Talent Gore

PRIMARY and Secondary Education Minister, Torerayi Moyo, has supported the Continuous Assessment of Learning Activities (CALA) in schools.

However, he has acknowledged that it needs some changes to avoid excluding students from poor families.

Min Moyo said teachers should receive training on how to manage the assessment and said there is nothing wrong with CALA and that it only needed to be managed better.

Teachers are currently undergoing a CALA refresher course.

Parents and guardians have been pushing the Government to scrap CALA from the school curriculum, saying it was expensive.

CALA refers to various learning activities or assessments that require students to conduct detailed research-based activities in specific areas where they incorporate practical activities, such as data collection through interviews, questionnaires, checklists, observations and experiments.

“There is nothing wrong with CALA, but the manner in which it is handled is a problem. Our teachers must go for in-service training so that they manage projects that students are doing.

“We need to consider whether the students have resources at their disposal because CALA involves a lot of research.

“Do they have laptops, iPads, or smartphones for them to be able to conduct CALA? I think the general sentiment from parents is that they want CALA to be reduced.

“So, we are going to look at the recommendations that were done by stakeholders then we come up with a position,” said Min Moyo.

Source: REFRESHER COURSES FOR CALA

Milicent Chasinda

DEAF Zimbabwe Trust (DZT) has conducted a validation process of the Disability School Inclusion Plan for 10 schools in the Mabvuku and Tafara Epworth Districts.

The aim was to agree on the edited thematic areas, including coordination, community engagement, participation, resources, mobilisation, allocation of behavioural change and accessibility.

The plan will be used as a guiding instrument for disability inclusion in schools, addressing the current situation where students with disabilities are not fully supported in the education system and are not accessing quality education.

The organisation successfully conducted 10 validation sessions, which are supported by IM Swedish Development Partner.

The plans will be launched upon approval from the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.

Validated schools include Victory Academy Africa, Tafara 5 Council Primary, Danckwerts Primary, Epworth Primary, Batanai Primary, Danhiko school, Tinokwirira Special School, Simudzai Primary School and Chinamano Primary.

Source: DEAF ZIM TRUST CONDUCTS VALIDATION PROCESS

Latwell Nyangu

A CHINESE medical team provided free medical diagnosis and treatment to hundreds of villagers in Shamva on Tuesday.

The initiative was organised by gold miner, Ming Chang Sino Africa, which provided a mobile clinic through which the villagers could access the 11-member medical team.

Brief lectures on malaria, HIV/AIDS and first aid were also conducted.

The Ming Chang initiative is part of a growing social responsibility portfolio for the company that includes road and school construction.

“We have been in Zimbabwe since March and we are the 20th mission on this long-standing government-to-government programme which has been running for 38 years now.

“We are working and moving around hospitals, sometimes supporting clinics as ordinary outpatients’ department (OPD) support.

“Sometimes, we share ideas around traditional Chinese medicine while looking at opportunities to expand departments in Zimbabwe’s health system,” said head of the medical unit, Zhang Yao.

Ming Chang general manager, Liang Guo Du, said the mine also donated drugs and traditional medicine.

“Villages from nearby are being assisted to reach referral centres by Ming Chang and the plan is to bring the medical team back or send it to a different area so that people get free medical care,” he said.

Source: XMAS COMES EARLY IN SHAMVA