quality of education

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India ranks 37 in quality of education

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Asia/ India/ 07.11.2018/ Source: www.deccanchronicle.com.

Singapore has the best education in science and math in the world, followed by Finland, Switzerland, Lebanon, Netherlands, Qatar, Belgium, Estonia, Honh Kong and the US, according to the World Economic Forum. India stands at the 37th position.

The quality of math and science education depends upon public funding and the education system.

The countries ranked up to 36 spent more than 6 per cent of their GDP on education against 3.3 per cent in India.

“Our education system gives more stress on marks and grades rather than quality. Our education policy should be changed to address quality concerns,” an expert said.

Dr Srini Bhupalam, an education expert, said, “It has been proven that quality of education can be provided pretty effectively to small populations.”

“If you look at the list, most of the countries population is very small. It’s always a challenge to do the same for very large populations. Nevertheless we have a lot of scope to do better,” he added.

He said Indian students were good at reproducing on paper due to rote learning. “We cannot expect any change in our rankings until the method of teaching is transformed into practical, concept and application based,” he said.

“Our testing and evaluation methods also need to be transformed to measure students understanding and application for creative problem solving,” Dr Bhupalam said.

Dr Narsimha Reddy, Principal, Hyderabad Public School, said, “Small countries are progressing in science, math and technology. The government must take education as a challenging field. The curriculum and methodology should be altered to teach science and math’’.

He said most teaching happens to score marks. “What, why, where, when and how are the most important questions in science and math. How many schools are really making students curious and inquisitive,” Dr Reddy asked.

He said hands-on experience was given top priority in developed countries.

“What facilities are available in our schools. Teachers are busy finishing the syllabus and parents are worried about marks. Curriculum and pedagogy have to be changed,” Dr Reddy said.

Not everyone was in agreement that Indians did poorly in maths.

P. Obul Reddy Public School principal Anjali Rajdan said Indian students do very well in maths but the WEF ranking did not reflect it.

“I can accept the ranking in science as our labs and infrastructure are not at par with other countries, so standing 37th is humbling.”

Source of the notice: https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/041118/india-ranks-37-in-quality-of-education.html

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‘The importance of great teaching on children’s success’

Peter Tait

By Peter Tait

We seem to be no closer to establishing what the most important factors are that make children succeed, apart from brilliant teachers, writes Peter Tai

As a society, we spend an inordinate amount of time, resources and money looking at how to improve the quality of education in our schools.

The questions we ask ourselves are always the same. How do we improve the quality of teaching and learning? (and its corollary, our examination results?) How do we make our children more motivated and competitive? And how do we get children to value and ‘own’ their education?

And yet, after all the talk of new methodologies and curricula; after new and different methods of teaching and models of assessment; after all the time and money spent on technology; after the personalisation of education and differentiated teaching; after learning styles and habits of mind; after mindfulness and Every Child Matters; after the debates about continuous and formative assessment; and after all the constant tinkering, bureaucratic and legislative, with their greater focus on data and compliance, we seem to be no closer to establishing what are the most important factors that make children succeed.

The only consistent factor we can identify is the role of the teacher, whose abilities and skillset, knowledge and enthusiasm are crucial in determining the success or otherwise, of the children they teach.

Teaching, after all, is about engagement, about getting children to listen and switch on. The best investment any government can make is to get the most effective, the most talented, the best teachers they can in front of the children.

By best, I don’t mean those who are the best qualified, but those teachers who know how to enthuse and connect with children regardless of their own levels of education. I mean those teachers who can properly engage with children and teach them by inspiring and challenging them.

Sometimes the pathway dictates that the process comes down to hard work rather than inspiration, but teaching is all about the relationship between teacher and pupil more than anything else.

Children will work harder for a teacher they respect, even if they demand more and insist on discipline and high standards. One can only speculate what would have been the impact if all the money spent on technology had gone instead into lowering the teacher-pupil ratio and improving the identification, selection and training of the most effective and passionate teachers. Where would we be now? In a somewhat better place, I would suggest.

I look back at outstanding teachers from my own teaching career and remember, in particular, one woman, whose ability with children was legendary. She was strict, uncompromising, but children wanted her approbation.

