Muis offers $1 million training boost for 4,900 religious teachers
The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) will inject $1 million in training credits for 4,900 religious teachers (asatizah) certified under the Asatizah Recognition Scheme (ARS).
The initiative was announced yesterday by Minister for Social and Family Development and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Masagos Zulkifli.
In a virtual address to senior asatizah, Mr Masagos, who is also Second Minister for Health, rallied them to take advantage of available developmental opportunities that would strengthen the fraternity and help them lead the Muslim community and contribute to the larger Singaporean society.
He also announced that the Continuing Professional Education (CPE) panel will review and refresh its curriculum to enhance the professionalism of religious teachers under the ARS.
Led by Deputy Mufti Mohammad Hannan Hassan, the seven-member expert panel consists of religious teachers involved in various fields.
Since last month, the panel has engaged stakeholder groups including asatizah doing full-time, part-time and freelance work, as well as employers and professionals who will be engaged in providing guidance and input in skills development.
CPE is a training programme to enhance the professionalism of asatizah under the ARS and to inculcate a culture of continuous learning and development within the fraternity.
Under the new initiative, each asatizah will be given $200 worth of credits to offset the cost of CPE courses after the SkillsFuture subsidy.
Asatizah can use the credits to enrol in courses under the five skill categories identified by Muis - digital literacy, digital marketing, technology- enabled learning and delivery, grit and resilience, and personal development and teamwork and collaboration. Registration will start on Sept 21 at www.ars.sg
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now
