EENET asia Newsletters : Symposium issue April 2006 Contents

Practice and Do not be Afraid

Farida Torobekova

How are classes being delivered in rural schools today? The schools often lack qualified staff and appropriate teaching material. All this affects the quality of teaching and the work of teachers who often have to solve problems on their own without much support. Let's briefly analyse an average class led by a regular teacher, with children sitting in three rows unable to see their class mates. The teacher only interacts with those sitting on the first few benches. Games and other interactive methods are hardly used. One may ask: Why? Perhaps, the answer is quite simple: Because many teachers have not participated in re-orientation and training programmes for a long time, especially not the teachers in the villages.

Since 2003, we have been implementing the Participation, Education and Knowledge Strengthening (PEAKS) project funded by USAID primarily aimed at improving teaching quality. As a part of this project, a wide range of activities are offered to teachers. Training is provided on approaches to include all children in the basic education process and provide quality education to all children regardless of their individual abilities and differences. Every child has the right to participation and education. The training activities enable teachers to analyse children's capacity, assess their development level or the type of barrier they may face. During the training sessions teachers are also encouraged to analyse their own capacities, and how to seek support from parents, other teachers, children and the community.

After their return from the training sessions many teachers are a bit afraid and wonder how all these new methods can be applied in their classrooms? Will they have a negative impact on teaching quality? Are they effective?

Zymyrat Rahmanovna Sadirova is a primary school teacher in Tajibai School of Nookat rayon (district), Osh oblast (sub-district). She has been working in the school for 21 years. Since 2003, Zymyrat attended training programmes on inclusive education and the Step by Step approach. On being interviewed she said "I like the methods adopted during the training. We learn interesting games, new teaching methods, and approaches from other teachers". Zymyrat started to implement what she had learned immediately after the training. "At first, I was afraid to use the new methods of working with children, because we are used to standard form of classes, I mean traditional methods and traditional lesson plans. Now I can see the effect of the new techniques. It helps the children to become more self-reliant, open and active. My children are no longer afraid to speak out. We play a lot, and every game has a certain educational purpose".

Zymyrat says that at first all teachers are afraid to use the new methods since education authority officers (rayon or oblast education departments) may see such classes as useless because the class structure has changed substantially. Currently, we work together in pairs, small groups and clusters. We use a lot of time developing activities and interactive games. "Now I do not worry about my lessons as much as I did before. In my group I even have children with disabilities. I say that all children can learn, every one of them is talented and has varied achievements in different subjects".

According to Zymyrat the PEAKS training programmes not only offers new methods but also encourages teachers to cooperate closely with parents and involve them more in the teaching and learning process. Teachers who attended these training sessions now develop special plans to involve parents. Zymyrat says: "This year, I intend to have more parents involved in my work. I plan to invite them to my classes to show them how their children work, try, compose and create something new. I believe that parents must be a teacher's "right hand" and the most important is that they must be helpers to their children. I believe it is my duty is to raise their interest, show them the results of what parents and children can achieve when they work together".

Farida Torobekova is a field officer with Save the Children UK in Kyrgyzstan. She can be contacted through e-mail: project@oshmail.kg or: Save the Children UK; 302, Lenina Str., 16 Osh; Kyrgyzstan

EENET asia Newsletters : Symposium issue April 2006 Contents