One particular year she took on a particularly difficult class of Year 4 children, two of whom had considerable physical and intellectual difficulties and could not even print their names and yet finished the year with impressive cursive writing – achieved through repetition, practice, discipline and unwavering high expectations.

She made such a difference to their young lives and all who were fortunate enough to have her as a teacher.

Good teachers don’t need the security of extra resources and technology that, evidence suggests, can detract rather than add to the learning process.

The best teachers entered the profession to make a difference

The best teachers entered the profession to make a difference  Photo: Getty Images

While they may use resources to embellish their lessons, they will not allow the resources to become the lesson. The best teachers are always wanting to do and find out more about their own craft, pushing out the boundaries of their learning and teaching, which is why many exceptional teaches re-work or even discard their teaching notes on a regular basis and look for new topics, and ways, to teach.

This lesson came home to me when I was asked to introduce art history into the sixth form in a New Zealand school and finding – after the subject had been offered, and places filled – that my knowledge of the period (Italian Art, 1300 – 1650) was almost as deficient as were my resources.

That year, with a few old text books and slides, I learnt alongside the students and at the year’s end, we were the top performing department in the school with one student in the top 10 in national scholarships.

The next year, I went to Italy and soon had the best resourced art history department anywhere with videos and CD Roms, slides, a library of outstanding books of reproductions, computer programmes on every aspect of the course, but my students never did quite so well ever again.

I think they learned better, as I did, by having to think more, by having to eke out what they could from the meagre resources, by having to think and having a teacher learning alongside them. There was no hiding place for any of us.

Teachers need to keep learning and growing – it is not a profession for the cynical or indifferent. The best can be identified by their enthusiasm and interest in pedagogy. They are not characterised by their own high academic performance, but by a thirst for passing on the benefits of education.

They may be unorthodox, idiosyncratic, employing a variety of approaches to get children to want to learn and to question what they are being taught. They are typified by their passion, their non-negotiable standards, breadth of interests, high expectations, understanding of how children learn, empathy, an insistence on greater self-discipline and by their relationship with their pupils.

Interestingly, children know who the best teachers are, even if they try and avoid them in favour of the more popular variety who may make their lives easy. They often criticise them to their parents for being too demanding and only realise later the opportunity they have squandered.

These are the teachers who entered the profession in order to make a difference. And they do.

 

Source of the article: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationopinion/12201014/The-importance-of-great-teaching-on-childrens-success.html

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‘The importance of great teaching on children’s success’

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Europe/United Kingdom/By Peter Tait/ 25.06.18/Source: www.telegraph.co.uk.

As a society, we spend an inordinate amount of time, resources and money looking at how to improve the quality of education in our schools.

The questions we ask ourselves are always the same. How do we improve the quality of teaching and learning? (and its corollary, our examination results?) How do we make our children more motivated and competitive? And how do we get children to value and ‘own’ their education?

And yet, after all the talk of new methodologies and curricula; after new and different methods of teaching and models of assessment; after all the time and money spent on technology; after the personalisation of education and differentiated teaching; after learning styles and habits of mind; after mindfulness and Every Child Matters; after the debates about continuous and formative assessment; and after all the constant tinkering, bureaucratic and legislative, with their greater focus on data and compliance, we seem to be no closer to establishing what are the most important factors that make children succeed.

The only consistent factor we can identify is the role of the teacher, whose abilities and skillset, knowledge and enthusiasm are crucial in determining the success or otherwise, of the children they teach.

Teaching, after all, is about engagement, about getting children to listen and switch on. The best investment any government can make is to get the most effective, the most talented, the best teachers they can in front of the children.

By best, I don’t mean those who are the best qualified, but those teachers who know how to enthuse and connect with children regardless of their own levels of education. I mean those teachers who can properly engage with children and teach them by inspiring and challenging them.

Sometimes the pathway dictates that the process comes down to hard work rather than inspiration, but teaching is all about the relationship between teacher and pupil more than anything else.

