PNG: Ukarumpa Training Centre

Training for Life

by Tim Scott
1 Nov. 2013

"Does your language have a second person plural? English doesn’t; you is both plural and singular."

“You have seen that word before: anthropos.  What does that mean?”

“Repetition is the key; as the students master the sounds, they will begin to read.”

“Sometimes the cursor flies off the screen; try moving the mouse slower.”

What do these quotes have in common? They were all heard at the Ukarumpa Training Centre where almost 90 Papua New Guineans are involved in four different courses. The Ukarumpa Training Centre, located in the Eastern Highlands Province, is bustling with activity these days.

In one classroom, 21 students are learning about introductory language principles. These principles will help them serve their communities as they prepare to become translators.  Next door, 10 are studying Greek. Having already mastered the first Greek course, they are learning how Greek can help them understand the New Testament Scriptures.  In the lecture room, 28 teachers from around Papua New Guinea are participating in a “Creative Phonics” workshop in order to help other teachers learn how to teach children to read. Finally, 30 first-time computer users are eagerly getting hands-on computer training.

What makes this training centre so busy? According to Max Sahl, Ukarumpa Training Centre Manager,

"Basically there are three main advantages, location, size and locally available expertise. The Ukarumpa Training Centre is located just off the Highlands Highway near Kainantu, making it available by road, all the way from Mount Hagen to Lae and Madang.  It is a large centre capable of easily holding 100 participants and even more with some slight modifications.  And because Ukarumpa is the base of operations for the many language development and Bible translation personnel that work throughout PNG, it provides easy access to experts in many areas of linguistics and literacy, along with technical support for these activities."

The training centre also hosts conferences and retreats. It recently hosted the National Christian Nurses, Bible Translation Association of PNG and the Tertiary Student Christian Fellowship.

The Ukarumpa Training Centre is providing training that changes lives. For more information on the Ukarumpa Training Centre …

→ go to www.pngtraining.sil.ac.pg
→ watch a video www.youtube.com/thepngexperience
    
Click here for more information on the Ukarumpa Linguistic Centre.