School principals have been urged to get out of the office and walk their school corridors to maintain absolute control, says Education Minister Mahendra Reddy.

While opening the 118th Fiji School Principals Association annual conference at the Miracle Centre in Labasa, Mr Reddy said in order for principals to impose positive changes they first needed to be good leaders.

“The future of our young innocent children are in your hands and you need to ensure excellence through quality education all the time,” Mr Reddy said.

“All our principals are not teaching so let us get out of our office and walk our school corridors, because only then we will be able to gain absolute control.

“Principals should have all the details about their school, because if you do not then it means you are abandoning your school.”

He said principals should be able to come up with their own framework to help instill discipline in their schools.

“We are preparing our students for the needs and demands of the 21st century careers, which will demand them to know how to critically think, to solve problems, to innovate, to collaborate and thus, meet the demands of the changing job markets,” Mr Reddy said.

“Time and again, we need to reflect on the rapid changes and increasing demands of our society due to globalisation.

“We need to be aware of the fact that what was considered good education few years ago is no longer enough for our children to attain success in their careers and handle challenging societal demands.”

Edited by Rusiate Mataika

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