STUDENTS want Government to provide teacher assistants for students who are slow learners and they have asked that professional counsellors be posted to schools.
Jotame Temo, a Year 13 student of Natabua High School in Lautoka, said this would ensure that no one was left behind in the sphere of learning in schools.
He made the request while speaking at the National Budget consultations in Lautoka yesterday
“There could be a class with a roll of 50 students in one class and with a combination of slow and fast learners,” he said.
“We would like to submit the suggestion of having teacher aids or teacher assistants in both primary schools and secondary schools.
“With this teacher aid, preferably one for each subject, they are to focus their attention on slow learners and bring them up to par with the rest of the students who are not in need of the assistance.”
Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said the Ministry of Education would need to discuss how compatible teacher assistants could be in the education system.
“That’s a good point, that is something that we can discuss with the Ministry of Education,” he said.
“We will obviously need teachers who are well trained to be able to do that.”
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said there were submissions made by students on the need for professional counsellors and this was a recurrent issue for most schools.
“We feel sorry for the teachers because they have to double up as teachers and counsellors. They are not necessarily trained as counsellors. But we have the issue where no one wants to take up counselling as a profession, so it’s a bit of a difficult situation.”
During a Tackling Child Labour Through Education (TACKLE) workshop in February, Fiji Teachers Union general secretary Agni Deo Singh highlighted the need for teacher assistants and professional counsellors in schools.
Mr Singh said the issue was serious because it was understated and the notion that every teacher must be a counsellor was a farce.
He said teachers’ assistants could greatly reduce the demands on teachers who had huge class sizes by assisting students who had difficulty grasping basic concepts. He said professional counsellors were trained in child psychology and were able to identify children who were stressed, depressed or challenged.
Mr Singh said it was unfortunate that counsellor positions in secondary schools were de-established by the Education Ministry a few years ago without any reason.
