Publisher brings out books to give teachers a helping hand in class

National

By Martha Deruage
A publisher displayed a range of resource books to more than 500 teachers to show that learning material and guides for them and their pupils are available if they want them.
The publisher attended the official opening of grade 12 examination marking yesterday in Port Moresby.
Managing director and publisher of Bilum Books Ray O’Farrell displayed a variety of text books aimed at students in elementary to secondary schools and teachers’ guide textbooks to help teachers.
O’Farrell, a former Oxford Press publisher in Australia, and co-directors Irene Sawczak and Sara White, have a strong background in education as teachers and publishers.
“After living in PNG for over 40 years, we see that there is a need for good resources for teachers in PNG and that is why, with the partnership of Christian Books Melanesia, we produce the books to help raise the education standards of PNG,” O’Farrell said.
He said there were three main reasons that prompted them to publish those books – to improve the literacy level in PNG, provide schools with good resources and to train teachers.
O’Farrell said according to the global literacy level, PNG was rated quite low.
“Our focus is literacy, especially at elementary school. Elementary school is the foundation because at present, children are leaving elementary school unable to read and write and that needs to change.”
He said PNG needed to build a stronger foundation in elementary so that teachers could build on that in Grades 3, 4, 5 and upwards.
O’Farrell said books were the tools that teachers needed to upgrade literacy and elementary list would be strengthened by a new SBC English programme to be launched next year.