The National Education Day was observed on November 11 at the Directorate of School Education, Nagaland organised by the Nagaland Education Association (NEA).
Guest of honour, Thavaseelan K, IAS, Principal Director, School Education, in his speech highlighted that nations and countries which invest and prioritise education see rapid development. “When we look at our country, only 2% of our gross economy goes to education. We to invest more on education,” said Thavaseelan who also pointed out the importance of foundational education and developing a welcoming physical environment for learners, which includes necessary amenities with in the classroom and extra curriculum activities.
Thavaseelan also stressed on focusing on assessment reform curriculum reform and invest on vocational education to meet the various challenges in our society.
Drawing attention to innovative learning for sustainable futures, Thavaseelan said, “We need to bring in innovative learning, technological learning and focus more on project based learning, creating situation for critical thinking , think out of the box situation, etc. Powerful minds builds powerful nation, so we should prioritise education so that it works towards developing the minds of the learner.”
Prof Lungsang Zeliang, Nagaland University Professor, Department of Education spoke on the theme “The innovative learning for sustainable future”. “As conscientious individuals we should take effort to make education more inclusive and prepare students for a greener future and empowering young people to take leadership and other such thing,” said Zeliang who also stressed on the need for innovative learning.
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“We need to understand education and that innovation is driven by learning approaches. And there are few limits we need to look into , the learners,the educators, the teachers, the content of education, the resources that are available, governance and through all this we can work together towards creating 21st century learning environment, that is one that is conducive to innovative thinking and creative thinking,” asserted Zeliang.
Zeliang also emphasized that as a teachers and as educator, one need to go with change in time and think out of the box and not just focus on textbooks, advocating for creative thinking. “Some innovative thinking which we can interject into learning is interjecting more components in the learning situation, organising group collaborative work, role reversal in the teaching learning situation, incorporating an experiential learning where they learn through their own experience. All these will help make learning more wholesome,” advocated Zeliang.
Zavise Rume, President, NEA in his Presidential address provided a brief history of National Education Day which is held every year to mark the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, India’s first Education Minister. Rume highlighted that Nagaland Education Association was form to provide a common platform for education in Nagaland and to provide and promote healthy education in the state. He also stressed on the importance of recruiting professionals in the field of education. “Earlier though education was inferior to other professions and that any person can be recruited in teaching and in the field of education, but now the need for professionals in the field of education is felt but still many fail to understand the complexity involved in the process of education- the complexities which requires professional to handle and manage,” said Rume. He also added that the new education policy is also emphasising that every year professional requirements for a teacher is atleast 50 hours of professional training. “Teachers are the heart of learning and should not be left out. They need our support,” added Rume.
