TEACHERS teaching at Lihir Islands School have called on the authorities to investigate the payment of the Mining Enclave Allowance (MEA) that has not been paid to them.
In a press statement last week, teachers want the 5% MEA payment paid to their salaries. They said the investigation should also find out why teachers on the island were not paid the allowance, which had been paid to public servants in resource project areas since 1995, when it was approved by the Government. Otis Moab, head master of the Londolovit Urban Primary School, said: “Every year, teachers on the island have been commencing the school year by filling out Mining Enclave Allowance claim forms along with their resumption duty forms but they have never received this allowance in their salaries.” Flexible, Open and Distance Education (FODE) project is the way forward in distance learning for school leavers, an official says.
FODE is the Government’s initiative in partnership with World Bank. FODE principal Demas Tongogo said the project was initiated in 2011 when the Government saw the need to improve the quality of distance learning curricla and availability of instructional materials. “Student population in the classroom has gone up and with issues such as teacher student ration, classroom availability; the system is being challenged across the country,” he said. “Because of that, the government has decided to strengthen and improve FODE to allow those that cannot make it in the classroom to come to FODE, as it targets mostly out of school youths. STUDENTS who have benefitted from scholarships provided by Japan have elected new executives of the Japan Ryugakusei Association.
They are president Alphonse Hayabe, vice-president Philip Samar, secretary Paul Kone, treasurer Moale Manega and public relations officer Desmond Alesana. Charge d’ Affaires Satoshi Abe encouraged the members to meet regularly and exchange ideas. Hayabe thanked Japan for continuing to provide scholarships for PNG students. “JARA was operating on an ad hoc basis over the years and now has a clear vision,” he said The alumni association receives funding from the Japanese Embassy for the annual gathering and involving its members in the activities of the embassy. A warning has been issued to schools in the National Capital District not to start fights and get involved in unlawful activities.
NCD metropolitan commander Supt Andy Bawa said students would be made aware of the consequences of breaking the law if they got themselves involved in school fights, group binge-drinking in public places and other illegal activities such as the use of marijuana. Bawa said the community policing unit, under its respective police station commanders, has programmes that carry out awareness in schools and would be highlighting these issues during their visits to schools in Nation Capital District. It follows a recent school fight between students of Bavaroko Primary School and Coronation Primary School in Port Moresby. NCD community juvenile police officer Constable Anna Wills said the fight started last Tuesday and was reignited on Thursday. Wills said no major injuries were reported. A boy from Bavaroko suffered minor bruises. She hoped the cause of the fight would be established in a meeting with both schools. “We will be meeting with students, teachers and parents of Coronation Primary School on Monday, we have already talked to Bavaroko Primary School.” Implementers of Flexible Open and Distance Education (FODE) have been challenged to establish quality assurance and relevant programmes.
Acting deputy secretary for the Department of Education Eliakim Apelis brought these to their attention on the first day a two-day FODE project implementation workshop yesterday. The objective of the workshop was to bring together the provincial centre co-ordinators and education advisers for strategic consultation on the government’s and World Bank’s FODE restructured project implementation plan. Apelis said FODE was a school at home, where students who could not get a place in the classroom system study the same curriculum at their own time, own homes and at their own pace. He said it was one of the largest single national education offering with more than 40,000 children, and must change its focus and approaches. When pointing out the environmental, social, economical and political changes, Apelis told the participants they should either move with it or sit with it. The Natioanl CHILDREN in Ralalar ward, Gazelle district, East New Britain, are celebrating the opening of a new double classroom at the Ralalar Elementary School.
For so many years, the children from Ralalar and neighbouring wards have been using two small rooms that could only accommodate 75 children. With the opening of the new classroom, the intake can increase to 100 children next year. The funding for the two-classroom building was from the AusAID programme (K78,676), provincial government (K10,000), Ralalar elementry school board K10,000, Ralalar ward development committee K10,000 and Divulcan Limited K10,000. The double classroom was an initiative of the former ward councillor Bellie Ronnie and her ward development committee. She thanked ward members for participating in the project. “Without your participation we would have not seen this dream come into reality,” she said. UNITECH Pro Chancellor Ralph Saulep has condemned statements by Dr Albert Schram supporting the boycotting of classes by students as irresponsible.
