DSEJ grants scholarships to encourage students majoring in Education

DSEJ director, Leong Lai (center left) reminded that Macau’s teaching staff needs further improvement

Aiming to cultivate more outstanding local teachers and to build a stronger teaching staff for Macau, the Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) has decided to continue its funding schemes for the upcoming academic year in order to support students pursuing tertiary studies in Education and Portuguese language.
The bureau has issued scholarships of between MOP60,000 and MOP212,000 to a total of 115 students who have been admitted into Education degree programs, depending on the region in which the students’ universities are located. In addition, 18 students were granted subsidies of between MOP105,000 and MOP200,000 to partake in Portuguese language and education programs in Portugal.
Budgets of MOP40 million and MOP21 million have, to date, been allocated to the funding schemes, which were respectively launched in 2012 and 2013. They are expected to help cultivate general teachers, Portuguese language teachers, and multi-lingual speakers for Macau. The schemes request that all beneficiaries return to Macau to engage in educational work after graduation.
According to the DESJ, the funding scheme for Education degrees has expanded in scale since its launch in 2012 from 40 beneficiaries to 120. The quotas for these two schemes are adjusted each year in accordance with the market conditions and demand for teachers.
During the grant ceremony held yesterday, the DSEJ director, Leong Lai, said that she is pleased to see more and more outstanding local students committed to educational undertakings. She encouraged the scholarship recipients to continue studying hard, to realize their ideals and aspirations for education, and to cultivate more pillars of society in the future.
In addition, the official reminded the students to pay attention to Macau’s new educational policies – such as the general framework for private-school teachers – amid the city’s educational reform, in order to be fully prepared for their future teaching jobs.
“The recently released Population Policy Research Report has suggested attaching importance to talent cultivation in some key areas. I think the talent cultivation for the education sector itself is essential,” she stressed. “At the moment, the number of students in non-tertiary education level is growing significantly; meanwhile, the ultimate direction for developing education is towards better-quality education. Thereby, Macau’s teaching staff needs further improvement, whether in quantity or in quality.”
The director further pledged that the DSEJ would “continue to implement the administrative principles of ‘rejuvenating Macau with education’ and ‘building Macau with talent’; proactively cultivating talents for Macau’s future development; continuing to promote the long-term development of Macau’s education sector; enhancing teaching quality; and building an excellent teaching staff.”