Uguro: Work honestly

By JINA AMBA
EDUCATION Minister Jimmy Uguro has urged teachers and education inspectors not to fall to the temptation of corruption but to perform their duties honestly.
“There are many hard working teachers but the few bad apples are tarnishing the image of the teaching profession,” he said.
He said during the opening of the joint national ratings conference in Port Moresby: “For instance, when an inspector wants to visit a school and inspect teachers, teachers pretend to behave at their best.
“This is not right.
“Do not deceive yourself, do not pretend, you should do your job as a teacher.
“You should not assist the inspector to inspect you.
“Inspectors should do their job without any favouritism or use of bribes.”
He said the teaching service commission had problems with the appointment of teachers because of corruption.
“There are many cases of nepotism and bribery in the appointment process,” he said.
“So inspectors, do not follow this negative trend.
“Your job is to ensure the quality and standards in classrooms and teachers are professionally providing education to our children.”
Uguro urged inspectors to go out to the rural areas to inspect teachers and schools.
“Do not depend on head teachers to send in reports of teacher performances because some head teachers are unreliable,” he said.
“Do not depend on the headmaster’s reports.”
Uguro said inspectors needed to be honest in their ratings to ensure standards and quality of teachers in the education system.
“Education plays a key role in shaping the economy of this country and the country,” he said. “Inspectors play a very important role in our national education system. The work they do informs the Government of the progress in education.” The conference is staged annually to rate the performances of the teaching staff to maintain high standards in schools.