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DEVELOPING MORE EFFECTIVE SCHOOL-HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION
PARTNERSHIPS IN INITIAL TEACHER EDUCATION
COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES (COBAMS),
MAKERERE UNIVERSITY
Workshop Report
Second Mentorship Workshop
April 23-24, 2012
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Developing more Effective Higher Education – School Partnerships in Initial Teacher
Education Project (also referred to as the Mentorship Project) is a joint Project that
was initiated in 2010 by the University of Ulster (Northern Ireland), Eduardo
Mondlane University (Mozambique), Chancellor College, University of Malawi
(Malawi) and Makerere University (Uganda). The Project aims at strengthening the
support provided by schools to student teachers through partnerships between schools
and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The overall objective of the Project is to
strengthen the quality of teacher education.
The workshops to be held in each partner country are aimed at introducing
participants to more effective school/University partnerships for the initial training of
teachers, encouraging a reflective learning approach to teaching and mentoring
(reflective log), Sharing and developing the principles of effective teaching and
learning and strategies for effective classroom observation and feedback. The specific
objectives of the 2 day Workshop were to:
The specific workshop objectives were to:
1. Examine approaches to mentoring and implications to the quality of education 2. Prepare tutors and mentor teachers for the forthcoming school practice season
The participants and facilitators were drawn from the pilot schools, Shimoni PTC,
Kibuli PTC, Kyambogo University, Makerere University, NGO sector and the
Ministry of Education and Sports. Using participatory approaches that included role
play, brain storming sessions, group activities and presentations, the two day
workshop was exciting and elicited the expectations of the organizers. Participants
were taken through sessions that covered the following areas: Mentoring: Meaning
and importance in teacher education; Expectations of various stakeholders; Examples
of how schools support mentoring during school practice; Mentoring: Practical skills;
Video-recorded lessons; and Responsibilities of various stakeholders and the way forward.
The participants appreciated the workshop and the majority were of the view that it
had added to the skills they had. They also reported that the workshop had energized
them in their mentoring roles. They however made suggestions for improvements
including formalizing mentorship training and award some form of recognition,
involving more stakeholders, and rolling out the programme to schools through the
Ministry of Education and Sports; Collection of more data on the status of mentoring in Ugandan schools. Timelines were suggested for the various activities.
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Day 1: Tuesday 22nd
April, 2012
Session 1: Welcome and Opening Remarks:
Dr. Joseph Oonyu welcomed participants to the workshop and asked participants to introduce
themselves. He then briefed them regarding the progress of the mentorship project in Uganda.
He reiterated that since the last workshop in October 2011, the Project has analyzed all the
baseline data and worked out a plan for the supervision of the various activities within the
Project schools. He reminded the participants that that the major objective of the project is to
establish the support required in order to make mentorship part of teacher training
programmes. Dr. Oonyu stated that the overall goal of the workshop was to consolidate the
gains of the October 2011 workshop in improving our understanding of the role and place of
mentorship in ITE.
The specific workshop objectives were to:
1. Examine approaches to mentoring and implications to the quality of education
2. Prepare tutors and mentor teachers for the forthcoming school practice season
Dr. Joseph Oonyu then informed participants that the Commissioner Teacher Education was
unable to attend due to an urgent meeting that had been called at short notice at the Ministry.
He then took the opportunity to officially declare the workshop open on behalf of the
Commissioner.
Session 2: Mentoring: Its Meaning and Importance in Initial Teacher Education
(Prof. Charles Opolot Okurut)
Prof. Opolot-Okurut took participants through his presentation in which he highlighted the
evolution of the term mentoring and its various definitions currently. One of the definitions
was that given by Hobson, Ashby, Malderez and Tomlinson (2009), namely:
Mentoring is … the one-to-one support of a novice or less experienced practitioner
(mentee) by a more experienced practitioner (mentor), designed primarily to assist the
development of the mentee‟s expertise and to facilitate their induction into the culture
of the profession (in this case, teaching) and into the specific local context (here, the
school or college) (Hobson, Ashby, Malderez & Tomlinson, 2009, p. 207).
