“ Tangane Dr. Pongi e fakamaama ki he fonua 'i he fu'u taimi faingata'a kuo pulonga ai 'a Tonga pea kafo ai e fanau mo e hakotupu 'o e fonua.
I hope that the Minister of Education will humbly seek the advise of experts in the field and not that of the two buttinskis that have been causing turmoils to the nation. I also hope that the Ministry would act with urgency, as Dr. Pongi suggested to develop a conceptual framework & roadmap that will safeguard the children of Tonga from the detrimental effects imposed by the current education reform. Getting it right begins with ensuring that students are placed at the heart of the assessment process and in ways that will develop their capability to assess and improve their own learning. This means that the assessment capabilities of teachers and school principals need to be developed too, which also means that before they could subscribe to the centrally promoted approaches to assessment that the incumbent government advocates. Teachers need to be convinced of their benefits for teaching and learning and not forced to adopt a 'compliancy mentality'.
Please do not deprive our children from their right to quality education. ”