[TaLiHa: A network of Timorese Early Childhood Learning Centres]
Vision (the dream/the future):
Timorese teachers to provide quality early childhood education which develops our children into strong, responsible Timorese citizens
Mission (describes why we exist: what we aim to achieve and what we plan to do to achieve that):
TaLiHa exists to support the provision of high quality early childhood education by providing a forum for Early Childhood Learning Centres to speak with a united voice, to work to improve and upgrade our own centres, to provide training for our Directors and teachers, to empower our teachers in the classroom, to influence others to embrace our educational philosophy and to be beacons for childhood education.
Goals (these are the measurable tasks that we set ourselves for the next 3 years):
1. Establish TaLiHa with the appropriate formal structures including our constitution, goals, office bearers, levels of membership and committees.
2. Establish membership criteria and methods for monitoring member centres against these criteria.
3. Develop a Code of Ethics for the teachers who work in our member centres.
4. Provide support to each other at an organizational, director and teacher level.
5. Establish alliances with organizations in Timor and in other countries which can provide support and advice.
6. Establish a training schedule.
7. Facilitate the exchange of teachers between member centres and provide access to external work experience.
8. Establish a library of early childhood teacher resources.
9. Establish our centres as ‘centres of excellence’ which provide assistance to others through training, work experience, and the provision of resources and advice.
10. Establish TaLi’Ha as a voice in the community which speaks with authority about early childhood learning.
Philosophy
All the activities and decisions of TaLiHa, and its Early Childhood Learning Centre members, are based on, and guided by our philosophy. In our schools:
1. We work as a community to achieve our Vision.
2. Teachers actively participate in the development of their students.
3. We recognize that parents are the first educators of the children, so we encourage and invite parents to participate actively in school life.
4. We love and respect our country, our environment, and all people regardless of social status, age, race, religion and academic background.
5. We develop with resilience, and a sense of self-worth and responsibility.
6. We develop the practice of reflection.
7. Initially, teachers and children communicate in the home language of the child.
8. Teachers model Tetun and Portuguese using language correctly and appropriately.
9. We learn using a ‘sense’ approach.
10. We nurture creativity and free-thinking.
11. Children learn and express themselves through play.
12. We use appropriate stories and literature as an integral part of our teaching and learning.
13. We plan lessons based on topics to give real-life relevance to subject areas and to allow the inter-linking of these subject areas.