He then differentiated between formal and informal mentorship and outlined the major stages
of mentoring. These stages include: building the relationship - get to know each other and
begin to establish trust; exchanging information and setting goals; working towards goals and
deepening engagement - work towards achieving your goals through conversations, written
materials provided by your mentor, tying various learning and development activities, and
perhaps connecting with other resource people your mentor introduces you to; and ending the
formal mentoring relationship and planning for the future.
He gave an elaborate rationale for mentoring in Initial Teacher Education and highlighted
challenges that beginning or teacher trainees face in school. Finally, he provided an outline of
the key steps for effective mentoring including: (1) Assessing needs – which could be termed
„gap analysis‟ to populate an inventory of needs. (2) Setting goals and clarifying expectations
– to project the roadmap and the important landmarks. (3) Focusing on cultivating a
relationship – creating a positive rapport and planning amicable working environment. (4)
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Seeking opportunities to maintain contact – designing and implementing an efficient
communication system and atmosphere. (5) Developing a mentoring network – working
beyond the immediate contacts and creating other new community of scholars. He concluded
by stating that the benefits of mentoring in ITE re immense for the teacher trainee, the
trainers, mentors and the quality of learning.
During the plenary, the participants discussed various concerns including the following:
Issues the mentor should put into consideration
o Mentor should understand the mentee
o Mentor should conference with the mentee in a good and suitable environment
o Mentors should ensure a good rapport is established between him or her and
the mentee.
o Mentor should stick and assess areas agreed upon with the mentee.
Is it possible for the mentor to have more than one mentee?
o Yes, a mentee can have one or two mentors depending on the need
Is it possible to have a tool like a questionnaire while with the mentee?
o Yes, however there is need for more tools to obtain both hard and soft data
from the mentee
o Other tools such as FIAC can be utilised in addition to other tools used by the
mentor.
Is there a possibility of having two mentors with one mentee?
o Yes, one mentee can have two mentors each addressing a different need.
o Need for team work especially where the mentee is resistant
What happens if the mentee does not show any signs of change?
o Recommend the mentee to another mentor (completely change to a new
mentor)
To what extent do school based mentor engage the mentees to develop the following?
o Teaching strategies
o Behaviour management
o Assess students
o Working with others, communities, cognition, parents.
What challenges do mentors face?
What benefits do school mentors benefits draw from being mentors?
What makes an effective school mentor?
Dr. Opolot noted that it was important for mentors to network, co-operate, and share the
methods of working as peers. Also mentors must consider that mentoring should benefit
students, the mentee, school administration, teachers and the quality of learning.
Session 3: Mentoring of Student teachers: Expectations of Various Stakeholders Dr. Betty A. Ezati, Dean School of Education)
Dr. Betty Ezati outlined the various stakeholders involved in mentoring of teachers especially
those on school practice. She noted that there is conflict of expectations between the teacher
institutions and the schools where these students are sent to do their school practice. She
therefore noted the following:
a) Teacher education institutions expectations focus on:
Learning experiences
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Hands on experience
Helping school practice students to learn
Training the trainees on whole school approach, finally the teacher educational
institutions expect the trainees to get values and attributes such as:
Good behaviour, beliefs, values, norms and attitudes
Opportunity to learn
b) Expectations of the practicing schools:
Well behaved trainees
Co operative
High level of professionalism
Participative( highly involved in all school activities
Effective delivery of content
Morally upright
Good command of discipline and principles, inspiring or role models.
c) Student teachers (trainee) expectations
Passing examinations ( exam oriented both for PTCs and universities)
Accommodation and allowances during school practice
Transport to and from the school
Teaching materials
Financial support for other needs
Dr. Ezati then outlined the possible implications of trainee‟s expectations which include the
following:
More focus on passing the School Practice examination rather than professional
growth
Practicing schools may not provide all the needs of practicing teachers and
therefore the trainees may feel the support is inadequate.
