Professional trainer
One of PAMA’s missions is to bring abacus and mental arithmetic education to more countries. The Professional Trainers Program certifies experienced instructors to train teachers of their own, so high-level education can reach more students worldwide.
Abacus Master
- Complete the Three-Star Instructor Certification (Level 3 Abacus and Level 6 Mental Arithmetic).
- Complete 10 instruction demonstration questions from the One-Star Certification Level.
- Purchase the licenses of at least 10 books from the PAMA Workbook Series.
- Submit an approved essay of at least 500 words — classroom experience, instruction methodology, education research, or another abacus/mental-arithmetic topic.
- Be a representative from a member company, or be referred by one.
- The member company must have 500 accumulated PAMA certification exams.
- Complete the third-phase instructor training and Three-Star training course in Taiwan (held every August), then the Abacus Master Exam and Certification.
Upon receiving the Abacus Master Certificate, trainers may deliver first-phase training in their own and other countries and keep the training fees; the Secretariat charges an administrative and management fee of US$30 per certificate issued.
Abacus Doctor
- Hold Abacus Master qualification for over two years and have delivered at least three first-level training sessions to more than 100 teachers combined.
- Complete the Four-Star Instructor Certification (Level 1 Abacus and Level 4 Mental Arithmetic).
- Complete 10 instruction demonstration questions from the Two-Star Certification Level.
- Purchase the licenses of at least 20 books from the PAMA Workbook Series.
- Submit an approved essay of at least 1,000 words.
- Be a representative from a member company, or be referred by one.
- The member company must have 1,000 accumulated PAMA certification exams.
- Complete the fourth-phase instructor training and Four-Star training course, then the Abacus Doctor Exam and Certification.
Upon receiving the Abacus Doctor Certificate, trainers may deliver second-phase training in their own and other countries and keep the training fees; the Secretariat charges an administrative and management fee of US$40 per certificate issued.
Abacus Professor
- Hold Abacus Doctor qualification for over two years and have delivered at least three second-level training sessions to more than 100 teachers combined.
- Complete the Five-Star Instructor Certification (Advanced Level 3 Abacus and Level 1 Mental Arithmetic).
- Complete 10 instruction demonstration questions from the Three-Star Certification Level.
- Purchase the licenses of at least 30 books from the PAMA Workbook Series.
- Submit an approved essay of at least 2,000 words.
- The member company must have 2,000 accumulated PAMA certification exams.
- Complete the Five-Star training course, then the Abacus Professor Exam and Certification.
Upon receiving the Abacus Professor Certificate, trainers may deliver third-phase training in their own and other countries and keep the training fees; the Secretariat charges an administrative and management fee of US$50 per certificate issued.
Four-star and five-star certifications
These are conducted only by the Secretariat directly, obtained by attending a Secretariat-hosted training session in Taiwan or in another country. The Secretariat charges an administrative and management fee of US$100 per certificate.
A company may put forward multiple professional trainers; each individual must independently meet the requirements above.