Ministry of Education calls for social dialogue with TUM
Ministry of Education has said teacher’s union and government need to engage in social dialogue to set standards, developing policies and devise programmes that promote a decent working environment.
Minister of Education, Agnes NyaLonje said this Thursday when she officially opened the 23rd Congress of Teacher’s Union of Malawi (TUM) at Crossroads Hotel in Lilongwe whose theme was “Join hands in motivating and protecting teachers for quality education”.
She said this could be achieved if a functioning Education system for the country was enhance for the betterment of the teaching profession.
“Teachers’ and governments’ aspirations may not always coincide and there is always the challenge of finding adequate resources to meet the national educational needs,” NyaLonje said.
The Minister said there was need to be open and honest with each other about our intentions and need to treat each other with respect.
“Behind all our interactions, we need to have a common desire to develop a strong national education system that meets the needs of all our children, youth, supported by a teaching profession that is respected nationally and meets the highest standards expected of the profession,” she added.
NyaLonje disclosed that the Ministry has been working for some time to develop a Code of Conduct for Teachers.
She said, “Such a Code of conduct is important as it promotes professional conduct by teachers both in the classroom and more broadly in their role as community leaders in society.”
The Minister pointed out that the discipline of teachers in any education system goes a long way towards inculcating a culture of discipline amongst learners.
Secretary General of Teachers’ Union of Malawi, Charles Kumchenga said for the past two year the education sector has been greatly affected by COVID-19.
He said COVID-19 has brought a challenge of pupil-teacher ratio where observation of social distancing was being encouraged in all school despite having inadequate classrooms.
Secretary for Education, Chikondano Mussa assured delegates to the Congress that the Ministry was aware of the issue of delayed promotions of the teachers in the country.
She said Human Resources officers in the Ministry are working with the Department of Humans Resource Management to ensure that issues of outstanding promotions among teachers are looked into.
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