The Sunshine Private College on Friday held its third graduation ceremony, where 53 students received Postgraduate Diplomas in Education at St Mary’s Roman Catholic Hall in Windhoek.
The director of Sunshine Private College Nomakando Kangira highlighted that the college is fully committed to improving the education of this country by producing highly qualified teachers.
She added the curriculum was designed following guidance from the Namibian Qualifications Authority (NQA) and the National Council for Higher Education. The curriculum was benchmarked with best practices in the region and internationally.
Kangira said, “It is pleasing to note that most of them got employed either at the schools where they were doing teaching practice or elsewhere”; however, it is disturbing that some dropped out because they could not cope with the demands of the course”.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony, the deputy minister of education Faustina Caley said she believes that apart from ultimately benefiting our students, this postgraduate diploma empowers our educators. Learners will go a long way in building their capacity package and delivering content innovatively.
She complained, “I have intimated for far too long the need to adequately prepare all our teachers to be able to package their content in a manner that enables our learners and students to achieve desired levels of competence, but it has been neglected”.
Caley said when the content is not properly delivered, the learners struggle, which causes the pass rate to drop.
“We cannot continue allowing unpreparedness on the part of our teachers and lecturers to compromise the number of students into a particular programme that completes their studies in the stipulated time,” she said.
Moreover, Caley is advocating for teachers in the remote parts of Namibia to be supported to enrol so that the pass rate improves in different parts of the country.
The college’s student representative council (SRC) Abraham Kasonde said they faced various challenges, including frustrations with internet connectivity, assignment deadlines and accommodation for weekend classes.
The overall best graduate, Tapfuma Mushayi said he is “proud of the work I put in my studies to achieve this qualification. The commitment I put in attending classes, researching, meeting due dates, completing assignments and tests makes me feel that I deserve this qualification”.
Mushayi urges the youth to adopt a culture of studying and seeking continuous improvement.
He remarks that young people must pursue professional qualifications so that they improve their chances of employment and job efficiency.
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