– Only knowledgeable and competent teachers can train good workers –
Mongolians say that the knowledge of a student comes down from their teacher. This is not only a reference of respect to teachers, but it also means that students of good teachers are good students. Therefore, although training of knowledgeable, competent people depends on many factors, having a skilled and competent teacher is crucial.
Today, large development projects such as mining, road, construction, railways and infrastructure are being implemented and the demand for qualified and good workers has increased sharply. Vocational training centres face a heavy task to meet this demand. Although, investment is being made to support these centres, new centres are being built and students are being given scholarships, training and building capacity of teachers remain crucial.
Therefore, a decision was made to provide new training and increase the capacity of teachers at vocational training centres. Oyu Tolgoi LLC is implementing a vocational education programme, the largest in Mongolia, to build a qualified technical workforce. Under this programme, three new exemplary technological schools are being built and four vocational training centres are being fully upgraded. The training of mining and engineering specialists is conducted alongside a national and international scholarship programme. The teaching staff of the vocational training centres are being trained alongside this programme.
Australian traininng institution ETAS Group is delivering the three year teacher training project. Teachers graduating from the scheme receive a level four training and evaluation certificate and a diploma for organisation and training.
The teachers are taught about teaching skills and evaluation methodology. The first cohort of 90 teachers graduated last year and since then, a total of 152 teachers have graduated and received the certificates.
100 of the most promising teachers were also selected to provide ongoing training to other colleagues.
Rob Graham, Executive Chairman of the ETAS Group which delivers the accredited training to Australian Quality Training Framework standards said: “As mining develops rapidly in Mongolia, the demand for qualified, competent personnel has increased sharply. Mongolia lacks high numbers of qualified personnel. However, by working together, soon Mongolian teachers will be professionals, admired throughout the world.”
They say it is better to see once than to hear one thousand times. Oyu Tolgoi has selected the 30 best participants to visit Australia and study from Australian best practice and teaching. The teachers have returned having developed knowledge and experiences. They were introduced to the vocational training system of Australia and saw how Australian vocational training institutions are equipped with technology.
D.Orgilmaa, Training Superintendent of Oyu Tolgoi LLC said: “The basis for the development of any country lies in a qualified and competent workforce. Therefore, professional schools always have a need to train further and develop their teaching staff. This programme, to train teachers of vocational training centres is being implemented from 2011 until the end of this year. In total, during this period, we are planning to train about 1000 teachers and 60 managers of vocational training centres.”
Oyu Tolgoi supplied training equipment worth 3 billion tugrugs to the Vocational training centres. The trained teachers learned how to use the supplied equipment and gained knowledge on how to conduct training. This is one of the biggest achievements of this programme.
The teachers who enrolled in this training are very satisfied and expressed their thanks to Oyu Tolgoi for implementing such a timely and needed programme to improve the skills of teachers across the country.
In negotiation with the Ministry of Labor, Oyu Tolgoi is planning to extend the project to train up to 2400 teachers working in the vocational educational sector, providing them with Australian certificates as well as training brand new teachers.
The results of this programme are already being felt, with Mongolian teachers returning from Australia with new experiences and skills.
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