| Azlan Othman |
THE current priority of the Ministry of Education (MoE) is to improve the quality of teachers in the wake of the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which has the potential to impact all aspects of life, including education, Minister of Education Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Hamzah bin Haji Sulaiman said.
Addresing a dialogue session between the Ministry of Education and members of the Legislative Council yesterday at the ministry which he chaired, Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Hamzah added that in this regard, teachers need to be prepared with the ability to teach students the new skills needed to overcome the challenges of the new era.
“This is also to uphold the titah of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam during the recent 28th Teacher’s Day celebration, where His Majesty advised teachers to not only teach or guide children in their exams, but also to show them how preparations should be made within the context of this era of rapid globalisation and technological advancement,” he said.
The minister also addressed some of the strategies and initiatives that are being implemented by the Ministry of Education. These initiatives cover all levels of primary, secondary, post-secondary, technical and vocational, and higher education.
These steps, the minister highlighted, are aimed at creating a knowledgeable, skilled and civilised human capital in line with the Ministry of Education’s vision of ‘Quality Education, Dynamic Nation’ and ‘To Deliver Holistic Education to Achieve Fullest Potential for All’ mission.
The dialogue session is an annual event of the Department of the Councils of State at the Prime Minister’s Office with the ministries and agencies.
The session yesterday was attended by 17 members of the Legislative Council headed by Yang Berhormat Iswandy bin Ahmad, who talked about the Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2017 that was conducted from October 16 to November 12, 2017.
“The total number of unemployed was around 19,200 with an unemployment rate of 9.3 per cent.
“Out of the unemployed, there were about 8,500 youth aged 15 to 24 years. If we make a comparison, the unemployment rate was 6.9 per cent in 2014.
“Our labour force should be equipped with knowledge and skills in addition to what they’ve picked up from their schooling days,” Yang Berhormat Iswandy said.
He also acknowledged the Ministry of Education’s efforts in formulating an intervention programme to enhance teachers’ skills in several areas and to equip our students sufficiently in fulfilment of the country’s Vision 2035.
The session was punctuated by a briefing by the Ministry of Education in which a video clip on several strategies and initiatives implemented by the ministry was shown.
The achievements of primary, secondary, post-secondary, technical and vocational, and higher education institutions were also presented.
The Deputy Minister of Education, permanent secretaries, deputy permanent secretaries, and senior officers of the Ministry of Education also attended the session.