Image: Shutterstock/Alexandr III_

Education is one of the most important areas of our life. School does not prepare pupils for today’s world, but for the world that will come tomorrow, and it is hard to imagine what it is going to be. Therefore, continuous development of teachers in educational process is not an option, but a necessity.

Over the last years in Macedonia, my home country, the strengthening of the quality of the teachers is the focus of educational policy-makers. There are many initiatives that have started -and some of them still ongoing- for the development of standards for educational competencies of the teachers, systems for carrier’s advancement and systems for support and evaluation of the teachers’ work.
Within several national and supranational programs for enhancing and improving teachers’ competencies,  many seminars for professional development have been organized.

As a result of these initiatives, the use of the contemporary forms of education carried out by the teachers is getting stronger, but still remains the impression that is simply not enough in order to be available to all teachers. Teachers, as the key drivers of the education should find out ways and means for self education, experience exchange in order to be up to date with the constant changes in the education.

Scientix allows that to them.

Scientix as an educational platform teaches us to percept the education as a challenge that demands high standards of professional competencies and devotion.

Exploring the possibilities through the Scientix portal, I have convinced myself that not only it is necessary for teachers to have a broad knowledge of the subjects they teach and pedagogical knowledge, but they should also have continuous engagement following the modern education trends and to bring innovative changes to the classrooms.

The ocean of options, possibilities and information delivered by Scientix brings teachers the joy to make of education a challenge, an entertainment and one of the most exciting part of a pupils’ life. I would like to point out some of the many advantages that Scientix offers through its portal:

• Recognition of teachers and students interests
• Recognition of the individual abilities of teachers and students
• Building the learning style for students
• Approach to different STEM activities
• Approach to useful educational content
• Development of different types of mutual cooperation
• Understanding of the social, cultural and ethical dimension in education.

The reactions of my colleges while I was presenting Scientix showed me that is more than necessary to have such a support for the development and upgrading of teaching skills, best practices, innovative approaches and competencies, as well as of the use of ICT in natural sciences, which should be a part of 21st century teacher.

Although Macedonian teachers in this project are entering with “small” steps, the outcome of their enthusiastic effort will bring positive effect for the education for long period of time. Scientix also helps to develop the feeling for identity, for personal value. The possibilities are in front of us and we should take advantage of them in the most proper way. Scientix leads us how to present our cultural values and through working together on a projects with our European colleges and students.

Our duty as teachers is to prepare every kid to reach its highest potential for living and working in a modern society. Highly qualified teachers are the key components among the different measures that are ongoing in every country, necessary to create the qualitative education a European reality.

Than you Scientix!

Article written by: Silvana Ristevska, Scientix Deputy Ambassador

Tags: Education, portal, Scientix, STEM education platform, Teaching