts Foundation, and Mr. Dulith Herath, Founder and Chairman of Kapruka.com and Eisenhower Fellow, contributed their unique expertise at the dynamic panel discussion that took place towards the end of the conference on both days and enabled the participating teachers to depart on a high note to inspire their students.
Launch of the University of London Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) Programme.
The PGCE is offered as an online programme by the Institute of Education of the University College London ( ranked first in the world over the past six years for Education and Training by the QS world university ranking system). The University College London is ranked eighth in the world in the overall category for the year 2020 by the QS world university ranking system.
Ms. Kim Insley, the Programme Director of the University of London UK exchanged the Memorandum of Understanding ( MOU) with Dr. Harsha Alles, the Chairman of Gateway Group.