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Pamela Shumba, Senior Reporter 

TERTIARY education institutions should thrive to produce school teachers who are key drivers and proponents of the country’s industrialisation and modernisation agenda, Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Permanent Secretary, Professor Fanuel Tagwira, has said.

Speaking at the 63rd Hillside Teachers’ College graduation in Bulawayo yesterday, Prof Tagwira said tertiary institutions must be able to produce versatile graduates who are relevant to society’s needs.

A total of 645 students graduated yesterday, of which 388 were female and 257 were male.

This year’s graduation was held under the theme, “Teacher Education: the Drive Towards Innovation and Industrialisation”.

“Our tertiary education students must produce school teachers who are not only morally upright but are professionally forthright and digitally savvy.

“These graduands must be the key drivers, architects and proponents of the industrialisation and modernisation agenda of the country,” said Prof Tagwira.

He said to achieve this, the institutions need to adopt game changing teaching methods that help impart skills and analytical thinking and produce versatile graduates who are relevant to the needs of society.

Prof Tagwira said the 21st century had brought in sweeping changes not only in technology but also in the way day to day business is conducted.

“Teacher education is not an exception in this regard. It’s imperative for the teacher education institutions to continuously interrogate their circular and ensure that they produce well rounded and relevant teachers that suit Zimbabwe’s needs. We need to interrogate our practice in the classroom and explore the vast resources that are available at our disposal. It’s our role to create an atmosphere that provokes innovative thinking in our students,” said Prof Tagwira.

He said time has come to move away from an education system where learners simply absorb transmitted information and regurgitate without reflecting on the usefulness of what has been learnt.

“Such an education is not transformative as it produces graduates who can’t apply what they have learnt in class. We need to train our students to think and analyse problems. We need to train them to work in teams rather than compete. When we do that our education will become an engine for development, producing knowledge and technological innovation for economic development of the country,” said Prof Tagwira.

He emphasised that “yellow notes” that were made 20 years ago needed to be thrown away, adding that some teachers “expired” a long time ago. – @pamelashumba1