Funding for teacher training

31404283 - teacher at the blackboard

STUDENTS at Institutes of Teacher Education were stunned by the report “Trainee teacher perks to stop” (The Star, July 14).

The signs started emerging a few semesters ago when processing of allowances was taking a long time, facilities that were breaking down never seemed to be fixed, practicum students were forking out their own money to prepare for lessons since they were not getting practicum allowances, and many more.

The magnitude of this problem will only intensify as fear and frustration increases among trainee teachers across the 27 campuses throughout the country.

The Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013–2025 put the teaching profession in the limelight with the third shift – transforming teaching into the profession of choice. Under this shift, a topic that arose was the revamping of teacher training institutes or Institut Pendidikan Guru (IPG).

The Blueprint clearly states that the Education Ministry aims to transform the IPG into a world-class teacher training university by 2020. It is 2017 now and we are well into the second stage of this three-stage Blueprint. Nine IPG campuses are already set to be transformed into vocational and polytechnic colleges, lecturers are buying their own A4 paper, and those pursuing their teaching qualifications will be stripped of their living and travel allowances.

As it stands, there is a debate on how much longer the ministry will continue funding undergraduate degrees in education, and it’s haunting trainee teachers.

The fact that the Blueprint states that teacher quality is the most significant school-based factor in determining student outcomes and that the quality of a system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers shows that the Government does realise the importance of teachers in bringing up the next generation of future leaders.

It is undeniable that teachers are the core and most important piece on the chess board in determining a country’s future success. If that

is the case, why are trainee teachers being treated like normal university students where those who cannot afford the course have to apply for scholarships or PTPTN loans?

If this goes on, the Blueprint’s third shift, transforming teaching into the profession of choice, will be even harder to achieve. Moreover, the idea of having a Teacher Candidates Qualification Test (UKCG) will seem pointless since there would be no point in trying so hard to prove your abilities and qualities to enter a place when there are easier and better options with the same benefits.

The plain truth is that many students enter IPG because their learning expenses are supported.

The report mentioned earlier included a statement by Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) commissioner and ex-NUTP secretary-general Datuk Lok Yim Pheng that in one of the campuses, the parents of at least 30% of the trainees are recipients of BR1M.

Inspirational American educator Ivan Welton Fitzwater once said: “The future of the world is in my classroom today, a future with the potential for good or bad.”

Let us not forget that teachers play the most vital role in bringing up a nation. Moreover, teachers are among those in a few unique professions for they work not only during weekdays but also weekends and even during the holidays! Their job involves not only lessons in the classrooms during school hours but also before and after the lesson and even outside the classroom.

To produce quality teachers, we need quality teacher education and support from all aspects. It’s time we wake up and give more support and appreciation to our teachers. It’s time to prioritise teacher education or else what’s the point of making teaching the profession of choice?

CONCERNED STUDENT

Kuala Lumpur