Let me start with BCP Manifesto on education.: BCP MANIFESTO 2014-2019 Ensuring an Educated and Skilled Batswana 4.1 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS The education system is in a state of crisis. In the past five years alone, students’ performance in public schools has been declining. The infrastructure in most schools is in a state of disrepair and shortage of books and teaching materials is common. A number of schools are operating without science laboratories. The class size in most schools is not conducive for effective learning. Teacher morale is low on account of poor working conditions that remain unattended after many years. These range from lack of accommodation and poor remuneration to poor opportunities for professional and self-development. Relations between the Ministry of Education and teacher organizations are acrimonious and not conducive for the development of the education sector. Graduates of tertiary institutions remain largely unemployed after graduation. 4.2 OUR SOCIAL CONTRACT ON EDUCATION AND LIFE LONG LEARNING The BCP seeks to transform Botswana into a truly educated and informed nation by giving all its citizenry quality education relevant to the real world of work, informed by contemporary research and leveraging on science and technology. To ensure that these objectives are attained, the education ministries will be segmented into Ministry of Basic Education and Ministry of Higher Education. The BCP shall: Emphasise Access, Retention and Completion by; • Redefining basic education to mean early childhood, primary, junior and senior secondary schools. • Providing free and compulsory basic education. • Ensuring that learners with special needs have access to educational opportunities; • Providing all schools with Information and Communication Technology infrastructure as a tool to facilitate learning. Promote Lifelong Learning: To ensure that Batswana participate actively in the global economy through continuous adaptation to changing opportunities and labour market demands, we will transform Batswana into lifelong learners by: • Widening access to higher education and providing government sponsorship for post graduate studies. • Facilitating universities and other tertiary institutions to develop relevant and appropriate distance education programmes at both graduate and post graduate levels to reach out to the needs of learners in all parts of the country. • Maximising shared use of government institutions’ resources by Distance Education providers. Promote Education Quality. We shall establish an autonomous Educational Inspectorate that audits educational provision and monitors quality at all levels of the education system. The National Education Inspectorate will: • Be accountable to Parliament and submit an annual report on the status of educational facilities; • Produce school inspection reports that will be made public. Such reports will be discussed at district council levels. Develop and Implement a Policy of Multicultural Education. The policy aims at building a nation that respects unity in diversity and equality. Some of the steps that will be taken will include: • Introduction of mother tongue as a medium of instruction from early child education to standard 4 in communities where Setswana is not the first language; • Teach moral, civic and family life education in all public schools. Promote Teacher Professional Development. We shall set up a Staff Development Agency to ascertain opportunities for professional development and reward excellence in teaching. In furthering teacher professional development we shall: • Set first degree as the minimum qualification for all teachers; • Upgrade Colleges of Education to offer degree programs; • Ensure subject specialisation in the training of teachers for middle primary to senior secondary education level; Restore Teachers’ Self-Esteem and Dignity. We recognize the centrality of teachers in human resource development. We are committed to radically improve their working conditions and reward system. The BCP shall: • Remunerate teachers fairly taking into consideration levels of responsibilities and extra –curriculum activities. • Provide all teachers with adequate accommodation; • Establish a Teaching Council to professionalize teaching. Transform School Curriculum for Relevance and to Highlight Vocational Skills Acquisition. This will be achieved by: • Introducing curriculum at secondary school level that underscores vocational skills acquisition aimed at ensuring viability of self-employment as a means of job creation; • Periodically review the curriculum to align it with the demands of the job market. Strengthen Collaborative Partnerships in Educational Development by: • Fostering participation of students, teachers, parents, community and industry in directing education through committee involvement and resource support. • Introducing boards and councils to oversee technical and higher education institutions. • Encouraging leadership development in schools by supporting Student Representative Councils which shall be protected through legislation
Posted on: Sat, 07 Jun 2014 14:20:42 +0000
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