When a 16-member delegation from KwaZulu-Natal Legislature in South Africa will return back home after a week’s visit to the State, its to-do list includes plans to try out some of the successful education schemes of the State.
The team was impressed by the system of education here, and felt what made it successful was the value structure, commitment of teachers and parents, and patriotism. The team members said their experience had given them fond memories that they were taking back to KwaZulu-Natal.
It was to study the best practices in education here that the Portfolio Committee of Education from KwaZulu-Natal Legislature visited Kerala. The delegation was under the leadership of the chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Education, Linda Hlongwa.
Its study included understanding the status of teachers training programmes, performance measures in subjects such as Mathematics and Science, vocational training, role of local councils in education, literacy promotion programmes and role of the State government, and parent’s participation in education.
The team members visited various educational institutions across the State to analyse the practices. In the city, they visited three schools including Government Higher Secondary School for Girls, Cotton Hill, Government Teachers Training Institute, Cotton Hill, Mitraniketan People’ College, Vellanad, and Kannanmoola Colony under the Municipal Corporation. They also held meetings with various officials of the Department of Education.
The team listed teachers training programmes, nutritional programmes, inclusive education and vocational skills enhancement training as major programmes that would be planned for inclusion in development programmes back home. It also studied the importance of community involvement in education and the need for continuous research in curriculum development.
