DHARAMSHALA: Education is our priority no.1 and I continue to devote 25% to 30% of my time as Sikyong towards enhancing the education system, said Sikyong Dr. Lobsang Sangay, in an impassioned speech given today at the conclusion of a workshop for primary school teachers.

The workshop was organised by the Education department to bolster early grade reading in Tibetan schools. It was held as part of a series of workshops and trainings that would be organised as per the recommendations of the Education Advisory Committee Meeting held in June last year.

“Education is a must for each and every Tibetan in exile. Therefore, we have to be ambitious in our approach. We have to make every effort to build on the capacity of every Tibetan by fully exploiting our available resources,” Sikyong said.

Sikyong also underscored that education is the key to sustaining and strengthening the Tibetan struggle. He explained that it is only through education that the 2.5 % of Tibetans in exile can represent and fulfill the aspirations of the 97.5% of the Tibetan population inside Tibet.

With the prioritisation of education under the 14th Kashag, the Department of Education has launched a series of projects to broaden the scope and effectiveness of education in Tibetan schools. As a result, there has been a remarkable progress in the performance of Tibetan students in class 12 board exam this year.

“This year, 321 students scored above 75% marks. This is an increase of 150% as compared to 127 students who scored above 75% marks in 2010. So, our efforts are yielding some progress,” Sikyong said.

Addressing the importance of teachers in Tibetan schools, Sikyong said: “The job of a teacher is of Himalayan proportion. However, a Tibetan teacher has a special and additional responsibility, as they are teaching not just for a career but for a cause.”

Sikyong expressed his utmost respect and admiration for the contribution and hard work of Tibetan teachers. He said that the education department have duly compiled all the suggestions and views expressed by teachers during numerous meetings and conferences. The DoE will do its part to fulfill all the valid issues raised in these meetings, he promised.

Keeping the importance of teachers in mind, the department of education has been in a continual process of developing new ways and systems to develop human resource as well as the core mindset towards education in Tibetan community.

It also conducts various professional development programmes and workshops for teachers as well as for general public to keep them abreast of changes in the education system.

In keeping with its innovative exercises and development programmes, the education department held a children’s story-writing competition recently to boost Tibetan writing enthusiasts.

Eleven best entries were selected and awarded a cash prize. The selected candidates were also given an opportunity to get trained as children’s book writers and work on the ‘Soen-Tsa-Series’, a graded reading series initiated by the Department of Education (DoE).