ET CETERA
By SHARON LING
The nation needs to recruit the best talents to be teachers to get students to be the best in all they do.
THERE is no better time to be a teacher than now.
Budget 2012, unveiled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak last week, offers a wealth of incentives to teachers under the focus of strengthening the civil service.
Not least of these is a pay rise and time-based promotion according to the New Civil Remuneration Scheme (SBPA).
Of course, other civil servants will also benefit from the scheme, but it’s significant that the Prime Minister used teachers as an example in explaining it.
For instance, teachers on grade DG48 will receive a maximum salary of RM8,710, an increase of 37.7% from RM6,325.39 under the Malaysia Remuneration System (SSM).
For non-graduate teachers on grade DG34, the maximum salary will increase by 39% from RM3,860.52 under SSM to RM5,370 under SBPA.
Moreover, in line with Najib’s Teachers’ Day message earlier this year, when he announced a better career path for graduate teachers, the SBPA offers time-based promotion whereby teachers will reach grade 44 in their eighth year and grade 48 in the 16th year of service. Similarly, it will take eight years for non-graduate teachers to be promoted from grade 29 to 32.
Civil servants, including teachers, also stand to enjoy a bigger annual increment of RM80 to RM320 according to grade, while those who opt for the SBPA will receive an annual increment of between 7% and 13%.
Other measures to boost the capacity of civil servants include tuition fee assistance for further studies on a part-time basis and scholarships for postgraduate studies at public institutions of higher learning. The Government will also offer 20,000 places to diploma teachers to pursue undergraduate studies, giving them a better career path and promotional prospects.
These incentives, according to Najib, are meant to transform the civil service to be dynamic, responsive and excellent.
“This includes a radical change in recruitment, placement as well as career development,” he said when presenting the Budget.
Hopefully, the incentives will not only spur teachers on to greater excellence but attract the best and brightest talents to enter the teaching profession.
As I’ve mentioned before, it is high time we change our mindset on the recruitment of teachers. Teachers play such an important role in shaping young minds and nurturing future generations that it is surely appropriate to recruit top graduates into teaching.
Unfortunately, the prevailing attitude still seems to be that those who achieve straight-A results in school should go on to study medicine, engineering, the sciences or law. Rarely do you hear of top students being actively encouraged to take up teaching.
If we want our education system to produce excellent students, we must start by recruiting the best talents to be teachers, who have a passion and commitment not only for education but in being role models and inspiring their students to be the best in all they do.
Look at SK Ulu Lubai, a primary school deep in the interior of Limbang division, which was featured in The Star this week.
Despite its remote location, it was named the country’s best primary school last year and a high performance school this year, with 100% passes in UPSR since 2006 and pupils who speak English confidently. It’s a testament to what a few dedicated and passionate teachers can achieve.
Of course, other factors cannot be discounted, like a good curriculum, parental support and community involvement, but the quality of teachers is paramount.
A report by international research consultancy McKinsey’s last year noted that the world’s top-performing school systems – Singapore, Finland and South Korea – recruited all their teachers from the top third of graduates.
Leaders in these school systems believe that “the quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers”, hence they have taken a strategic and systematic approach to attract, develop, retain and train the most talented educators.
After recruiting from the top third of graduates, the report says, these countries also rigorously screen them on other qualities, such as perseverance, motivational abilities and passion for children.
Now that the Budget has spelled out attractive incentives for teachers, let’s go one step further and begin recruiting our top graduates into the profession.
Source:http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/10/14/sarawak/9693789&sec=sarawak
THERE is no better time to be a teacher than now.
Budget 2012, unveiled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak last week, offers a wealth of incentives to teachers under the focus of strengthening the civil service.
Not least of these is a pay rise and time-based promotion according to the New Civil Remuneration Scheme (SBPA).
Of course, other civil servants will also benefit from the scheme, but it’s significant that the Prime Minister used teachers as an example in explaining it.
For instance, teachers on grade DG48 will receive a maximum salary of RM8,710, an increase of 37.7% from RM6,325.39 under the Malaysia Remuneration System (SSM).
For non-graduate teachers on grade DG34, the maximum salary will increase by 39% from RM3,860.52 under SSM to RM5,370 under SBPA.
Moreover, in line with Najib’s Teachers’ Day message earlier this year, when he announced a better career path for graduate teachers, the SBPA offers time-based promotion whereby teachers will reach grade 44 in their eighth year and grade 48 in the 16th year of service. Similarly, it will take eight years for non-graduate teachers to be promoted from grade 29 to 32.
Civil servants, including teachers, also stand to enjoy a bigger annual increment of RM80 to RM320 according to grade, while those who opt for the SBPA will receive an annual increment of between 7% and 13%.
Other measures to boost the capacity of civil servants include tuition fee assistance for further studies on a part-time basis and scholarships for postgraduate studies at public institutions of higher learning. The Government will also offer 20,000 places to diploma teachers to pursue undergraduate studies, giving them a better career path and promotional prospects.
These incentives, according to Najib, are meant to transform the civil service to be dynamic, responsive and excellent.
“This includes a radical change in recruitment, placement as well as career development,” he said when presenting the Budget.
Hopefully, the incentives will not only spur teachers on to greater excellence but attract the best and brightest talents to enter the teaching profession.
As I’ve mentioned before, it is high time we change our mindset on the recruitment of teachers. Teachers play such an important role in shaping young minds and nurturing future generations that it is surely appropriate to recruit top graduates into teaching.
Unfortunately, the prevailing attitude still seems to be that those who achieve straight-A results in school should go on to study medicine, engineering, the sciences or law. Rarely do you hear of top students being actively encouraged to take up teaching.
If we want our education system to produce excellent students, we must start by recruiting the best talents to be teachers, who have a passion and commitment not only for education but in being role models and inspiring their students to be the best in all they do.
Look at SK Ulu Lubai, a primary school deep in the interior of Limbang division, which was featured in The Star this week.
Despite its remote location, it was named the country’s best primary school last year and a high performance school this year, with 100% passes in UPSR since 2006 and pupils who speak English confidently. It’s a testament to what a few dedicated and passionate teachers can achieve.
Of course, other factors cannot be discounted, like a good curriculum, parental support and community involvement, but the quality of teachers is paramount.
A report by international research consultancy McKinsey’s last year noted that the world’s top-performing school systems – Singapore, Finland and South Korea – recruited all their teachers from the top third of graduates.
Leaders in these school systems believe that “the quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers”, hence they have taken a strategic and systematic approach to attract, develop, retain and train the most talented educators.
After recruiting from the top third of graduates, the report says, these countries also rigorously screen them on other qualities, such as perseverance, motivational abilities and passion for children.
Now that the Budget has spelled out attractive incentives for teachers, let’s go one step further and begin recruiting our top graduates into the profession.
Source:http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/10/14/sarawak/9693789&sec=sarawak
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