Students may feel misplaced and insecure due to the conflicting needs. In
addition, schools may wish to shut off the practicing teachers.
There is usually a source of conflict between the trainee, trainers and school
expectations and understanding these can greatly influence the success of the
school practice activity, and by implication the mentorship endeavour.
After the presentation, the participants discussed the presentation and made the following
suggestions on how we as mentors could support trainees to overcome these contradictions:
There must be more talking between higher education institutions and schools
where the student teachers are posted to.
There is need for more collaborative efforts between all stake holders to achieve
the set goals of mentoring
There is need for assessment (internal within schools) to check on the trainees and
their needs.
There is need for flexibility on the part of the student teachers i.e. they should
make an effort to learn the cultures and expectations of the schools where they are
placed.
There is need for the trainees to have personal tutors to help them with learning.
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Session 4: Practical skills of Mentoring Student Teachers during ITE
(Dr. Justine Otaala, Kyambogo University)
Dr. Otaala outlined the various principles of mentoring and then gave an overview of the
different stages of mentoring. These stages include developing a rapport, establishing goals,
planning to achieve the goals and noting successes and challenges, and finally closing the
session.
He stated that the first stage in mentoring is to build a rapport as both the mentor and mentee
will develop a sense of self worth and confidence. Building a rapport also provides an
environment conducive for effective discussion and reinforcement of mentor-mentee
relationship. This is then followed by setting of goals by the mentor and mentee. The third
stage is planning together for any work or activities to be done. This therefore requires
applying informal but structured discussions with the mentee, rating the mentee‟s views,
hopes, aspirations, likes and dislikes. They also need to take note of successes, and the
challenges encountered. As a mentor, do not attack, but rather address the identified
challenges and it is always necessary to give constructive feedback to the mentee. The
closing session involves taking stock of the success, taking on the new goals and agreeing on
the joint actions to improve the mentee‟s performance.
The participants performed a role play on the various stages of mentoring and in the plenary
shared their experiences. They highlighted the challenges that they face in their schools and
suggested the way forward.
Session 5: Mentoring of Student Teachers: Experiences of a Teacher from Mengo SSS
(Mr. William Ssettuba, Mengo SSS)
Mr. Ssettuba gave an exciting presentation of his experience as a mentor of student teachers
at Mengo Senior Secondary School. He stated that young teachers and teacher trainees have a
lot to learn from long serving teachers in order to minimise on the mistakes of the old
teachers. Mengo SSS focuses on the following areas during mentorship:
1) Lesson Management
Content and sources
Time management
Challenges of behaviour of learners over lesson
2) School Management: Students and teachers must be on duty and learn how to handle
learners and other matters including:
Their health
Discipline (petty issues like thefts, fights, disrespect of authority school rules)
Parents and their concerns
School cleanliness – litter (Classroom, Compound)
Smartness of learners (hair, dress, shoes, uniform)
3) Management of records
Time management records (arrival time)
Schemes of work
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Record of work covered
Record of marks awarded
Files for past papers
Record of minutes of
Minutes of staff meeting
Staff briefing
Files of achievements
Academic documents including certificates
Record of student‟s counselled and referred to senior teachers.
He then concluded the presentation by sharing out the Form that they use to assess lessons of
student teachers at Mengo SSS. He reiterated that student teachers need mentoring in order to
ensure that they become professional and improve the quality of learning. He stated that
various schools are at different levels in their support of mentoring and the Project should be
up-scaled to other schools.
Session 6: Sharing on the Mentoring Process: Examples of Video-recorded lessons (Dr. Justine Otaala and Dr. Joseph Oonyu)
Dr. Justine Otaala gave a presentation on tools available to assess a lesson. These include:
Anecdotal records, mapping and Flanders Interaction Chart and Analysis records as outlined
below:
a) Anecdotal record.
o Pre observational conference
o Lesson development
o Evaluation
o Feed back
o Other tools used to obtain both hard and soft data.
b) Use of mapping/ sketch map of the classroom
o Scope: name of the teacher, name of observer, strength of the lesson, teachers
movement in class, teachers interaction with the learners
c) Use of Flanders Interaction Chart.
o Used mainly for verbal interaction
o Used to structure direction and use of characteristics that are two way., the
data entered in the FIAC comprises of numbers such as:
o 1,2,3 which reflect that the lesson is learner cantered
o 4,8 which reflect neutrality (of the lesson)
What do the numbers indicate?