Children will work harder for a teacher they respect, even if they demand more and insist on discipline and high standards. One can only speculate what would have been the impact if all the money spent on technology had gone instead into lowering the teacher-pupil ratio and improving the identification, selection and training of the most effective and passionate teachers. Where would we be now? In a somewhat better place, I would suggest.

I look back at outstanding teachers from my own teaching career and remember, in particular, one woman, whose ability with children was legendary. She was strict, uncompromising, but children wanted her approbation.

One particular year she took on a particularly difficult class of Year 4 children, two of whom had considerable physical and intellectual difficulties and could not even print their names and yet finished the year with impressive cursive writing – achieved through repetition, practice, discipline and unwavering high expectations.

She made such a difference to their young lives and all who were fortunate enough to have her as a teacher.

Good teachers don’t need the security of extra resources and technology that, evidence suggests, can detract rather than add to the learning process.

While they may use resources to embellish their lessons, they will not allow the resources to become the lesson. The best teachers are always wanting to do and find out more about their own craft, pushing out the boundaries of their learning and teaching, which is why many exceptional teaches re-work or even discard their teaching notes on a regular basis and look for new topics, and ways, to teach.

This lesson came home to me when I was asked to introduce art history into the sixth form in a New Zealand school and finding – after the subject had been offered, and places filled – that my knowledge of the period (Italian Art, 1300 – 1650) was almost as deficient as were my resources.

That year, with a few old text books and slides, I learnt alongside the students and at the year’s end, we were the top performing department in the school with one student in the top 10 in national scholarships.

The next year, I went to Italy and soon had the best resourced art history department anywhere with videos and CD Roms, slides, a library of outstanding books of reproductions, computer programmes on every aspect of the course, but my students never did quite so well ever again.

I think they learned better, as I did, by having to think more, by having to eke out what they could from the meagre resources, by having to think and having a teacher learning alongside them. There was no hiding place for any of us.

Teachers need to keep learning and growing – it is not a profession for the cynical or indifferent. The best can be identified by their enthusiasm and interest in pedagogy. They are not characterised by their own high academic performance, but by a thirst for passing on the benefits of education.

They may be unorthodox, idiosyncratic, employing a variety of approaches to get children to want to learn and to question what they are being taught. They are typified by their passion, their non-negotiable standards, breadth of interests, high expectations, understanding of how children learn, empathy, an insistence on greater self-discipline and by their relationship with their pupils.

Interestingly, children know who the best teachers are, even if they try and avoid them in favour of the more popular variety who may make their lives easy. They often criticise them to their parents for being too demanding and only realise later the opportunity they have squandered.

These are the teachers who entered the profession in order to make a difference. And they do.

Source of the notice: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationopinion/12201014/The-importance-of-great-teaching-on-childrens-success.html

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Africa needs a revolution in education

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Africa/April 17, 2018/by ISS Today/ Source: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za

Access to education must be markedly improved if Africa is to catch up with global averages. By Jakkie Cilliers and Stellah Kwasifor. 

While education worldwide, especially for girls, has improved, the gap between Africa and the rest of the world is wide and the continent doesn’t appear to be catching up. In fact, it is falling further behind.

From 1960 to 2015, the gap between the average number of years of education obtained by African adults aged 25 and above and that of the rest of the world increased from two to three years. Today African adults have, on average, five years of education while the rest of the world has around eight.

Globally the disparities are large. Adults in North America and Europe have 13 and 11 years respectively, while those in South Asia have seven years. Education levels are improving everywhere, but more slowly in Africa than anywhere else.

Gallery

Source: Barro-Lee

Quality of education aside, countries now take less time to improve average years of education than in the past. Whereas it took around 17 years to increase average education levels in poor countries by one year in the 1960s and 70s, it now takes around 11 years. However while the rate of progress has generally sped up, Africa is falling further behind and will continue to do so, in part because of rapid population growth.

There are many well-known benefits of education. First, education affects demography through improved health (it reduces mortality) and reduced fertility rates (there are fewer children per female within childbearing age, meaning parents can better look after their children). In turn, demography affects improved education systems and opportunities in terms of size and characteristics of the school-going age of the population. Slower growth in pupil numbers allows poorer countries to cope with the requirement for more schools, books, teachers and other facilities.

