Emphasis will be on training of teachers and support staff in all schools with the aim of bringing about quality improvement in students' learning, school environment and management this year, the Ministry of Education and Youth (MEY) has announced.

It was MEY Minister, Mr Danny Faure, who made this statement during Question Time in the National Assembly on Tuesday April 1..

Asked by Honourable David Pierre, proportionally elected member of the Opposition, if the ministry was planning to revise the School Improvement Programme (SIP) to make it more efficient and acceptable for teachers, Minister Faure replied:

"Apart from training of staff, MEY has come up with new projects aimed at providing and supporting all schools with necessary educational resources such as photocopying machines, books and furniture to help facilitate the 'wonderful' work that is being done by the teachers."

Minister Faure noted that with the new development in the educational field, the national curriculum is being revised to make it more dynamic and congruous to new developments in schools.

The minister added that last year, after the ministry had established relations with Redding University in England, five students were posted there to follow advanced studies in school administration and that another group was expected to leave for this same university later this year.

Furthermore, the minister said, MEY was negotiating with a university in Malta for a training programme in school management.

Since the introduction of in-service training for support staff in primary schools in 2001, more than 400 supply teachers have followed various modules to equip them with necessary knowledge in all aspects of teaching.

Stating that his ministry recognised the need for more training especially for teachers working with slow learners, Minister Faure said that a new training programme was being developed for support staff as well as auxiliary staff to better equip them and this programme, which he said was expected to get under way during this year's third school term.

Through a networking system that is already in place, management staff and teachers from various schools are able to exchange ideas, discuss and find the best possible ways to deal with common problems they face in their work.

Minister Faure continued by saying that the MEY would continue to work in close collaboration with schools to find various means to improve and speed up the implementation of the SIP. 

"The ministry advocates that the success of this programme depends mostly on the effort and hard work of teachers, parents and the guidance of the school management," he concluded.

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