Fast Tracking the Training of Untrained Teachers - Pacific Islands ...

PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM SECRETARIAT
FORUM EDUCATION MINISTERS’ MEETING
Crown Plaza Hotel, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
13 - 14 October 2010
SESSION SIX
PIFS(10)FEDMM.07
FAST TRACKING THE TRAINING OF UNTRAINED TEACHERS
IN THE PACIFIC REGION
This paper was prepared by the University of the South Pacific proposing a strategy for fasttracking
the training of un-trained teachers in the region.

Purpose
PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM SECRETARIAT
FORUM EDUCATION MINISTERS’ MEETING
Crown Plaza Hotel, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
13 - 14 October 2010
2
PIFS(10)FEDMM.07
FAST TRACKING THE TRAINING OF UNTRAINED TEACHERS
IN THE PACIFIC REGION
To present USP’s initiative to fast track the training of untrained teachers in the Pacific
for consideration of the Forum Education Ministers. The full text of the USP initiative is
contained in Attachment 1 to this paper.
Background
2. Preliminary surveys indicate that the potential number of untrained teachers in the
Pacific island countries is substantial and constitutes a significant challenge for USP and the
other higher education institutions in the region. The School of Education (SOE) at USP can
fast track training by offering certificates of education for primary and secondary teachers,
modified and delivered directly for identified cohorts of students or taught in conjunction
with national institutions in the region to provide initial certification.
3. Both certificates consist of eight courses plus practicum. The practicum will be related
to each of the courses and undertaken in a teacher’s own classroom. The primary teachers’
certificate would consist of courses specially designed for teachers in the areas of teaching
methodologies, mathematics, science, social science, a local language, language, English for
academic purposes, and application of the knowledge and skills in their classrooms. The
secondary teachers’ certificate would consist of two courses in teaching subjects, a local
language, issues in teaching and learning, language for teachers, principles of assessing
student performance, English for academic purposes, communication and information literacy
and application of the knowledge and skills in the classroom.
4. These programs would provide an alternative pathway for untrained teachers to
upgrade their teaching skills and curriculum content knowledge and then be eligible to enter
the Bachelor of Education in-service degree program. The certificate programs would be the
first part of a stair-casing approach to facilitate access for untrained teachers to the BEd
program.

Progress to date
5. Discussion has occurred with the relevant authorities in Kiribati and Solomon Islands
on how to fast track the training of untrained primary and secondary teachers. Various
alternatives have been considered such as offering the programs face to face, by distance and
online as well as by cohort with suggested timelines. A proposal was presented to AUSAID
for funding to train untrained primary teachers in the Solomon Islands. Based on the progress
of this submission, USP plans to offer the program region-wide. In addition the certificate
courses at USP are being modified. Discussions are taking place with Ministries of Education
to determine how to best progress this initiative in a strategic way.
Modes of offering
6. A student could take one or two courses per semester. The courses could be taught
directly by USP or as joint ventures between USP and teacher training institutions in the
region. Local teacher training institutions could provide facilities and support tutors to work
with the USP lecturers in delivering the courses. Some work can be done directly from USP
online on Moodle platform or through print and other electronic means. It could also be
offered face to face in country.
7. Depending on the mode of offer and need, a student could complete the whole
program in primary or secondary teaching in one year if studying fulltime doing four courses
a semester or over two years if doing two courses a semester. But timing may vary depending
on the combination of study the student chooses.
Proposed timeline
8. For the primary teachers’ certificate program it is proposed to begin in 2011 with the
offer of the courses face to face/summer school and using Moodle platform with follow up
practicum. For the secondary teachers’ certificate program, it is also proposed to begin in
2011 by country or region-wide depending on needs of the countries.
Outcomes
9. The outcomes for both the primary and secondary teachers’ certificate programs
would be that teachers will be equipped with the basic knowledge and skills required to teach
effectively in their classrooms and thus improving the quality of education.
Issues
10. Further work is necessary to be done in the following:
obtaining recent figures of untrained teachers in each Forum member country;
working with countries to determine priorities;
developing course materials;
obtaining support of Ministries, schools and principals;
considering incentives for teachers upon graduation;
identifying funding sources to deliver the programs.
3