1. The teacher accepts and clarifies the feelings of the learners
2. The teacher encourages and praises the learners
3. The teacher uses learners ideas and contributions
9. Learner initiative
10. Indicates that the teacher asks questions
11. Learner response.
12. Lecturing by the teacher
13. Teacher gives directions or commands
14. Teacher justifies his authority
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C= confusion
S = meaningful silence
d) Use of an Analysis Records
Dr. Justine Otaala then gave a sample Anecdotal record for the groups to respond to.
Sample Anecdotal record
9:40 am: Teacher enters the classroom (S2 East)
Silence in the classroom
9:42: Students stand up
9:43: Teacher greets the class “Good morning Class”
Children respond “Good morning Sir”
Sit down
Mary, go to the HM office and bring chalk both white and colored
Teacher: who was your best footballer of the week last week?
One student responds: Messi of Barcelons
Another one says, Ronaldo of Real Madrid
9:54: Mary comes in with a handful of pieces of chalk and a duster
9:55: Teacher writes the date, subject and the day‟s topic on the chalk board
9:59: Teacher asks one student to read the topic on the chalkboard aloud
10:00: Student reads: Plant reproduction, flowering plants
Teacher says: “Well done” Mary
10:03 Teacher asks “What did we learn about in the last Biology lesson?
A cross section of the class put up their hands saying – Sir… sir… sir…
Who is saying Sir… sir… sir…, I will not pick you
10:07: (Silence) Students keep quiet
10:09: Students then put up their hands once more
Teacher says “Yes Jenifer”
Jenifer responds “Plants”
Teacher says – “No someone else”
Okay John, “Structure of the flowering plants
Very very good. Clap for him
10:10 Teacher says “today we‟re going to learn about the parts of a flowering plant”
Teacher asks – name the parts of the flowering plant
Students put up their hands and the teacher picks up individual students to give their
responses (stem, leaves, branches, roots, flowers)
10:15: Teacher asks what are leaves?
There is silence in the class
10:18 Teacher asks again I say what are leave?
10:20 One student puts up her hand
Yes Jane, said the teacher.
Jane leaves are organs of a plant
10:21 Teacher, “No, how can you say leaves are organs, what kind of person are you. Do
you
know what an organ is?
10:24: Teacher again asks let me repeat this questions once again and if no body is going to
answer I will bring it in the examination because that will force you to answer these
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simple questions that we even learnt yesterday. So what are leaves? I want your hand
up.
10:27: Silence in the classroom
10:30: Okay flowers are the reproductive parts of a flowering plant.
10:33: One student puts up her hand:
Josephine what do you want to say?
Sir, I read from the internet that the reproductive parts of a plant are also called
reproductive organs.
10:35: Josephine, don‟t be stupid to believe what you read from the internet. There‟s a lot of
wrong information in the internet which will rally confuse you. So from today I don‟t
want to hear anything about your internet from you anymore.
10:40: Teacher repeats plants do not have organs ok?
10:45: Students pick up your biology books and copy these notes. Leave some space in your
notebooks because there is a diagram that I did not bring that I want you to draw at
the beginning of today‟s notes.
Teacher writes note on the chalkboard
10:48: Another teacher knocks at the door
Teacher walks to attend to this teacher
10:50: Class we shall continue from where we‟ve stopped today, prepare for another lesson
your teacher is waiting.
Activity
In groups of 5s, teachers were asked to identify one person who will pretend to be this
biology teacher and then to:
1. Identify the strengths and challenges this teacher encountered in the lesson.
2. Develop and act a role play about how you would help this teacher
The participants also watched a science lesson and discussed their observations of the lesson.
