ພາສາລາວ
Mr Meungkham Keophouvong is the Head of the Mathematics Department at the Luang Namtha Teacher Training College. He was selected in October last year to be part of the team of 60 Master Trainers
Master Trainers have an important role in the in-service teacher training. They will be training the 611 Provincial Trainers and take the lead in organising with the Provincial Trainers and other partners the training activities for all Grade 1 teachers, primary principals and pedagogical advisors in July and August 2019.
Mr Meugkham Keophouvong participated in the Master Trainers Capacity Development workshop in December and joined the trial of the teacher training last month. He is very committed to improving teacher quality and supporting the team of Provincial Trainers.
“I am so grateful to be able to support the implementation of the new revised primary curriculum. I strongly believe that the education quality will be improved with the new teaching pedagogy because it is more student centred. It is very important that the teachers switch to active learning and use more teaching – learning materials. The problem is that most local teachers don’t have enough time to produce those materials.
Nevertheless, I trust this is achievable with the new curriculum. The new teacher guides are easy to use and very realistic. They provide useful guidance for the teachers on how to organise their lesson following the new pedagogy and how to create the tools they need. Each school will also receive a resource pack with useful educational materials such as flash cards, posters and even story books. The teachers will have to follow the new curriculum and stop teaching the old lecturing style if they want to improve the performance of their students.
I think one of the most useful changes in the curriculum is the orientation week. It will help students to get to know each other and get familiar with the teacher and the classroom environment. The teachers will start the year with inclusive teaching, engaging their students in different activities, learning games and storytelling.
During the trial training, I learned a lot about the Rubrics system and how to give grades to students. This method will help the teachers to assess the ability of each child. Teachers will understand better each child’s ability and be able to provide support in the areas where they are weaker.
I feel already 90% ready to deliver the training to the provincial trainers and I haven’t finished my training yet. The materials and handbooks are good and easy to use.”
This week, Mr Meungkam Keophouvong, along with his 59 Master Trainers colleagues is attending a second capacity development workshop. He will practice provincial trainers workshop content delivery and enhance his skills in mentoring to peers and peer reviewing process.