Recommendations
11. Ministers are invited to:
(a) note the details of the proposal of the USP initiative to train untrained teachers
in the Pacific region contained in Attachment 1; and
(b) consider and support the proposal for further development and
implementation.
Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Suva
21 September 2010
4

Preamble
USP INITIATIVE TO TRAIN UNTRAINED TEACHERS
IN THE PACIFIC REGION
5
Attachment 1
This paper is concerned with the training of untrained teachers by USP in the Pacific
region. We are aware that teacher training and supply remains a significant problem for most
countries in the Pacific region. The School of Education believes that upgrading the skills of
untrained teachers will help address the challenges facing the Pacific island nations,
especially those without teacher training institutions, and improve education for children in
the region. Teachers would gain initial skills, knowledge and certification through an eight
course certificate offered by the School of Education at USP.
2. This proposal is consistent with the vision, mission and priority areas of the University
of the South Pacific. The vision 1 of USP is to:
be proactive in recognizing and meeting the higher education needs,
deliver quality learning and teaching, research and hence quality in all university
services,
be highly regarded locally, regionally and internationally, and
provide relevant and sustainable solutions across the spectrum of contemporary
challenges in the Pacific.
Background
3. The focus of the School of Education (SOE) at USP is to provide quality teacher
education and professional development throughout the region. USP has a suite of
certificates, diplomas, degrees and post graduate programs that are offered to train teachers.
These can be taught by a mix of modes such as; face to face, print, Moodle online support for
face to face, fully online, blended modes and summer/winter schools. The most likely mode
of offering of the certificate would be to cohorts on USP campuses, or those of local teacher
education institutions, with the assistance of local experts and online or print materials for
support. Completion of a certificate can then lead to enrolments in relevant Diplomas and
Degrees.
4. A preliminary desk review carried out by the Teachers and Education in the Pacific
(TEP) Project in 2007 (Fua & Sanga, 2007) 2 presented issues on teachers and teacher
education in the region including information on the status of teacher demand, supply and
deployment and work environment. This included some statistics for untrained teachers in
Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, PNG, Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tokelau,
Tuvalu and Vanuatu. This was as follows:
• about 40 % of teachers in Tonga and more than 30 % in the Solomon Islands were
uncertified or untrained.
• the problem was not serious in Fiji (.06%), Samoa (4%), Cooks (7%) and Niue.
1 USP Strategic Plan 2010 - 2012
2 Fua, S.J & Sanga, K.F. (2007) Teachers and Education in the Pacific (TEP): A desk study report,
Commissioned by AusAID-ADB.

• Information on untrained teachers was not available from Kiribati, Nauru, Tokelau,
Tuvalu and Vanuatu in their study.
• PNG also had some untrained teachers but data were not available.
5. Some recent data on untrained teachers have been obtained as follows but some of
these are unofficial and updated information is still being obtained.
Country Per cent (%) Untrained Number untrained
Cook Islands 3 20 ECE
1.7 Primary
7.7 Secondary
Fiji 4 Secondary 120
Kiribati 5 65 Senior Secondary
84 Junior Secondary
15 Primary & Junior Secondary
Marshall Islands 6 65
Nauru
Niue
6
181
53
88
Solomon Islands 7 45 About 3256
Tokelau 8 About 50 About 58
Tonga 9 20 Secondary About 200
Tuvalu 10 About 25
Vanuatu 11 27 Primary
34 Secondary
6. Even from these approximate numbers, it can be seen that there is potentially a very
large number of untrained teachers in the region which constitutes a problem for the quality
of education and poses a significant challenge for USP and the other education institutions in
the region.
Progress to date
3 USP Campus Director
4 MOE 2010
5 Digest of Education Statistics 2008
6 Unofficial communication
7 MOE 2009 (estimated), confirmed by USP Campus Director
8 PRIDE
9 MOE 2009
10 MOE 2010
11 USP Campus Director
905
457

