Literature and Culture Committees Promise to Assist Applicants for Ethnic Teacher Posts

State and region officials are calling on all potential ethnic literature teachers to come forward and apply for daily wage teacher posts. To make the process that much easier, ethnic committee officials have pledged to assist potential applicants with the required paperwork.

“Anyone who wants to apply should come [to my home]. They need to bring recommendation letters. They can fill in the application forms here and I will walk them through what they need. Then, they only have to submit the documents to the township education office,” said Saw Aye Mya, chair of Karen State’s Karen Literature and Culture Committee.

Mahn Than Win Oo, vice chair of Yangon Region’s Karen committee, likewise pledged to assist those who want to apply for ethnic teacher posts.

While the positions previously netted a monthly stipend of K30,000, ethnic language teachers now qualify for a daily rate at the minimum wage, or K3,600 per day, according to U Soe Myint, Karen State’s education officer.

Ethnic literature teachers are now seen as government staff, and the classes are offered at the elementary school level.

Saw Aung Myint Khine, Mon State’s Kayin Affairs Minister, told Karen News that ethnic committees are lobbying to have the ethnic curriculum included as part of the regular school hours, so that the students do not have to stay extra hours in order to learn their mother tongue.

Ethnic language teachers have until October 20 to apply.