Upgrading teachers' skills is crucial for improving the education quality of our partner schools in rural villages. The teachers of small schools in rural areas are enthusiastic, but often lack modern teaching skills and knowledge of effective teaching methods which will enhance children's learning.

Culturally, they are accustomed to 'chalk and talk', a formal method of teaching with a blackboard and the teacher's voice as its focal point, as opposed to more active and interactive teaching styles in which children are pro-actively involved in learning processes. Numerous studies show that children learn better when they are engaged and having fun!!

Mondo Challenge Kalimpong therefore every year organises teacher training workshop, hiring a highly experienced facilitator to train teachers of all our partner schools. During the training, the facilitator introduces a number of active and interactive teaching styles and activities, and helps participant teachers' learning processes through carefully designed participatory activities. After the training, follow up visits to schools are conducted to observe the teachers putting what they have learnt in the training into practice, and to give necessary guidance if they face problems.

Since the start of the teacher training, we have seen remarkable improvements in teachers' skills and confidence in teaching, and many of them have expressed increased joy in teaching as a result.