“The Teacher is a maker of man. He is the foundation of all Education, and thus of the whole civilization of mankind, present and future. No nation reconstruction is possible without the active cooperation of the teacher.” - John Adams, American statesman.

Our educators are nation builders. A nation is built by its citizens, citizens are moulded by educators who, in turn, pass on their knowledge to future educators. Through their perseverance, love and sacrifices, they mould our character and personality and lead us in the right direction to reach our destination. Our educators shape the future of our nation. They are responsible for the students under their tutelage. They oversee the training and shaping of the future leaders of our society.

Nation builders

All prosperity and national development stems from the knowledge they impart to us. Theirs is not a simple task. They live a life of high-level commitment to their duties and responsibilities because theirs is a profession and a vocation. They hold the future of our children and nation in their hands and deserve our full collaboration, respect, and recognition.

The challenges faced by our educators are many, varied, complex and often hidden from the public eye. We can never understand the intricacies of schools and teaching unless we walk a mile in a teacher’s shoes. The smooth running of our schools, the handling of our students and the seamless curricular transition from semester to semester are for the ordinary citizen part of life and taken to a certain degree, for granted.

A walk in their shoes

Renowned American writer Richelle E. Goodrich has a very invitng line:   “Walk with me for a while, my friend — you in my shoes, I in yours — and then let us talk.”  The idea should help us avoid taking people forgranted, without fully understanding their real value within our communities.

We all have a role to play and so do teachers. The preparatory work that takes place in the prescribed holiday periods, the planning and the myriad of stumbling blocks encountered along the way by both educators and administrators are part and parcel of a job that is a profession and vocation.  This is no mean task. Our educators need to face problems head on if they want to make sure that they perform their duties to the best of their abilities.

Dialogue

I truly believe in dialogue. Dialogue is a tool of knowing. Through dialogue, ideas are exchanged openly with the goal of achieving mutual understanding. Listening is an important part of dialogue, particularly if individuals share their concerns openly in a group setting. This way, a shared meaning can develop after many individual meanings are heard.

Over the past eight months, I noticed many of the challenges faced by our educators. I have had meetings with them both individually and in groups and can truly understand their concerns and challenges. However, for these challenges to be addressed, I feel that awareness of the issues they face daily need to be shared between them collectively as one cohesive group.

Conference

Therefore, last week I organized a conference themed 'The Challenges Educators Face'. This theme is the title of a research study launched on the day by Professor Mark Borg and presented to me as Minister for Education and all stakeholders involved in the education sector. This study explores the challenges, ways and means with which we can support and boost our educators.

During this conference, the educators themselves aired their concerns openly in a private setting. This safe space helped to no end. I listened attentively whilst they dialogued openly, sincerely and with a passion that stems from their dedication and commitment to our most precious gift – our children.

This conference was another step in a process of analysis that my Ministry is undertaking to better our education sector and help our educators reach their goals. We are together sincerely and honestly scrutinizing our strengths and weaknesses to reach greater heights where we excel and improve on aspects of our education system that are weak or in need of upgrading. This exercise is being conducted objectively and precisely. This is a must. Our Educators and Education Sector deserve the best as builders of our Nation.

Collaboration

I truly believe in dialogue and collaboration. Collaboration is the act of working together. Discussing and collaborating involves mutual inquiry, discovery, and interpretation. This leads to new meanings and new possibilities. It is my belief that in whatever situation in life, collaboration involves joining forces on an equal footing, respecting each other’s needs, values, choices, and uniqueness, and finally listening deeply and focusing on the positive aspects.

This philosophy and approach, if applied on a national level, would solve many problems that belong to all of us as citizens. Education and our educators have a crucial role in the building of our nation's well-being. They deserve the full recognition and appreciation and all the help they need to continue in their journey as the builders of our future leaders and the prosperity of our nation.

The way forward

 There is no better way to describe the best disposition for fruitful collaboration than what Irina Bokova, UNESCO's Director-General, says:  'Education is a shared responsibility between us all: governments, schools, educators, parents and the private sector. Accountability for these responsibilities defines the way educators teach, students learn, and governments act.'

Indeed, this is the way forward we need to persue - together!