In less than three months, North Ruimveldt Multi- lateral School will officially become one of the top secondary schools in the country, when the Ministry of Education commissions it as an ‘A’ school.
The announcement was made by Education Minister Priya Manickchand yesterday and she further said that the decision was well-deserved following continued improvements by the school.
“This school began as a B-list school and based on the excellent performance of the school’s students at CSEC [Caribbean Secon-dary Education Certificate] during a period of time – for three consecutive years – the school is now qualified to be an A-list school,” Manickchand explained.
The school’s upgrade is expected within the first quarter of this year.
Guyana is home to five senior secondary schools and a number of junior secondary schools. These schools are usually ranked from A to D and these rankings are based on the schools’ performances at the CSEC examination, the highest being listed A while the lowest are classed D schools.
For students who did not earn a place at one of the five senior secondary schools, placement in an A-list school is a satisfactory alternative. These A-list schools are equipped to produce quality students, both academically and otherwise.
North Ruimveldt Multilater-al’s commissioning is one of several plans being embarked on by the ministry within the first three months of this year.
It will also launch locally-written books to improve literacy, publish the 2014 to 2018 National Education Plan and finalise and publish draft standards for teachers.
Further, the ministry will commence a US$10 million programme aimed at the improvement of secondary-level education in Guyana. According to Manickchand, the objectives of this project are to strengthen the capacity of secondary school Mathematics teachers nationwide and to increase enrolment in general secondary schools in targeted regions.
The programme is expected to be implemented over the next three years, she said. Approximately 800 secondary-level Mathematics teachers nationwide will benefit from in-service training, while about 2,600 students are expected to benefit each year.
The project will also benefit students in 8 schools with technology-assisted learning and Mathematics pilot programme. Additionally, the Ministry of Education will benefit from improved capacity and education management, Manickchand asserted.
“This project is going to help us get closer to our goal…of attaining universal secondary education by this term,” the minister said. “This programme will officially be launched in the first quarter of this year,” Manickchand added.
The ministry will also be placing communication between parents and educators on the front burner with the introduction of a National Report Card day along with a Parents’ Day.
According to Manickchand, the ministry is hoping to increase the information available to stakeholders, particularly the Parent/Teacher Associations and improve the lines of communication and collaboration amongst parents, schools, and the ministry.
Hence, she said, the report card day will be set for the last Thursday or the second to last day at the end of each school term to allow parents from across the country to go into their children’s schools and personally uplift report cards. Parents will also have one-on-one interactions with teachers to help overcome challenges and strengthen performances.
Additionally, Parents’ Day will be set for the fourth Thursday of every month at the nursery level. At the primary level, the date will be set as the second Thursday of each month.
Manickchand emphasised that parents can still visit schools and their visits are not limited to parents’ day. However, she explained, the ministry wanted needed to ensure that there was a designated day for parents to come and voice their concerns.
“The ministry views these approaches as vital to the development of our children and we encourage parents, guardians and teachers to work together to ensure that every child becomes the best that he or she can become,” Manick-chand said. “Together we can move forward; together we can take our children to a higher level.”
