Shillong, July 13: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Thursday said the Government has shifted its focus from scheme driven approach to a purpose-driven approach to address the challenges and problems for the growth of the State.
“Our government has started to look at things differently, not just scheme based implementation. We are assessing the impact of the schemes and our intervention, as we understand that change in the mindset and the way we look at the problems differently, will ensure that we address the concerns,” he said while speaking at the Meghalaya Education Symposium 2023, being organised by Department of Education, Government of Meghalaya.
“The biggest change that is needed in our State, or any other State for that matter, is the change in the mindset, the change is the mindset is the most important change that will move and take our society forward,” he emphasised.
He further highlighted the significance of adopting a holistic perspective that encompasses education, health, and well-being throughout a person’s entire lifecycle, while designing programmes and interventions in the education sector.
The Chief Minister affirmed that education, health, and well-being should not be confined to the school setting alone. “It starts from conception of a child to the first 1000 days, early childhood, adolescence, and finally adulthood. Therefore, a holistic and purpose-driven approach is what we follow, and this marks the government’s commitment to doing things differently.”
“The Meghalaya Education Symposium 2023 serves as a testament to the government’s commitment to revamping the education sector and embracing innovative approaches. By fostering a purpose-driven mindset and putting students at the center of decision-making, Meghalaya aims to become a trailblazer in transforming education,” he added.
As a Government, it has been our endeavour to deliberate on critical themes that pertain to our State’s education system and discuss best practices to prepare our youth for global opportunities.
I am of the strong conviction that Meghalaya Education Symposium 2023 will help the… pic.twitter.com/KLMZMwM8P6
— Conrad K Sangma (@SangmaConrad) July 13, 2023
Referring to flagship MOTHER programme, he informed that Meghalaya is pioneering a program that integrates health, education, rural development, and social welfare to prioritize the well-being of the mother and child. This unique approach places the spotlight on the stakeholders who play a crucial role in shaping the future of education.
Reflecting on past practices, Chief Minister Sangma acknowledged that decision-making in education often revolved around politicians, teachers, and managing committees, rather than prioritizing the students themselves. He emphasized the need to rectify this oversight, remarking, “We forgot along the way that it is the students for whom we are doing all this, and maybe this is where we went wrong.”
He also informed that as a Government, several intervention has been taken in the past few years, to revote and construct Government school infrastructures across the State. “Our decision should be based on what is good for the student. Though politicians, teachers and managing committees are important, we should not forget that we are here to serve the students,” he said.
He assured that the decision made in education will be based on what is good for the child. “We need to slowly in a phased manner start transiting into a child and student focussed approach”, he added.
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