Footprints made a significant funding contribution to this extensive educational training project. It covered three workshop sessions in two locations, supporting over 536 teachers from more than 100 schools.
1. Primary Teacher Training Workshop, Sotang
This was the first Primary teacher training course ever held at Sotang and was attended by 298 teachers from 65 schools in the region.
The ten-day intensive course was held between 17th December 2008 and 6th January 2009. It included three resource staff from the District Education Office in Salleri who walked for several days to attend the workshop.
Sotang is south east of the Khumbu (Everest), a region that is in dire need of educational support.
Objectives and course content
The main aim of this basic course was to strengthen the teaching skills and morale of primary teachers to improve the child-centered quality education in the Sotang base 65 Schools.
The main themes of the primary teacher training were
- The role, responsibilities and expectations of teachers, parents, school management, NGO’s and other stakeholders
- Teaching strategies, materials development and its use, regular assessment
- Child psychology
- Team-building
- Curriculum study including two days’ training in each of four subjects: Nepali, Social Studies/Science, English and Mathematics.
Course Evaluation
Over 93 percent of course participants evaluated this basic course as being good or excellent and the rest suggested there were some areas in need of improvement. the most popular subjects were Brain gym exercise, practice of class songs, organization and management of classroom, subject wise materials development, active reading, learning styles (learning intelligences) and music.
Note: many teachers were untrained and newly appointed by the District Education Office to the training courses.
Challenges and Recommendations
- The teachers are enthusiastic and active to learn different skills and refresher training is highly recommended.
- The materials supplied by local program partner REED (Rural Education and Evironmental Development Centre) can only be used effectively, and the child-centered teaching practiced, if they have good classrooms and trained teachers. Hence, there is a need to develop the physical infrastructure, such as erecting transparent sheets on the roof, building of toilets, and drinking water for different schools (AHF need to collaborate with other NGO’s)
- The District Education Office to be requested not to transfer the teachers out of the area for at least a period of three years.
- The SMC to be oriented to perform the management of the school in a better way
- Exercise books and pencils to be provided to the schools where the children come from poorer families.
2. Refresher Teacher Training Workshop, Salleri
In addition to the Primary Teacher training program expansion into the Sotang region (outlined above), REED continues to conduct annual teacher refresher programs in the Khumbu (Everest) region.
This refresher Teacher Training workshop was for people who had previously attended the Primary Training. It was held from 7th to 12th December 2008 in Salleri, Nepal.
This year it was attended by 156 teachers from 38 schools from throughout the Solukhumbu.
Project Objectives and content
The main aim of this course was to strengthen the teaching skills and morale of primary teachers to improve the child-centered quality education in Solukhumbu primary schools.
Specific objectives were:
- To learn new child-centered teaching skills for subjects' areas.
- To build new curriculum knowledge in all teachers in all subjects.
- To build the understanding of the Key Teacher roles and responsibilities in the school cluster groups.
The themes of the workshops were :
- teacher responsibility and accountability
- child psychology
- team building
- Assessment and evaluation
- making of the child-centered learning materials
- curriculum study including one-day training in Nepali, Social Studies/Science and Mathematics.
Course Evaluation
- Over 90% of course participants evaluated this course as being good or excellent. Only 2% suggested it could have been improved.
- Brain Gym, class songs, life skills, Nepali vocabulary development, English phonics, English grammar and vocabulary, Creative writing and music were the popular subjects.
- Over the year Trainers and Key Teachers reported seeing obvious improvement in teacher's classrooms and the teaching classroom environment.
- Teachers appreciated the Key Teachers units.
Challenges and Recommendations
- Many teachers were new to the workshop this year because of staff transfer, which was a difficult challenge. Additionally, the six days’ training made it difficult to pursue subjects in depth.
- One recommendation to improve the course success is to find ways for their schools to have the same teaching resources/materials as those found in schools in the more prosperous regions of Khumbu.
3. Refresher Teacher Training Workshop, Khumbu
This refresher workshop was held between 12th to 24th April 2009, at Chaurikharka & Kharikhola and was attended by 82 primary school teachers.
Objectives and content
The aim of this course was to strengthen the teaching skills and morale of primary teachers to improve the child-centered quality education in the Khumbu primary schools.
