Proposal to Improve Education in PNG: Recruiting Top Students as Teachers

By Chris Abini

The education system in Papua New Guinea is struggling to produce quality graduates across our institutions. This is largely due to the fact that the system is not recruiting the best students as teachers. Instead, the system is admitting second-class students with failing grades into Universities and Teachers' Colleges to teach our children. Consequently, we have less enthusiastic teachers who are unable to inspire and motivate their students to achieve their full potential.

To address this issue, I propose that the responsible authorities implement a policy to recruit the best students as teachers. These teachers should receive remuneration packages equivalent to those of medical doctors, engineers, and accountants. By doing so, we can attract top-performing students who are passionate about teaching and who make it their first choice when filling out their school leaver's form.

The benefits of employing the best students as teachers are numerous. Firstly, these teachers will be highly motivated and enthusiastic about teaching, inspiring, and motivating their students to achieve their full potential in learning. Secondly, the quality of education in PNG will improve, as the best brains will be teaching our children, leading to better results in tertiary institutions and a better-educated workforce in both the public and private sectors.

The current system of admitting second-class students or dropouts into tertiary institutions and teacher's colleges, and graduating them as teachers, has resulted in half-baked students who perform poorly in secondary schools, colleges, and tertiary institutions, with attitude problems and a lack of work ethic. This is unacceptable, and we need to change the system to produce quality education for our children. Recruiting the best students as teachers will ensure that our children receive the best education possible and are able to compete on a global scale.

The failed Outcomes-Based Education (OBE) system is an example of the consequences of employing second-class students as teachers. Elementary schools around the country were taught pidgin language instead of English, and the teachers were dropouts from Grade 8 and Grade 10 who fraudulently scanned Grade 12 certificates to gain entry into the education payroll system. This is a clear indication of the need for change in the education system in PNG, improving teaching conditions and remuneration packages to attract top brains to teach our children.

In conclusion, employing the best students as teachers is a necessary change that needs to be implemented in the education system in PNG. This will ensure that our children receive the best education possible, and the quality of education in PNG will improve. It is time for the government and stakeholders in the education sector to take action and make this change a reality. I urge those in positions of power to consider my proposal for the betterment of education and nation-building for future generations.