By LACHLAN MOORHEAD
CASEY council has recognised two East Timorese teacher trainers who are helping to bridge the education gap in their home country.
Mayor Geoff Ablett formally recognised Noemia Ximenes and Francisco Jorge at a ceremony on Tuesday 29 July in which the pair was applauded for their volunteer work, training aspiring primary school teachers in the Ermera District.
The City of Casey invited Noemia and Francisco to Melbourne to share their knowledge and experiences in an effort to bolster the council’s ongoing partnership with Ermera, a relationship pioneered by the Casey-based Friends of Ermera community group.
“The City of Casey wanted me to come here, they paid for my travels, they want me to share ideas and information about what we’ve done there,” Noemia said.
“And then who knows – other groups can be involved with the program in the future.”
The on-site teacher training in Ermera was introduced in an effort to fill the education hole that befell the country after its independence from Indonesia was declared in 1999.
Friends of Ermera vice president Jan Trezise said that the Indonesian curriculum was previously being taught throughout Timor-Leste and 1999’s vote-led independence created a teacher vacuum.
“Since 1999 university and training colleges had to set themselves up, they weren’t just ready to start training teachers,” she said.
“They took a few years to get themselves established, people in schools need to catch up.”
Francisco, who stayed with Jan while visiting Casey last month, has dedicated his time to helping the hopeful teacher aspirants for the past five years.
“Who is there? We need someone to stand up and be teachers,” he said.
“We need teachers for our kids. You need to upgrade their skills and we need real teachers.”
Casey Mayor Geoff Ablett recognised the selflessness of Noemia and Francisco when welcoming them to the municipality.
“We enjoy a wonderful quality of life here in Casey and are lucky enough to have great schools providing excellent educational opportunities, as well as a great deal of enjoyment, satisfaction and social connection,” Cr Ablett said.
“It is hard to imagine not having a school to go to, and very easy to take for granted things like books, playing fields and sporting equipment, computers, and even teachers.”
The Ermera District has been a friendship city of Casey Council since 2004.