The themes of the workshops were
- teacher responsibility and accountability
- child psychology
- team building
- curriculum study including one-day training in Nepali, Social Studies/Science and Mathematics.
- Assessment and evaluation
- making of the child-centered learning materials
Course Evaluation
Comments were very positive and participants really appreciated the training. Four Volunteer Teachers from Australia and Switzerland added a different positive dimension. Two of these volunteers had huge strength in creative language techniques.
Challenges and Recommendations
- Numbers are always lower for these two courses. Schools in the upper Khumbu region often make it difficult to release primary teachers. We will continue to try and encourage all primary teachers to attend.
- It is recommended that the course continue next year but will relocate to a region in the south of Humbug that will provide a considerable cost saving
Program partners
Jim Strang, a New Zealand teacher who was instrumental in establishing in 1998 the Teacher Training program run by Sir Edmund Hillary’s Himalayan Trust is the project coordinator. On the ground the operation is managed by REED (Rural Education and Environmental Development), a Nepalese NGO based in Kathmandu who have worked with Jim from the outset. A further dimension to the project is the contribution of a select team of volunteer teachers.
TTQE achievements
During its development the program has
- Gained unqualified support from the local District Education Office as well as the village development committees and the school management committees.
- Been fully accredited by the Nepal Council for Education Development
- Been evaluated by UNICEF and identified as a model for educational development in Nepal.
Project Background
The Australian Himalayan Foundation's Teacher Training and Quality Education (TTQE) project has a track record of successful grassroots education projects over several years in the Solukhumbu Region of the Himalaya.
The program involves three phases:
- The teaching of Key Teachers to become teacher-trainers
- Local teacher training - run by the Key Teachers
- Refresher courses and ongoing mentorship
In 2008 at the request of local communities, the reach of this
cost-effective education program has been extended to the lower valley
region and a further 40 key teachers and 200 local teachers from 50 schools will be
trained - in total, over 8000 kids will benefit from a better education.
You can read reports of past TTQE projects that Footprints has funded here.
The project costs will cover:
- The training of approx 190 Nepalis as teachers
- Training materials
- Specific materials and resources to the schools
Project Aims and outcomes
The Teacher Training and Quality Education project program greatly improves teaching and learning levels and the rates of retention and transition into secondary school, thus improving the opportunities for children in this impoverished and remote Himalayan region. It also
- Teaches child psychology and an understanding of how students learn. Teaching practices will promote higher-order critical and creative thinking to actively engage learners.
- Helps greatly to ease the severe shortage of trained teachers in all subjects
- Is run in conjunction with the local communities and experienced volunteers, ensuring sustainable benefits and increased community support.
The provision of specific requested and needed resources and assistance to particular schools will also increase the teaching and learning skills in schools, and improve the education of the kids of the region.
Educational issues in the Himalaya Region
In the impoverished and remote communities of the Solukhumbu, there are very limited future opportunities for kids.
With highly unsatisfactory learning outcomes and retention rates, teacher education is the most effective way to increase student participation, achievement, and retention in schools, especially when coupled with provision of specific, vital assistance and resources. It also facilitates significant increases in community support (vital for attendance and retention rates), social cohesion and local involvement in the schools.
Better education in turn increases their job and economic prospects and community leadership and income-gaining skills, and greatly assists community well-being.
Community Involvement
The AHF project team is led by a teacher training coordinator who is highly experienced in this profession and region, a group of Australian volunteer teacher trainers and the strong local support of local Nepali teacher trainers. All teachers trained are from the local communities.
Part of a larger project
This project will fund one phase of the 2008 TTQE program ('refresher training').
The three phases of the TTQE program combined will cover the training of about
80 Key primary school teachers to be teacher trainers themselves, with on-going monitoring
responsibilities. They will subsequently train approximately 400 local Nepalis in about
120 schools to be teachers. In total, nearly 8,000 kids
will receive a better, longer education. The schools will also receive
broader education assistance.
Can I visit this project?
You can visit some of the 120 or so schools involved on specific occasions as a member of an AHF support trek (coordinated by World Expeditions), subject to availability and timing.
Australian (and others) who are qualified teachers can participate as volunteer trainers of Key Teachers, and of other local teachers. Contact the Australian Himalayan Foundation