Education Minister Shaik Baksh is proposing a nationwide literacy programme in schools this year that involves classes being extended in the afternoons and on weekends and holidays, in an effort to improve the quality of education locally.
A similar programme targeting adults at the community level is also planned since according to Baksh, the literacy level is declining across the country. He said this continues to be one of the major challenges of the education sector and is something that must be addressed.
“The results of the assessments in our primary and secondary schools over the past year have sent a strong signal to us about where we are in terms of literacy in our schools and even countrywide. But in addition to the programme being implemented we need our teachers to dedicate more time to the children and for them to spend more time in the classrooms,” Baksh said.
At a press briefing yesterday to report on the performance of the education sector in 2007, the minister said many teachers were not showing the commitment required, though a fair amount are. He said a large number of children in the system need remedial work, adding that a certain amount of commitment was needed on the part of the teachers in order to address this as well.
Though dropout rates have been declining at the primary level, he said, there was much cause for concern at the secondary level particularly with respect to students placed at primary tops. A greater amount of attention will be put into this area, he said.
As part of its strategy, the ministry is expanding the vocational Basic Competency Certificate Programme (BCCP) which was successfully piloted at Beterverwagting in 2007. Baksh said many children in the system struggle with academics and would drop out, but with the BCCP expanded, this was likely to change. The technical training offered to students is a viable alternative to dropping out and is expected to benefit many in the school system.
Additionally, the Skills for Life project, which is another vocational programme initiated by the ministry, is set to expand across the country. Baksh said 60 young people graduated from the programme last year and all found job placements in the private sector.
According to the minister, the education sector performed creditably in 2007. He said much of the budgeted $15.6 billion was exhausted as new training programmes for children and teachers were initiated, while existing programmes were strengthened and in a few instances, expanded. Among some of the crucial areas in the sector that were reviewed and resulted in positive changes were, teachers attending the University of Guyana (UG) and equitable book distribution.
He said the decision to have teachers spend more time in the classrooms and not rush off to classes at UG worked in the children’s favour and more books were allocated to individual children over the past year following the review carried out by the ministry.
In 2007, the ministry received 78 applications from retired teachers and 31 were re-hired, several more are expected to be back in the system this year. Baksh said the new placement criteria that were introduced last year went smoothly but there are still areas to be reviewed and refined.
Over the past year, 400 school managers were trained and another 500 are to undergo training this year, Baksh said, adding that certificate programmes for teachers in English and Mathematics are continuing while programmes will be introduced this year for science subjects.
Further, he said, organizational changes would be made in the central agencies of the education sector. He said Regional Education Officers will be required to visit schools across the region more regularly and report on their findings, adding that there is need for more intense supervision.
The first draft of the new Education Strategy Plan comes out shortly in addition to the second draft of the new education legislation, Baksh said.
Commenting on the University of Guyana, he said, a new strategic plan has been submitted and a public consultation on the institution has been planned to have the input of the general public and principal stakeholders. The minister said UG had a turbulent year in 2007 but things have since stabilized. Some $300 million has been allocated to the institution to deal with the asbestos problem and for infrastructure work. (Iana Seales)
