SHILLONG: Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma has urged school teachers to spend few minutes with their students to shape up their careers.
‘The role of the teachers must not only be confined to lessons but they should also spend at least a few minutes in their class counselling the students to motivate and guide them to face challenges in life,” Dr Sangma said on Monday.
The Chief Minister was addressing the gathering at the silver jubilee celebrations of Garo Union School at Tura.
Expressing concern over the past two years’ academic results in rural Garo Hills, Dr Sangma said the education sector was always given half hearted attention by the government over the past years and so needed urgent attention.
Stating that the role of parents to motivate their children was equally important and that counselling the students in class must become an agenda, the Chief Minister said that extracurricular activities should be encouraged in schools to develop potential talents.
Dr Sangma expressed concern over the scarcity of employment avenues in the State and said that assessment of unemployment in the state was necessary.
He, however, informed that corrective measures should be introduced to address the problem and said that Block level youth mapping to tap talent would be introduced during the year 2012 which has also been declared the year of the youth.
‘Quality education and right guidance is necessary for a secure future,’ he added.
Stating that the Government is increasing grants to schools, Dr Sangma said that educational institutions excluding government institutions should be allowed to be run unhindered by the community or managing committees.
Informing the governments’ move to establish Model Schools on the lines of International schools in the state, Dr Sangma said that the government has sanctioned the establishment of such a school and that the identification of a suitable location was under process.
‘Teachers will be paid more in these schools and much needed employment will be generated,’ he said.
Dr Sangma, advised the managing committee of the Garo Union School to segregate the high school and the higher secondary classes from the primary classes to provide enough space for the students’ extracurricular activities. (UNI)