* Orders refresher courses for teachers
Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 14: Describing teacher’s role as far greater than that of a parent, Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, today assigned them the huge responsibility of shaping future of our children, who remain the state’s best asset.
He asked the teachers to take forward the baton from the great teachers of the past by providing students quality education with aid of new tools in modern schooling. “Our teachers have pioneered many stalwarts over the years, who have distinguished themselves in various fields all over world,” he said, while emphasizing upon the need to adapt to modern methods of teaching to achieve high standards set worldwide.
The Chief Minister was addressing a large gathering of teachers and students, after inaugurating the historic SP Higher Secondary School, established in 1874, as the first-ever model school in the Valley.
Mufti Sayeed, last week, had inaugurated two higher secondary schools at Basohli and Jammu as model schools under CM’s Model School Scheme.
Minister for Public Works, Floriculture, Gardens & Parks, Syed Altaf Bukhari, Minister for Education, Naeem Akhtar, Advisor to the Chief Minister, Prof. Amitabh Mattoo, Minister of State for Education, Information and Culture, Priya Sethi, Minister of State for H&UDD and I&C, Mohammad Ashraf Mir, Minister of State for Health & Social Welfare, Asiya Naqash and Legislators, Noor Mohammad and Khursheed Alam, were also present on the occasion.
Describing present age as the age of knowledge and excellence, the Chief Minister observed that the state has a lot of catching to do to achieve benchmark levels in academics. He said for imparting quality education, capacity building and training of teachers in using latest teaching aids is of paramount importance. “The School Education Department should organize refresher courses for teachers so that they are acquainted with fundamentals of modern teaching,” he said, while asking Director, School Education, to also monitor the quality and performance of teachers in the private schools.
Calling for public-private partnership in the field of education, the Chief Minister said the Government will lay great emphasis on enhancing employability of our educated youth by creating linkages with country’s top corporate and business firms and making college campuses active hubs of placements. He said the state will encourage investment in private sector, which will broaden the scope of quality education in the state.
Mufti Sayeed, who is also the Head of the State Higher Education Council, also called upon the Education Minister to expedite up-gradation of cluster of colleges to the level of universities in both the capital cities of Srinagar and Jammu. He said MHRD has launched a scheme at achieving excellence in the higher education sector, which will help improving ranks of our universities at the global level.
On the request of the Education Minister, the Chief Minister ordered setting up of a heavy-duty de-watering pump station to address the issue of water-logging in the area. The cluster of educational institutions alongside Maulana Azad Road, including SP College, Women’s College, J&K IMPARD and SP Higher Secondary School, were inundated in last year’s September floods.
He also sanctioned Rs.1 lakh for the students, who presented an attractive cultural programme on the occasion.
Immediately after inaugurating the school, the Chief Minister inspected the newly set up smart classroom where teachers, trained by NILIET, presented demo lectures with new learning aids. He also interacted with the young ‘student innovators’ of the school and appreciated their scientific temper.
Speaking on the occasion, Naeem Akhtar said the department is undertaking a Herculean task of reforming the education system in the state on the directions of the Chief Minister. He said time has come to give a sense of ownership to 24000 Government schools spread across the state so that their standard of education matches the quality provided by the best and most reputed educational institutions.
Later, the Chief Minister also gave away prizes to winners of football tournament, organized by J&K Football Association.
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