They generally agreed that the lesson was learner centred, interesting and inquiry based. They
however expressed the view that as much as many teachers would like to use these
approaches in their teaching, our curriculum is examination oriented and the success of a
teacher is gauged by timely completion of the syllabus and the number of students who have
passed in the national examinations.
Day 2: Wednesday 24th
April
Session 6: Sharing on the Mentoring and the Responsibilities of Various Stakeholders
(Dr. Joseph Oonyu)
Dr. Joseph Oonyu summarised the highlights of the proceedings of the previous day. He
reiterated that mentorship requires a person with some qualities, and that it demands some
responsibility from the different stakeholders. He further went on to say that facilitation of a
mentor was an issue that the workshop had highlighted. In view of these observations, Dr.
Oonyu posed a number of questions which were discussed in groups. These questions were:
1. What are the qualities of a good or an effective mentor?
2. What are the responsibilities of trainees, trainers, teachers, school administrators and
teacher education institutions?
3. How do we motivate mentors better in our schools?
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Below is a summary of highlights of group presentations:
Qualities of a good mentor:
Knowledgeable
Good listener
Tolerant/ patient
Flexible
Skilled
Empathetic
Role model
Approachable.
Responsibilities of
a) Mentor:
Guide
Supervise
Monitor
Evaluate/ assessment
Train
Counsel
Orientate
b) School administration
Motivate
Recommend
Provision of a conducive environment
c) Teacher training institutions:
Establish a mentorship department
Assessment research
Put policies to help boost mentorship programme
Establish a budgetary allocation
Incorporate mentorship in the curriculum
Collaborate with schools and other institutions such as M.O.E s.
Promotion of community involvement.
Responsibilities of a trainee:
Willing to learn
Hard working and devoted
Willing to change
Should be a role model
Make instructional materials
Prepare schemes of work
Attend all sessions.
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How to facilitate and reward the mentor:
Provide tools and guidelines to be followed
Provide a favourable and condusive environment (office)
Reduce on the work load (more time for the mentorship)
Provide w/shops, talks and seminars and other rewards
o Award certificates to the mentors
o Monetary allowance where possible
o Provide facilitation in case of w/shops.
o Recognition and appreciation.
Session 7: Way Forward Dr. Joseph Oonyu
During the plenary, Dr. Joseph Oonyu elicited suggestions from participants on the Way
Forward for mainstreaming and strengthening mentorship in the Initial Teacher Education
programmes. Below were the suggestions of the participants:
1. Initiate a policy on mentorship from the Ministry of Education and Sports
2. Involve all key stakeholders in Mentorship and endeavour to make them come on
board.
3. Stream line mentorship issues in the existing teacher training institutions
4. Provide guidelines (tools) for the mentoring process i.e. more materials are needed
to guide the mentor. Establish what exists on the ground and what needs to be
added.
5. Build a critical mass of mentors and follow them up so as to give any support
needed
6. Introduce a short modular course on mentorship (Certificate or Diploma) perhaps
offered during holidays so that more teachers attend it
7. Solicit for more support for the project (need for follow up what has been
achieved )
8. Identify areas of mentoring, do informal mentorship, strengthen communication
and report back to schools.
9. Spread out to involve more schools and teacher training institutions through for
example the. CCT (Centre Coordinating Tutor) system
10. Strengthen communication and discussion forum among participants e.g. through
e-mails, Facebook, twitter.
11. Provide a report (One page0 for head teachers of the proceedings of the workshop
12. Involve more head teachers so as to solicit their support for mentoring
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Time lines for future activities were agreed upon as follows:
No. ACTIVITY PERIOD
1 Presentation to H/teachers & staff Mid May 2012
2 W/Shop for H/teachers, DH/teachers End of May 2012
3 Follow up w/shop on mentoring End of May 2012
4 Data collection during s/practice June 2012
5. Short course on Mentoring August, 2012
Session 8: Closing ceremony
After all the days presentations were done, Dr. Joseph Oonyu thanked the facilitators and
participants for their time and commitment that saw a successful workshop. He wished them
well and pledged to communicate better. In particular, he pledged to use various forms of
communication to reach the teachers. After evaluation of the workshop, Dr. Oonyu officially
declared it closed at 1:30 pm.