Second, educational gains lead to improved productivity. A more literate and skilled workforce is more productive and can be engaged in higher value-add activities. For example, with grade 12 it may be possible to staff a call centre; with Grades 4 to 6, manual labour is probably the only option.

Third, better-educated people can increase their incomes, thus improving their economic circumstances. The relationship between higher levels of education and income is strong and almost linear. As workers progress from primary to secondary and eventually tertiary education, they are better positioned to increase earnings, sometimes dramatically. Education also promotes equity and democracy. A better educated citizenry can make more informed political choices.

Finally, improved levels of education reduce social inequalities where individuals can progress and be judged based on merit, with less importance being put on their social backgrounds, standing or other characteristics such as religion, race or caste.

Beyond these general positive features, attaining secondary education for females has numerous additional benefits. According to a widely quoted 1995 study by K Subbarao and Laura Raney, completion of secondary education would reduce the total fertility rate among women in developing nations by 26%. By comparison, doubling access to family planning would decrease the total fertility rate by only half that number.

Currently, only 14% of Africa’s low-income female population of the appropriate age group graduate from secondary school. For females in lower-middle-income Africa the portion is 48% and in upper-middle-income African countries it is 57%. The International Futures forecasting system from which these trends are extracted calculates that 122-million Africans are missing secondary school, slightly more than half of whom are female.

Economically, female education increases income of households when women enter the workforce and are gainfully employed. A 2003 study by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisationin 19 countries points out that a country’s long-term economic growth increases by 3.7% for every year that the adult population’s average years of schooling increases. Female education should therefore be a cornerstone of any nation’s strategy to ensure that women are empowered economically, socially and intellectually.

So how does Africa catch up with progress elsewhere?

More rapid economic growth rates would allow African governments to spend more money on education. Improved health care, the provision of water and sanitation and access to modern contraceptives would aid these efforts as they would reduce fertility rates over time. Fewer children would reduce the burden of spreading money too thinly, allowing those who enter the system to do better.

Urbanisation accompanied by improved facilities and services like water, electricity and educational material would promote quality education. Students would be better able to access amenities like the internet to aid learning – a resource that is largely absent and/or expensive in rural regions. This way, efficient education planning by these under-resourced governments can be achieved. More donor aid would also help.

But even more is needed for Africa to close its enduring education deficit compared to the rest of the world.

Given current backlogs and budgets, Africa would simply not be able to build enough schools and train enough teachers at the scale that is required. Neither would it be able to provide resources such as books and laboratories and all the associated support structures needed for functioning schools at that scale.

Some experts say Africa may be able to catch up by tapping into the digital revolution. Direct access to world-class education material should provide some added momentum. But even this requires African governments to invest heavily in the provision of internet access and the means to access such material.

The 2017 United Nations Children’s Fund report on the state of the world’s children points to the potential of information and communication technology to transform education by “expanding access to high-quality educational content, including textbooks, video material and remote instruction, and at a much lower cost than in the past”. The report warns, however, that technology cannot fix education without support from “strong teachers, motivated learners and sound pedagogy”.

Equally important, societies need to recognise the value of education, especially of girls, and provide an enabling environment to ensure gender equity in education. In north-east Nigeria, girls already lag behind boys in attendance, because of cultural barriers, the belief that girls’ education isn’t that important and the determined efforts by Boko Haram to deny education to females.

Whatever the combination of solutions, African governments will need to get serious about improving access to education. More of the same is not enough if the continent is to catch up with progress elsewhere. DM

Jakkie Cilliers is Head of African Futures & Innovation, ISS and chair of the ISS Board of Trustees. Stellah Kwasi is a researcher, African Futures & Innovation, ISS

Photo: Learners in a classroom in Cape Town. 8 May 2018. Photo by Leila Dougan

Source:

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2018-04-16-africa-needs-a-revolution-in-education/#.WtVmVYjwbIU

 

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Indonesia: Jakarta to improve education in Christian-majority regions

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Indonesia/March 27, 2018/By: Ryan Dagur/Source: https://www.ucanews.com

Government has increased budget for three eastern provinces where levels are among lowest in nation.

