Edukans Foundation Establishes School Mentorship Manual to Improve Education in Malawi

Malawi: Edukans Foundation, an organization that promotes basic education in the country, has announced the establishment of a school mentorship manual as part of their new program called the School Based Blended Education Mentorship Program, writes Bridget Mwanoka.

The manual is aimed at improving teacher skills and delivering quality education to students.

During a validation workshop for the manual, Dr. Limbani Nsapato, the Foundation's Country Director, explained the need for the manual.

"Even though the Ministry of Education has a continuous Professional development framework, we noticed a gap since the manual which is available is used in Teacher training Colleges so we saw it fit to establish a manual that should go directly to the teachers," Nsapato said.

The program, funded by UNICEF, targets 9 districts in the country including Chiradzulu, Dowa, Machinga, Mangochi, Thyolo, Salima, Dedza, Lilongwe, and Nsanje and aims to reach 180 thousand students, 130 of whom are from primary schools and 50 from secondary schools.

The mentorship manual will be accessible through electronic learning platforms and is designed to enhance teacher mentors' skills.

Acting Principal at Phalombe Teachers College, Caroline Malowa Chirwa, welcomed the initiative, saying it would improve opportunities for teachers and help deliver quality education.

Andrews Mchesi, from the Directorate of Teachers, Education, and Development in the Ministry of Education, also praised the program, saying it complements the government's efforts to promote education in the country.

"We can see that government is doing everything possible to promote education in the country, and these mentorship manuals are very critical in the sense that they are going to develop and assist teachers," Mchesi said.