Kantarawaddy Times
Over 400 self-reliant basic education schools have been established in the revolutionary territories of Karenni State. However, the Director of the Education Department of the Karenni State Interim Executive Council (IEC), Maw Mi Mar, informed the Kantarawaddy Times that there is still a significant shortage of teachers.
“In some remote areas and internally displaced person (IDP) camps, there is a significant shortage of teachers. We have an operational plan to address this by recruiting and appointing additional teachers as soon as possible. Currently, most volunteer teachers are appointed by the community, with some staff coming from the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). However, as the majority of these individuals are volunteers, they require training to effectively teach the students. It is imperative that we provide them with subject-specific and pedagogical training,” stated Maw Mi Mar.
As the new school year approaches, schools are gearing up to reopen. In addition to the shortage of teachers, there is a pressing need for roofs for school renovations, textbooks, and other educational supplies, according to a responsible teacher from self-reliant schools within the state.
It has been reported that the IEC does not directly manage the over 400 self-reliant schools in Karenni State. However, the IEC collaborates with these self-reliant schools to provide for some of their basic needs. The IEC can only offer limited support for essential items like roofs and school supplies, which remain insufficient.
“We can’t adequality provide roofing materials for all schools at this time. In fact, we need to build new school buildings in the eastern part of the state. In some villages, there is no budget or resources to build schools. Therefore, we are opening schools in homes and buildings that we deem safe and secure,” said a local resident who helps displaced schools in the eastern part of Dee Maw Hso Township.
Regarding the need for teachers, it is reported that the IEC is collaborating with township-level and village-level education committees and school committees to find and train teachers.
Maw Mi Mar further stated that they are training over 200 teachers to be able to open Grade 12 classes in the upcoming school year.
“This year, we are in a position to start Grade 12 in our country. The curriculum and textbooks have been developed by the NUG Education Department. As a result, no teacher in Myanmar has had any prior training for Grade 12 yet. Therefore, we are currently training over 200 teachers in our state to be able to teach Grade 12,” added Maw Mi Mar.
The IEC and the Seh Theh Foundation, a local education organization, are providing food allowances to over 3,000 teachers currently teaching in schools. However, it is reported that they may face difficulties in supporting all teachers as the number of teachers grows.
