Education has a fundamental role in shaping and transforming the life of students, and teachers are the actors without whom academic learning would not be possible, said the Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Education, Tertiary Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun.
She was speaking on Wednesday morning at a ceremony organised by the Government Teachers Union (GTU) to mark World Teacher’ Day, celebrated annually on 5th October. The theme for year 2022 is “The Transformation of Education Begins With Teachers”.
The Vice-Prime Minister applauded the teacher fraternity for the wonderful job they are doing as well as for their commitment, perseverance, contribution and dedication during the COVID-19 pandemic. The day is an opportune time to reflect and find ways to improve the current education system, she said.
She highlighted that every crisis opens the door to great opportunities and the pandemic accelerated the transformation of the education sector to a more digitalised one. It is imperative for teachers to continue embrace the potential of technology and maintain this new trend in the education sector, she added.
Mrs Dookun-Luchoomun pointed out that Government will ensure that all Heads of schools and teachers receive appropriate and adequate training so as to keep updated with latest technologies and integrate them in their teaching.
She recalled that the United Nations convened the Transforming Education Summit in New York in September 2022, with the main objective to recover pandemic-related learning losses and sow the seeds to transform education in the rapidly changing environment. The summit resulted in Member States taking the commitment to accelerate progress towards realising the Sustainable Development Goal 4, she indicated.
No child must be left behind in education, said Vice- Prime Minister while highlighting that Extended Programme grounded on the underlying philosophy of an inclusive and equitable education for all, was to ensure that children with low learning abilities integrate in the mainstream and succeed in life. More Support Teachers will be recruited to this effect, she added. She reiterated Government’s commitment to continue to make efforts to enhance the quality of education promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Also present on the occasion, the President of the GTU, Mr Vishal Baujeet, said that the day is an occasion to pay tribute to teachers and recognise the skills and passion of educators. It also acts as a reminder to reconsider the teaching profession and come up with innovation to keep pace with the ongoing rapid changes, he added.
Speaking on the impact of the COVID-19, he pointed out that that the pandemic has transformed the education sector. The educators had to adopt and adapt technology to ensure continuity of education during that difficult period. He lauded the educators for becoming resilient and is confident that they will be able to face any challenges in the future.