Indonesia will focus on improving the quality of education provided in three eastern, Christian-led provinces in cooperation with local churches, Minister of Education and Culture Muhadjir Effendy said.

Papua, West Papua and East Nusa Tenggara consistently rank at the bottom of the table in terms of education among the country’s 34 provinces.

«We still face huge challenges, especially in [improving] public schools. But I am optimistic that working more closely with the church will make the government’s job in this area easier,» Effendy said on March 21 during a meeting with the National Council of Catholic Education (MNPK).

The MNPK, a work unit of the Bishops’ Conference, is responsible for 5,000 Catholic schools across the country.

Effendy lavished praise on the quality of education at Catholic schools, adding he wants to see what can be taken and applied in public schools.

«There are many best practices in Catholic schools that can be adopted by other schools,» he said.

The three provinces have much work to do before they can compete with other parts of the country in education quality, but Catholic schools including seminaries are generally considered a cut above.

Effendy said he visited the three provinces to discuss ways of effecting change with local government officials. They cited problems related to facilities, teachers and school management, he added.

The government raised the education budget for the three provinces this year and is likely to continue doing so to improve school facilities and install better-qualified teachers and principals, the minister said.

For East Nusa Tenggara, the government has set aside US$66 million this year, a more than fivefold increase from the US$10.9 million granted in 2017 to give students a more comprehensive education.

Effendy said the MNPK will help to organize teacher training programs and the government will support funding.

«I came to the conclusion the government cannot walk alone, so we decided to invite the private sector to participate, especially the church,» he said.

Father Vinsensius Darmin Mbula, chairman of the MNPK, welcomed the plan.

«Our commitment is to help the government with its programs,» he said.

These efforts will be bolstered by the establishment of teacher-training centers in some areas in eastern Indonesia, he added.

«We will select the teachers who will become facilitators,» he said, adding the government must continue to work with the church in order to maximize results.

«Funding for public schools is quite high but the results have been minimal,» he said.

Robertus Ombe, a resident of Benteng Jawa in East Manggarai district, East Nusa Tenggara said he hoped the government would pour in the necessary resources to make the scheme a success.

He cited the case of a junior high school that was established in his village five years ago but which local people had to donate one hectare of land to as the government did not provide it.

«Hopefully, the government will fully realize its commitments this time,» he said.

Source:

https://www.ucanews.com/news/jakarta-to-improve-education-in-christian-majority-regions/81875

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¿What first phase of quality education campaign achieved?

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Por: www.newtimes.co.rw/07-03-2018

Offices at the Ministry of Education were closed early last month as top officials in the Ministry, and all affiliated institutions, embarked on a tour to assess the quality of education in over 600 schools including primary, secondary, university, as well as technical and vocational education and training institutions (TVET).

Dubbed “Quality Education Enhancement Awareness Campaign”, it was the first countrywide campaign organised by the Ministry, unlike the regular inspection and visits made by officials to various schools.

15203995991

Some students at TTC Kanama listening to education officials during the campaign. /Jean d’Amour Mbonyinshuti

Education officials had some hours each day to tour at least two schools. They visited classrooms, dormitories, laboratories, kitchens and even checked the hygiene status of the facilities.

Later, officials sat with the school management teams to discuss issues pertaining quality education and, management. They discussed the challenges they face and what can be done to boost quality education.

Issues discussed were the growing number of school dropouts and high repetition rates which could result in results in poor completion rates, use of drugs and unwanted pregnancies, among others.

According to 2015 figures from the Ministry of Education, school dropout rates stood at 5.7 per cent, 6.5 per cent and 2.5 per cent in primary, and lower and upper secondary respectively. The repetition rate was 18.4 per cent, 11.6 per cent and 6 per cent respectively.

The Ministry of Health also reported that 17,444 teenage pregnancies were reported in 2016 alone which affected transition and completion rates.

The campaign was expected to progressively lead to the enhancement of the quality of education by reducing school dropout and class repetition rates.

It also sought to improve the quality of school management and leadership, raise pupil awareness on the effects of drug abuse, improve school hygiene and sanitation among all education stakeholders.