7. Discussion has occurred with the relevant authorities in Kiribati, and Solomon Islands,
to train untrained primary and secondary teachers A proposal was presented to AUSAID for
funding to train untrained primary teachers in the Solomon Islands
8. The certificate courses at USP are currently being modified. Discussions are taking place
with Ministries to determine how to best progress this initiative forward in a strategic
way.
Proposed programs
9. The School of Education has a Certificate in Education (Primary) and a Certificate in
Education (Secondary) that can be modified, adapted and developed to be the initial programs
of study for untrained teachers. These programs would provide an alternative pathway for
untrained teachers to upgrade their teaching skills and curriculum content knowledge and then
be eligible to enter the Bachelor of Education in-service degree program. Presently, the
majority of untrained teachers in the region do not qualify to enrol in USP’s BEd in-service
program and hence are denied the opportunity to pursue formal teacher education programs.
The certificate programs would be the first part of a stair-casing approach to facilitate access
for untrained teachers to the BEd program.
10. Both certificates consist of eight courses plus practicum. The practicum will be related
to each of the courses and undertaken in the teacher’s own classroom. The outcomes for both
programs would be that teachers will be equipped with the basic knowledge and skills
required to teach effectively.
11. The program for the primary certificate would consist of courses in academic English;
educational psychology; local language of instruction; language, mathematics, science and
social science teaching; assessment and evaluation and application of these knowledge and
skills in their classrooms.
12. Specifically the following combination is being suggested:
ED 152 Learning and teaching (revised version of ED152);
ED115 Mathematics for teachers (to be further developed);
ED116 Science for teachers (to be developed);
ED100 Social Science for teachers (a new course to be developed);
LL161 or a local language (prepared and coordinated by respective countries);
ED170 Language for teachers;
UU114 English for academic purposes;
UU100 Communication and information literacy.
13. The following are important notes:
These courses are to be modified to suit the respective country.
School practicum will be included in the first four courses above.
Principles of assessment will be included in the first four courses above.
7

14. The secondary program would consist of English for Academic Purposes; issues in
teaching and learning; two other relevant education courses; four courses for the teaching
subjects and application of the knowledge and skills in the classroom.
15. Specifically the suggested combinations are:
Two 100 level teaching subjects.
LL171 or LL161 or a local language (prepared and coordinated by respective
countries).
ED 152 Issues in teaching and learning (revised version of ED152).
ED170 Language for teachers.
ED154 Principles of assessing student performance.
UU114 English for academic purposes.
UU100 Communication and information literacy.
16. The following are important notes:
These courses are to be modified for the respective countries.
School practicum will be included in courses 3 and 6.
Modes of offering
17. We believe that a student could take two courses per semester and complete the
certificate in two years. The proposed timeline schedules one course per semester initially but
that can be changed. The courses could be taught directly or as joint ventures between USP
and teacher training institutions in the region. The local teacher training institutions could
supply facilities and tutors to work with USP lecturers. Some possible variations are as stated
below.
USP could teach these courses directly from USP campuses with some material
made available online and with local staff appointed within the region.
USP could coordinate these programs with the teacher education institutions such
as Kiribati Teachers College, Tonga Institute of Education, Vanuatu Institute of
Education and Solomon Islands College of Higher Education.
In Niue, Tokalau, Nauru and Tuvalu, these could be delivered directly by USP
with assistance from local expertise.
18. Some courses need to be developed or redeveloped in line with this proposal. USP
believes that it should offer the courses face to face in the first instance as a trial. Then they
can be revised if necessary and put into the Moodle online platform.
Proposed timeline
19. The following timeline is being proposed to implement the proposal:
8

