USAID hands over to REB the prizes for best performing Teachers
Kigali– On October 3rd, in preparation of International Teachers’ Day, USAID Soma Umenye handed over 30 tablets to the Rwanda Education Board (REB) to be awarded as prizes to the best performing teacher from each of Rwanda’s districts. The handover of these prizes demonstrates USAID’s commitment to investing in and recognizing teachers as the pillar of Rwanda’s education system.
The global theme of the 2018 International Teachers’ Day, “the right to education means the right to a qualified teacher,” aligns with the national theme, “A Professional and Competent Teacher is a Foundation to Quality Education.” USAID Soma Umenye partners with the Rwanda Education Board to support these principals.
USAID Soma Umenye (“Read and Know”) is a partnership between USAID and REB targeting every public and government-aided primary school in Rwanda with the goal of improving the reading performance of at least one million students. USAID Soma Umenye works directly with REB to develop textbooks and teacher’s guides, to provide teacher training, and to implement effective assessment to achieve this essential goal of improved reading.
USAID believes that when teachers are well prepared, resourced and motivated, all students, regardless of gender, disability or social-economic circumstance are better able to learn. It is within this spirit that USAID Soma Umenye supports teachers to acquire the skills they need to help their students succeed.
By focusing on early grade reading in Kinyarwanda, USAID Soma Umenye contributes to building the essential foundation for Rwanda’s development and economic growth. Research has shown that students who are able to read fluently before they complete the third grade are more likely to stay in school and succeed in other subjects, which increases their chances to become productive members of the labor force.
Luann Gronhovd, the Director of Education at USAID, said during the handover of the teachers’ prizes to REB, “We are thrilled to support REB in recognizing the best performing teachers of 2018 with these prizes. We know that high performing teachers are key to learning. These teachers are incredibly hard working and deserve our utmost respect. We hope that this year’s celebration of International Teachers’ Day and the award of these prizes will encourage and motivate other teachers to do their very best.”
The Director General of REB, Dr. Irénée Ndayambaje, received the prizes, which will be awarded to the best performing teachers during the celebration of International Teachers’ Day, this Friday, October 5th in Rwamagana District. He said, “We are happy to partner with USAID – we have common goals and we share a vision. USAID Soma Umenye supports us to achieve our educational goals and strengthen our education system. This gesture is one of the many partnership activities to make sure teachers are motivated and that they acquire the skills needed to effectively teach Rwandan learners”.
Recently, USAID Soma Umenye completed the training of more than 4,600 Primary One (P1) Kinyarwanda teachers country wide, as well as the School Leaders’ orientation, which included the District Directors of Education (DDEs), District Education Officers (DEOs), and Sector Education officers (SEOs) in all 30 districts of Rwanda. USAID Soma Umenye is supporting REB to ensure that in 2019 all P1, P2 and P3 classrooms, in all public and government-aided schools, will be stocked with teacher’s guides, read-aloud books and supplementary readers in Kinyarwanda and that each child in these classrooms will have a high-quality, Kinyarwanda textbook.
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