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Photograph of participants of the Mentorship Workshop held at COBAMS April 23-24, 2012
Presentation by Prof. Charles Opolot Okurut at Mentorship Workshop held at COBAMS April 23-24,
2012
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Presentation by Mr. Ssettuba at the Mentorship Workshop held at COBAMS April 23-24, 2012
Particpants litsen attentively as they are taken through a session by Dr. Joseph Oonyu (not in the
picture)
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Mr. William Ssettuba making a presentation of his group at the plenary
Participants actively take part in the discussion
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Back to the presentations by one of the resource persons
Dr. Justine Otaala moderating a session as one of the participants makes a presentation
from group activity
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EVALUATION OF THE APRIL MENTORSHIP WORKSHOP
Teachers‟ evaluation (Figure 1) revealed that overall; the majority evaluated the relevance of
the workshop, its pace and venue, knowledge of the facilitators, interactions and opportunity
to ask questions as excellent. Forty per cent or more rated the clarity of workshop objectives
as Very good. However only 40% rated the length of the workshop as Very Good and none
rated it as excellent. Only 20% rated the clarity of workshop objectives as Excellent although
40% of the teachers rated it as Very Good.
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Regarding the rating of the various workshop sessions, between 50% rated the session on
Meaning and Importance of Mentoring as excellent. The most highly rated sessions were
Meaning and Importance of Mentoring in the Initial Teacher Education, Experiences of
various stakeholders and Practical skills of mentoring. None of the sessions were rated as
poor.
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The evaluation also revealed that the majority of teachers (>60%) reported that the workshop
met its objectives as well as their expectations completely. In other words, their levels of
satisfaction with the workshop objectives and what they expected to get from it were high.
The majority of the teachers reported that they liked the interactive sessions which involved
them in group activities and sharing of experiences; the knowledgeable and yet friendly
facilitators; and the overall organization of the workshop. However, they were quite unhappy
about the workshop duration, the pre-workshop information and the rather short duration of
the workshop (two days).
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WORKSHOP PROGRAMME
Day 1: Monday 23rd
April, 2012
8:00-8:30am Registration
8:30- 9:00am
Welcome Remarks (Joseph)
Self introduction of participants
Overview of the Project including specific workshop objectives
9:00-9:30 am Opening of the Workshop (Commissioner, Teacher Education)
9:30-10:30am Mentoring: Its Meaning and Importance in Initial Teacher Education
(Charles)
10.30 – 11:00 am Tea/coffee Break
11:00 -12 noon Mentoring of Student teachers: Expectations of Various Stakeholders (Betty)
12:00 – 1:00 pm Group Discussions and Sharing (Betty)
1.00 – 2:00pm Lunch
2:00-3:00 pm Practical skills of Mentoring in Teacher Education (Justine)
3:00-4:00 pm Group Discussions and Sharing (Justine)
4:00-4:30pm Tea/coffee Break and Closure of Day 1
Day 2: Tuesday 24th
April 2012
8:00-8:30am Registration
8:30-8:45am Recap of Previous Day
8:45-09:45am Mentoring of Student Teachers: Experiences of a Teacher from Mengo SSS
Mr. Ssettuba, DOS Mengo SSS)
10:00-10:30am Group Discussions and Sharing (Joseph)
10.00 – 10.30am Tea/coffee Break
10:30-11:30 am Sharing on the Mentoring Process: Examples of Video-recorded lessons
(Joseph and Justine)
11:30 -12:00 pm Group Discussions and Sharing (Joseph and Justine)
12:00-12:30 pm Way Forward (Joseph)
Evaluation and Closing Remarks
12:30-1:00 pm Closing ceremony (Deputy Principal, CEES)
1.00 – 2:00pm Lunch and Departure
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