Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports
MINISTRY of EDUCATION to CONDUCT CPD WORKSHOPS AUGUST 2006
Belmopan - 31 July, 2006
The Ministry of Education, through its Quality Assurance and Development Services (QADS) area, will be conducting the annual Continuous Professional Development (CPD) workshops for teachers during the period July 31 – August 11, 2006.
The CPD workshops have been administered for the past five years and are held countrywide during the first two weeks of the month of August. The topics covered during the two-week period are divided into two main categories. Firstly, the topics which are facilitated directly by QADS focus on key areas of national importance. Such topics would normally focus on the training that is necessary for the implementation of new or revised curriculum and require the attendance of ALL teachers in the education system or in a particular grade. Secondly, there are other topics which are developed either: (i) through a Needs Assessment Survey conducted at the district level and/or (ii) to address deficiencies emanating from school supervision reports. In the case of the latter, the selection of topics would normally involve the participation of General and Local Managers, Principals, and teachers and may vary from district to district.
The Ministry of Education has identified Language Arts and Health and Family Life Education (HFLE) as the two topics of national importance for this year’s CPD workshops. QADS had embarked on a Training of Trainers workshop in July with the objective of training a cadre of facilitators for each district to ensure the integrity of the training of teachers for these national programmes at the district level. The Training of Trainers workshop had the participation of teachers from various managements.
Additionally, all six districts have developed programmes for their two-week workshops that will include a wide gamut of topics. These include, among others, Teaching of Mathematics, Method of Assessing & Evaluating Preschoolers, Classroom Management, Alternative Discipline, Special Needs/Multiple Intelligence, and HIV/AIDS. Secondary school teachers will participate in sessions that are relevant to the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations. These will include: CXC Food & Nutrition, CXC Technical Drawing AUTOCAD, CXC Wood SBA Component, and CXC Information Technology. These areas of interest, as well as others such as Conflict Resolution/Anger Management and Classroom Management, were decided on in consultation with the Belize Association of Principals of Secondary Schools (BAPSS).
The CPD workshops are designed to provide teachers the opportunity to remain current in their field and to fulfill their credit requirements for professional development. Teachers are required to obtain a total of 120 credits in order that they may retain their teaching license.
Funding for the CPD workshops countrywide is provided by the Ministry of Education. Over the years, both the Belize National Teachers’ Union (BNTU) and the Social Security Board (SSB) have contributed to the Belize District workshops. It is expected that the vast majority of the estimated 4500 teachers currently in the education system will participate in the two-week CPD workshops.
The Ministry of Education continues to work in partnership with General and Local Managers, Principals, teachers, and other education stakeholders in ensuring that we meet our common objective of having all schools staffed by qualified, motivated teachers, who are fully trained to deliver good quality education to the children of Belize.
Details about the countrywide CPD workshops can be obtained from Mr. Nelson Longsworth, Director, QADS at tel: 223-1389/6970 and the District Education Managers.
The Ministry of Education, through its Quality Assurance and Development Services (QADS) area, will be conducting the annual Continuous Professional Development (CPD) workshops for teachers during the period July 31 – August 11, 2006.
The CPD workshops have been administered for the past five years and are held countrywide during the first two weeks of the month of August. The topics covered during the two-week period are divided into two main categories. Firstly, the topics which are facilitated directly by QADS focus on key areas of national importance. Such topics would normally focus on the training that is necessary for the implementation of new or revised curriculum and require the attendance of ALL teachers in the education system or in a particular grade. Secondly, there are other topics which are developed either: (i) through a Needs Assessment Survey conducted at the district level and/or (ii) to address deficiencies emanating from school supervision reports. In the case of the latter, the selection of topics would normally involve the participation of General and Local Managers, Principals, and teachers and may vary from district to district.
The Ministry of Education has identified Language Arts and Health and Family Life Education (HFLE) as the two topics of national importance for this year’s CPD workshops. QADS had embarked on a Training of Trainers workshop in July with the objective of training a cadre of facilitators for each district to ensure the integrity of the training of teachers for these national programmes at the district level. The Training of Trainers workshop had the participation of teachers from various managements.
Additionally, all six districts have developed programmes for their two-week workshops that will include a wide gamut of topics. These include, among others, Teaching of Mathematics, Method of Assessing & Evaluating Preschoolers, Classroom Management, Alternative Discipline, Special Needs/Multiple Intelligence, and HIV/AIDS. Secondary school teachers will participate in sessions that are relevant to the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations. These will include: CXC Food & Nutrition, CXC Technical Drawing AUTOCAD, CXC Wood SBA Component, and CXC Information Technology. These areas of interest, as well as others such as Conflict Resolution/Anger Management and Classroom Management, were decided on in consultation with the Belize Association of Principals of Secondary Schools (BAPSS).
The CPD workshops are designed to provide teachers the opportunity to remain current in their field and to fulfill their credit requirements for professional development. Teachers are required to obtain a total of 120 credits in order that they may retain their teaching license.
Funding for the CPD workshops countrywide is provided by the Ministry of Education. Over the years, both the Belize National Teachers’ Union (BNTU) and the Social Security Board (SSB) have contributed to the Belize District workshops. It is expected that the vast majority of the estimated 4500 teachers currently in the education system will participate in the two-week CPD workshops.
The Ministry of Education continues to work in partnership with General and Local Managers, Principals, teachers, and other education stakeholders in ensuring that we meet our common objective of having all schools staffed by qualified, motivated teachers, who are fully trained to deliver good quality education to the children of Belize.
Details about the countrywide CPD workshops can be obtained from Mr. Nelson Longsworth, Director, QADS at tel: 223-1389/6970 and the District Education Managers.
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