He was reacting to Schram’s comments this week praising the students non-violent boycott of classes as “creating a new chapter in the history of the PNG Student movement”. Saulep said that kind of language from an institutional head was unwarranted and irresponsible. “It is the type of language that incited the violent reaction of students in March 2012 in which the former Chancellor Phillip Stagg was chased, attacked, his vehicle burnt and nearly killed,” he said. “No responsible government should ever encourage or allow an institutional head to promote the boycotting of classes as a subversive tactic to achieve their objectives, irrespective of whether such boycott is violent or peaceful.” He called on the Government, the committee of vice-chancellors nationwide and the parents of students to condemn “this irresponsible conduct in the strongest possible terms”. “No employee of the university has any right to call on, encourage or incite staff and/or students to boycott classes as a subversive means of achieving their ends,” he said. He however said Schram could re-apply when the position of Vice-Chancellor was re-advertised by the university. MANY teachers posted to rural schools in Southern Highlands do not take up their posts, resulting in three to four teachers taking charge of classes as big as 60 students.
Daniel Mapun, a teacher at Muluma Primary School in the Bosave LLG, Nipa-Kutubu district, said a few teachers were teaching nearly 1,000 students from Grades 3-8. Adding to the problem of work pressure, store goods sold in the area cost three times the price at Mendi supermarkets. Nipa-Kutubu MP Jeffery Komal said an investigation would be held. A community in Nongul, has offered its land for the establishment of a new primary teacher’s college.
The Jiwaka Teacher’s College has taken its first batch of students this year, for 3 years diploma in Primary Teaching. The school was recently opened by officials from the Jiwaka Provincial government. Nongul sits on the border of Jiwaka, and Simbu provinces. This part of Jiwaka in North Waghi District, has always been the least developed, with little government services reaching the people. It was a community dream to establish this teacher’s college, not only to create education opportunities, but with the aim of grasping government attention. The community here has made available 4 hectares of land, for the establishment of this school. Although not registered yet, the school, with only one classroom, and an incomplete administration building, has opened its doors for student enrolment. The community has used their resources, and money to put up these buildings, and two houses for lecturers. Four lecturers have been engaged by the community, of which 2 are on government payroll, while the other 2 are retired teachers. A ceremony last week marked the opening of the school, with visitors from Jiwaka Provincial Government, including deputy provincial administrator, Joseph Karap. Government support from both provincial, and national government, was the general concern shared by those at the ceremony. The first 80 students have now gone into their first week of the 1st trimester, learning foundation subjects. This school does not have a principal, and will run under a different structure, with a coordinator as the head of the institution. Paul Siwi, the founder of the school, says negotiations with the Officer of Higher Education to register the school, is underway. THREE citizens have been awarded the 2014 Japanese government scholarship to pursue degree programmes in Japan.
They were given their tickets at the Japan Ryugakusei Association annual reception hosted by the Embassy of Japan in Port Moresby yesterday. Charge d’ Affairs Satoshi Abe said the three would be doing their Masters degree in geology, public policy and strategic management, and specialised training in civil engineering in Japan. Francis Wargirai will enrol at the Graduate school of social and cultural Ssciences at Kumamoto University. Thomas Sorulen will join the graduate school of engineering and resource science at the Akita University for two years. Wilson Tengen will undertake a specialised training programme in civil engineering for two years at Shusei Construction Senmon-Gakko after his preparatory Japanese education for one year. “The Embassy of Japan would like to enhance JARA’s activities to further strengthen the good relationship between PNG and Japan,” Abe said. Dr Alphonse Hayabe, president of JARA, thanked the Japan government for providing scholarships to PNG students to study their language, culture and education system. He urged the three to be good ambassadors for PNG. |
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