Teachers as springboards for education quality promotion.

The concept of Teachers’ Resource Centres (TRCs)

1. Introduction

To a large extent the success of education plans and programmes of any country depends on the qualities and effectiveness of its teachers. Reviving the vibrancy, credibility and attractiveness of education system a country like Tanzania requires, as a matter of priority concerted improvement of teacher training, retraining and professional development. Clear mechanisms are needed to ensure general support to teachers, taking cognizance that they are a unique human resource that gives the country the needed and sustainable leverage for socio-economic, scientific, cultural transformation. 

The underlying characteristics of good and effective teachers include the levels of their general education, professional training and authentic qualifications, deployment plan, employer conditions of service, remuneration, incentives packages and retention plans; environment of their work places, their readiness to observe the relevant professional code of conduct, the manner and mechanisms by which they are supported and enabled to support each other professionally. 

Teacher Resource Centres are centres established with the support of the central or local governments, owners and managers of public and private schools. A TRC is usually adequately supplied with equipment, materials, technologies and other resources for education improvement and serve as places where retired, experienced, practicing and new teachers can meet to share and exchange professional experiences. TRCs can serve as convenient places where government and other lovers and promoters of education can make inputs for the enhancement of teachers and the teaching profession, provide for teachers’ professional in-service training and development altogether in recognition of the central and critical value of teachers in society.  

Teachers’ Resource Centre may be established through teachers’ own initiatives, using locally available human and material resource. They can be organized, run and managed by teachers to facilitate reciprocal support among teachers; to promote the sharing and exchange of professional ideas, expertise, experiences, solutions to problems and enhance professional and mutual support to each each other. The central goal of teacher support services is to enable and promote improvement in the delivery of education through more effective classroom practices leading to raised internal efficiency of a school, better quality of schooling and improved quality of school leavers. So A TRC may also be referred to a pedagogic centre or simply a teachers’ centre

2.  Location

A Teachers’ Resource Centre will normally be situated within easy reach by the teachers it serves. Its establishment should be a result of agreement between representatives of teachers in the concerned area. The Management of the center should involve teachers who should form a majority in relevant advisory committees. In a country as large as Tanzania, the establishment of TRCs is envisaged to take the form of centers serving clusters of schools and teachers in a particular ward location

There will, therefore, be ward, district, regional and zonal teachers’ resources centers to serve the different levels of education and diverse needs of teachers. It is expected that all the different cascades of teachers’ resource centres countrywide will be coordinated at a National Teachers’ Resource Centre, normally located at the Institute of Education. The TIE will be expected to promote teachers’ professional development and teaching innovations and creativity through Training of Trainers through zonal TRCs. The ZTRCs will, in turn reciprocally support and be supported by the teachers’ centers at regional, district and ward levels.

3.  Philosophical bases for establishing TRCs

Whatever name is used, a TRC as a concept and place is intended to provide the means for teachers, from the broad spectrum and levels of education, to share and exchange experiences, expertise and innovative ideas for the promotion and improvement of the teacher’s roles within and beyond the classroom and hence contribute to the quality of education. A TRC is a place where teachers can turn to obtain updates of the curriculum and matching teaching and learning materials. It provides teachers the opportunity to critique and make implementable recommendations for improving existing curricula as well as matching teaching and learning materials. 

At a TRC teachers are able to get induction into how best to implement approved programmes, teach relevant courses, use appropriate teaching devices and materials and assess students’ progress and achievements. The relationship between education policy makers, administrators of education, curriculum writers, publishers, school inspectors, teachers, and parents can best be promoted in the interest of school children and students. 

More effective ways of promoting effective interaction between schools and society can be discussed and frameworks and strategies agreed in a Teachers’ Resource Centre. A TRC is, therefore, expected to have competent staff and full provision of the latest educational technologies and equipment, teaching aids and support materials, as well as innovations for more effective teaching, general classroom practices and teachers’ professional conduct. 

 

Conceptually, a TRC aims to respond to teachers’ professional development needs. These may be varied according to subject specializations, geographical locations and unique environments and working conditions of the schools from which the teachers come. TRCs are meant to make it possible for teachers to obtain professional support relevant to their particular needs in their classroom practices and general school work.

A TRC also aims to facilitate the professional development of teachers and improvement of their professional practices while observing and living up to the expectations of the code of ethics of the teaching profession. TRCs are expected to operate as neutral and mutual meeting grounds for all persons concerned about the design of the country’s education system, appropriateness, relevance and quality of education. A TRC should not be bureaucratic but rather should at all times be flexibly responsive but firm about teachers’ needs and expectations. Every participant in the activities of a TRC, whatever his or her status and or direct or indirect role in education, should feel free to express his or her strengths and or weaknesses in mutual search for support for improvement. The relevance of the support which a TRC provides should be determined by teachers themselves on the basis of their practical experiences in classroom interaction with children and students. 

Every TRC is expected to create a teacher friendly environment and atmosphere and its staff should treat every teacher or teacher trainee as a professional or upcoming professional teacher. On their part, teachers are expected to use the TRCs to tap more knowledge, skills and innovations for use in their classrooms and beyond. They should therefore behave responsibly in their thinking, words and actions and should be ready to serve as organizers, moderators, presenters, discussants, leaders or evaluators in workshops and seminars organized by the Teachers’ Resource Centres.

Teachers’ deliberations in a TRC should focus on obtaining solutions to specific practical problems targeting diagnosis of the problems, seeking alternative solutions and agreeing about the most feasible solution. In deliberating about a specific problem, it would be opportune for a TRC to invite an expert professional or policy maker to make inputs in discussing the problem and arriving at more acceptable solutions at policy level countrywide. This approach relieves teachers from the burden of receiving, from “the headquarters” unworkable solutions to problems felt at local levels.

TRCs have the potential to break the isolation and loneliness facing teachers in rural and remote locations which are usually inaccessible by school inspectors, other teachers, visitors, and policy decision makers from government and elsewhere. TRCs are equally relevant in urban settings where there are no mechanisms to enable teachers to meet and discuss issues of common interest or to dialogue with education policy personnel who are otherwise easy to contact in urban centres.