By Our Correspondent, Arusha
ARUSHA: The President’s Office – Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG) is strengthening the digital capacity of government secondary school teachers in Arusha City and Arusha District councils through a four-day ICT training programme aimed at improving the use of technology in teaching and learning.
The training, involving government secondary school teachers, is being conducted in collaboration with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) at Gold Crest Hotel in Arusha from September 1 to 4, 2026.
The programme is being implemented under the ICT Transforming Education in Africa – Phase III Project, supported through the Korean Funds-in-Trust (KFIT), and seeks to equip teachers with practical digital skills to effectively integrate Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into teaching, learning and assessment.
Speaking during the opening of the training, Assistant Director of Education at PO-RALG, Melchiory Baltazary, said the Government was committed to strengthening teachers’ capacity to use ICT effectively as part of efforts to improve the quality of education.
He said the collaboration between the Government, UNESCO and TIE was providing teachers with practical skills that could be applied directly in teaching, learning and assessment.
Mr Baltazary said strengthening teachers’ digital competencies was important in ensuring that the Government’s efforts to expand the use of technology in education translated into meaningful improvements in classroom practice.
He urged the participating teachers to make effective use of the knowledge and skills acquired during the training and share them with colleagues who had not attended the programme.
He said the cascade training approach, whereby trained teachers share their knowledge and skills with colleagues, would enable the benefits of the programme to reach more educators in their respective schools and councils.
Mr Baltazary also encouraged teachers to continue using available Government digital learning systems and resources to strengthen their professional competencies beyond the face-to-face training.
The training is aligned with the ICT Competency Standards for Teachers in Tanzania (ICT-CSTT), which provide a framework for developing teachers’ competencies in the effective integration of ICT into teaching and learning.
Speaking at the same event, Head of the Education Sector at the UNESCO Dar es Salaam Office, Dr Faith Shayo, said strengthening teachers’ digital competencies was essential to ensuring that Tanzania’s education system kept pace with rapid technological developments.
Dr Shayo urged the participating teachers to make full use of the training and share the knowledge and skills acquired with their colleagues after returning to their respective schools.
“We expect you to share what you learn here with your fellow teachers so that they can also keep pace with these transformations in education,” she said.
She said teachers were at the centre of education transformation because they were directly responsible for translating technological developments and innovations into meaningful classroom practice.
Dr Shayo added that technology should be used to improve the quality of teaching and learning, expand access to knowledge and equip learners with skills relevant to the 21st century.
Arusha Regional Academic Officer, Oscar Kapinga, said effective use of technology could simplify teaching and learning while expanding students’ access to knowledge and educational resources.
He urged teachers to ensure that ICT was applied in ways that directly contributed to improved learning outcomes.
The training covers key areas of digital competency, including digital learning tools and platforms, ICT integration in teaching and assessment, Open Educational Resources (OER), online information-search skills and the use of technology in curriculum implementation.
Participants are also being trained in interactive teaching approaches, management of school records and information, development of digital learning resources, production of audio-visual educational content and the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education.
The teachers are using the TIE Teachers Continuous Professional Development Learning Management System (TCPD LMS), linked to the Government’s MEWAKA system, to access training materials and undertake various learning modules.
Explaining the implementation of the project, Gabriela Lucas from UNESCO’s Education Sector, said the KFIT-supported programme was aimed at strengthening teachers’ ability to use technology effectively in teaching and learning while making use of existing Government systems to support continuous professional development.
She said teachers were central to the project because they played a direct role in integrating technology into everyday classroom practices.
“UNESCO aspires to see every teacher able to use ICT for learning and teaching,” she said.
Ms Lucas said the ICT-CSTT framework comprised different competency levels designed to enable teachers to progressively develop their digital skills according to their existing levels of competence.
She said the framework comprised 15 modules, with the Arusha training focusing on the Beginner and Intermediate levels, covering 10 modules, while also introducing participants to five modules under the Advanced level.
She explained that the project adopted a cascade training model, whereby teachers who receive the training are expected to share their knowledge and skills with other teachers in their respective schools.
“We have already conducted the training in Morogoro, and now we are in Arusha,” she said.
Ms Lucas said the project was being implemented in Tanzania, Namibia and Uganda, with UNESCO seeking to strengthen teachers’ capacity to use ICT effectively in modern education environments.
She said digital learning systems also provided teachers with opportunities for continuous professional development by enabling them to access learning materials and acquire new skills beyond face-to-face training sessions.
The training is also being supported by TIE. One of the facilitators, Watson Mtewele, said the modules used during the training were accessible through the teachers’ continuous professional development system known as MEWAKA.
He said the system enabled teachers to continue learning and strengthening their professional skills even after completing the face-to-face training.
The 64 teachers from Arusha City and Arusha District councils are expected to return to their respective schools and support other teachers in using digital tools and platforms, developing educational content and applying technology in teaching, learning and assessment.
The initiative is designed to create a wider network of digitally competent teachers through the sharing and transfer of knowledge and skills among educators, ultimately benefiting learners.
The programme also complements the efforts of the Sixth Phase Government under the leadership of President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan to strengthen the use of ICT in education and develop a skilled and knowledgeable workforce capable of responding to the demands of the 21st century.
It is also aligned with the aspirations of Tanzania Development Vision 2050, which places emphasis on developing a knowledgeable, skilled and technologically capable population to drive national development.
The initiative therefore goes beyond enabling teachers to use digital devices and platforms. It is part of broader efforts to prepare teachers to equip learners with the knowledge, skills and competencies required to participate effectively in an increasingly technology-driven society and economy.
The four-day training continues at Gold Crest Hotel in Arusha and is scheduled to conclude on September 4, 2026.
No comments:
Post a Comment