Schools will be ranked based on a standard checklist and inspection criteria and findings by officials.

How important is it?

According to school managers, teachers and parents, the campaign was long overdue as it brought them closer to officials in the education sector at the national level to discuss the challenges hindering quality education and, helped them understand the role each should play.

Denis Uzaribara, the head teacher of G.S Kanama Catholique in Rubavu, says the campaign was an eye opener and an opportunity to chat with top officials to raise their concerns and seek ways to address the issues of quality education.

“The campaign was timely; meeting with officials from the Ministry of Education was an opportunity to discuss issues affecting the sector. It was an eye opener as we were told that even with challenges, what we are doing is not enough to provide quality education.”

“It was also an opportunity for us to raise the issues we have in order to improve quality education. Officials have seen for themselves the pupil-teacher ratio imbalance, whereby some classes have over 70 learners, and while we are committed to contributing to education for all, teachers are overwhelmed and it remains hard to offer quality education,” he says.

Agnes Musabyimana, another teacher from G.S Kanama Catholique, says that it was a great opportunity to meet top officials from the Ministry, and interact and share their experiences.

“We are thankful for the campaign, officials needed to come to the field and see how we are performing. We were reminded that we need to work closely with all stakeholders and avoid the blame game,” she says.

Musabyimana adds that in some cases, parents get busy and forget to take care of their children, hence just sending them to school without help in revision or homework.

“For instance, we discussed during the campaign that we need to work with parents and local leaders to ensure that there are no more cases of dropouts and that students attend classes regularly. We also discussed with local leaders and education officers that it is their responsibility to follow up on whether parents are playing their part,” Musabyimana says.

A teacher only identified as Juvenal from Nyabihu District said that he wished all the findings from the campaign could be addressed accordingly, adding that in some cases, teachers are asked to do a lot with little facilitation.

“For instance, we are required to provide quality education using the knowledge-based curriculum but we don’t have educational material. We are dealing with a greater number of learners per class and we find it hard to serve them all in a short period of time,” he says.

Juvenal referred to the fact that a teacher can have as many as 80 pupils in one shift and the same number in another shift, which he says is hard if they are to provide quality education.

“We need more issues to be addressed at the ministerial level, we need materials, we need more classrooms to be constructed and we need the government to involve parents to be aware of their responsibilities,” he says.

Dieudonné Manishimwe, a science teacher from Centre Scholaire Rusamaza in Rubavu District, says the campaign was important as it helped them understand the responsibility of each player.

“The Ministry should put into use the recommendations from the campaign; we need their support to ensure we provide quality education.” he says.

Fidel Basebanya, a parent from Rugerero sector in Rubavu District, argues that teachers can do very little if parents do not play their part.

“This campaign brought us together and as a representative of other parents, I will work with local leaders to ensure that we mobilise parents to understand their role,” he says.

Officials speak out

Dr Eugene Mutimura, the Minister of Education, says the campaign was an opportunity to assess quality education and the challenges facing the system, so as to seek solutions and address them.

“It showed us that we need to strengthen the collaboration with schools, local leaders and education officers at the sector and district levels. We should keep the momentum to boost quality education in schools,” he says.

The Minister says that once all players work together, the issue of dropouts, repetition, absenteeism and unwanted pregnancies will be curbed, and he urges all key players to play their part.

The Minister notes the department was aware of the teacher-learner ratio problem, especially in primary schools, adding that more classrooms will be constructed and more teachers will be engaged.

He says that some schools need renovation while others are dilapidated and need demolition. Last year alone, about 1000 classrooms and latrines were constructed and there are plans to build more.

Over the next seven years, the Prime Minister says the government will construct a total of 28,665 classrooms.

According to Marie Christine Gasingirwa, the Director General for Sciences Research and Technology at the Ministry of Education, students need support from parents, teachers and the community.

“We want to start with the youth because they are the treasure of the country, we also need to know that the education sector cuts across and that all the sectors can develop,” she says.

The campaign, held under the theme “Good Learning Methods and Cultural Values are the Foundations of Quality Education” will be held on a quarterly basis throughout the year.

editorial@!newtimes.co.rw

*Fuente: http://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/read/229144/

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