Chairman supports Fr Jan’s call for teachers colleges to meet requirements

THE board of a teachers college has described the higher education secretary’s call for institutions to meet the 10 standards for institutional registration and seven standards for programme accreditation as a way forward for the country’s education system.
Department of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (DHERST) secretary Fr Jan made the call last week for newly established teachers colleges to meet the requirements to apply for registration as higher education institutions.
Fr Jan said if teachers colleges were established by the Education Department then they would be given a year to apply for registration as a higher education institution.
He said DHERST would work with them to help them meet the standard as an institution of higher learning.
Kelua Teachers College board chairman Thomas Kopal welcomed Fr Jan’s call.
He said his institution was working to meet the requirements.
Kopal said Kelua in Mt Hagen, Western Highlands, was a newly established teachers college and was recognised by the provincial government as a higher learning institution.
Kopal said the college had built permanent classrooms, 12 temporary dormitories and staff accommodation. He said the college had been inspected by the Ombudsman Commission’s Highlands office.
Kopal said teachers colleges were doing their best to produce an educated population for the country.
“There is shortage of teachers and there is a need for more colleges to produce teachers to meet the demand,” he said.