Bandar Seri Begawan - The self-driven and self-created project organised by Cluster Six is a prime example of the implementation and realisation of the Ministry of Education's strategy map. The key targets of responsibility towards stakeholders through providing quality education and teaching- and learning excellence are met. There can therefore be no doubt that our primary stakeholders, the students, will benefit tremendously from the knowledge that will be shared in the next two days.

This was stated by the Director General of Education at the Ministry of Education, Dk Hjh Mastoli PSI Pg Hj Ismail, who was the guest of honour at the launch of the first Cluster Six Mini Symposium, yesterday, at the main hall of the Duli Pengiran Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah College in Gadong.

Dk Hjh Mastoli was referring to the inaugural project organised by the grouping of six tertiary-level academic institutions offering pre-university education in the Sultanate. The mini symposium which carries the theme "Quality Teachers for Quality Education" is being hosted by DPMAMB College.

"Brunei Education is on the cusp of a new era and teachers who are better equipped for this transition act as focal points for students," said Dk Hjh Mastoli in her speech. "The stability a teacher provides to students by being prepared and ready for changes cannot be emphasised enough."

Cluster Six is made up of the Duli Pengiran Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah College, Katok and Meragang Sixth Form Centres, Sayyidina Othman and SayyidinaAli Secondary Schools and the Paduka Seri Begawan Sultan Science College.

The mini-symposium's organising committee is chaired by the Acting Principal of DPMAMB College, Cikgu Hjh Seroja Hj Siau, and deputised by the Acting Principal of Katok Sixth Form Centre, Cikgu Hjh Rosni Hj Md Amin. The Acting Principal of Meragang Sixth Form Centre, Mdm Chong Lee Chin, holds the secretarial post for the event.

"Knowledge that goes beyond the curriculum, research that is tangible and close to home and lessons that are innovative and interactive are the new tools teachers will use to provide students with the quality education needed to prepare students with valuable and marketable skills for the 21st century," the Director General of Education said.

Yesterday's opening day saw a pool of lecturers from Cluster Six institutions - experts in their own respective fields - sharing their knowledge and experience in the common interest of assisting in staff development across the sixth form institutions.

The mini symposium is seen as an effort made under the new Teacher's Service Scheme (Skim Perkhidmatan Guru, SPG), which aims to create "Master Teachers" by way of granting teachers the opportunity to conduct research and present papers. In support of the new SPN 21 system, which aims to meet the current global development and changes in education, the event also provides teachers with relevant avenues through which they can explore and stay updated on contemporary global issues in education so as to be better prepared to serve under the national education system.

"The populace or individuals who can be produced through quality education will be leaders who have great achievable vision and ideas and who are aware of current and future issues and challenges faced not only in the country but also globally," said Dk Hjh Mastoli.

The guest of honour described quality teachers as those who are "dedicated, caring, concerned about students' academic performance and achievement as well as those who are concerned about the students' welfare and general well being; teachers who regard themselves as parents, siblings, friends of their students who are approachable in class, outside class as well as outside school; cares about the ups and downs of students moods in learning; can go down to the students' level and can adjust their teaching according to the various conditions of the students' learning environments both in the class and outside".

"Quality teachers will strive to improve/broaden his or her mind through formal education, general reading or informal education such as in a seminar, conference, sharing session or a symposium such as this," she said. "It is hoped that you all will get something new, something that you can use to help you in your profession."

Earlier, the Acting Principal of DPMAMB College Cikgu Dyg Hjh Seroja Hj Sia in her welcoming note said the standard of education at Sixth Form level is of utmost importance to students as it is a crucial stepping stone for higher education to safeguard their future.

Echoing Dk Hjh Mastoli's remarks, she hoped that the mini symposium "will encourage teachers to act as agents of change not only in their immediate place of work - the classroom - but also in assisting the wider field of education by presenting their observations and research to develop approaches that best suit the climate of today's world".

"On the other hand, the papers presented should instill in teachers a culture of self-reflection and openness for the betterment of the students," said the Acting Principal. "And most importantly this Mini-Symposium will reinforce the quality of thirsting for knowledge for its own sake, as many papers presented are research papers on the teachers themselves.

"With the presence of this virtue, teachers will be better equipped to support students in meeting the increasing demands of educational institutions and the working world by inculcating in them a desire to go beyond what is found in the syllabus."

DPMAMB College has set aside five main venues for use in the two-day mini symposium, namely the College Auditorium, Conference Room, VIP Room, ICT Lab and Geography Room.

Yesterday's session also featured a presentation of a paper entitled "The Times they are a-Changing: Students' Profiles, Research and You" by invited keynote speaker Assoc Prof Dr Gary M Jones, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Science, UBD.  -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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