[i] Primary certificate
2011 ED 152 Face to face/summer school
using Moodle platform with follow up
practicum.
2012 ED116 Face to face/summer school using
Moodle platform with follow up practicum
2013 LL161 Face to face/summer school using
Moodle platform.
2014 UU114 Face to face/summer school using
Moodle platform.
9
ED 115 Print or online Mooodle with
tutor/winter school with follow up
practicum.
ED 100 Print or online Moodle with
tutor/winter school with follow up
practicum.
ED 170 Print or online Moodle with
tutor/winter school.
UU100 Print or online Moodle with
tutor/winter school.
20. Depending on the mode of study, a student may complete the program in one year if
doing four courses a semester or two years if doing two courses a semester. However,
completion may be fast tracked if a combination of modes is taken.
[ii] Secondary certificate
21. This would follow a similar model to the primary certificate. The courses could be
rolled out country by country. This would allow for pilots and revision. For example
Roll-out
2011 Country 1
2012 Country 2
Country 3 and so on
22. Depending on need, this could also be fast tracked by offering the courses through
combination of modes.
Costing
23. Courses would be offered on fee paying basis and that the countries, together with the
university, would seek some donor funding to meet some of the costs.
Issues and areas for action
24. In order to offer these certificate courses:
Recent figures are necessary.
Ministries, schools and principals need to support the programs.
Funding must be sourced.
Staff need to be appointed in the region.
Some course material needs to be developed and revised and then put into the
Moodle online platform.
Due consideration must be given to readiness, relevance and resources in
countries.
25. The USP is willing to collaborate with personnel in the region to offer these courses.

Appendix
Response from Solomon Islands (for example)
Untrained teachers
Questions
As presented and discussed at the PEDF consultation meeting (Nadi, August, 2010) SOE at USP is able to offer
an eight unit certificate to provide untrained primary or secondary teachers with an initial qualification.
We need to do this in conjunction with Ministries of Education, teacher education institutions and other agencies
in your country.
Any help you are able to provide will be greatly appreciated.
Do you have untrained teachers who need
certification?
Are other agencies filling this need?
If you are interested in USP providing the training
what are the numbers involved?
Primary
Secondary
How would you prioritize your needs? (I. e. Primary
before secondary?)
How would you like a certificate to be offered? (e.g.
cohorts, online, collaboration with local teacher
education institution)
Who can we negotiate the details with?
What incentives can you offer for the teachers to be
involved?
From whom should we seek funding?
Yes, both at Primary and Secondary school levels.
The Ministry has collaboration currently under way
with Solomon Islands College of Higher Education
to develop and run a Certificate in Teaching
Primary.
This would be equivalent to the first year of study
for a Diploma and enable students to be admitted to
Diploma study
However, the more agencies wish to be involved,
the more we can be able to address the huge need
that exists.
At Primary level, up to 3000 teachers will take the
Certificate Program. Secondary level training needs
are more specialized, focused in particular on
second subject teaching, and numbers are small.
It will be advantageous for USP to be involved as it
is important for the project as USP will bring in a
different dimension.
Primary has already been given priority in Solomon
Islands and therefore our priorities are:
1. Primary
10
2. Secondary
The current preference is for school-based DFL in
partnership with local Education Authorities. We
are interested in portfolio based assessment
designed around the Regional Professional
Standards
Stanley Karuo’o
Director, Teacher Training and Development Office
Ministry of Education, Honiara., Solomon Islands
Phone: +677 30498
Email: ttdo@mehrd.gov.sb
Technical Advisor: Brian Sayer
Email: bsayer@mehrd.gov.sb
Certification enables Solomon Islands teachers to
move up the salary scale and also opens up
opportunities for further study and promotion
The Ministry funds teacher training in Solomon
Islands, through funding made available through
EU.