Taking the art of teaching to a higher level

WITH SPN-21 the National Education System for the 21st century, the emphasis shifted from teaching to learning with the focus shifting from the teacher to the student to ensure that learning was taking place during the teaching process.

However, bearing in mind that the education system also functions as the producer of manpower for the nation's public and private sector, relevant stakeholders and government agencies were reminded of the need for them to work together, looking at both the demand and supply side of the employment market, to ensure that school leavers and graduates had employability skills so that they didn't just contribute to a pool of jobless youths. This was the stress of CSPS executive director Dato Hj Ismail Hj Duraman, in a exclusive interview with The Brunei Times "Ensuring grads have employability skills" (May 23, 2011).

The 16th International Conference on Education which began on Monday at the Chancellor's Hall in University Brunei Darussalam (UBD) took up the issue of developing design research and action research during the education process to ensure that the teachers kept tabs on the learning process while teaching was going on and targeting the whole process towards achieving set goals.

This process places greater responsibility on the shoulders of teachers who would really be true professionals as they fine-tuned their teaching to ensure that learning was taking place. This becomes a heavier responsibility as they must ensure that their students - both the normal and the ones with special needs - are catered for in an inclusive classroom. Minister of Education Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia Hj Abu Bakar Hj Apong said, "This inquiry-based approach carried out in classrooms with and by teachers to improve teaching and learning has the potential of transforming education in powerful ways as it will support the teaching and learning that is ongoing in the various contexts of learning."