Newly-appointed Minister of Education Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine says while he is still reviewing several aspects of his new portfolio, he recognises that addressing the morale of teachers is a major challenge that must be addressed.
“…It is only satisfied and motivated teachers in the classroom who will bring about the kind of transformation that we want to see,” Roopnaraine told Stabroek News at his Brickdam office on Monday.
“One of the highest priorities is to ensure that we get right from the beginning participation and actual involvement of teachers in making the policies. I don’t want teachers feeling alienated because they did not participate in the formulation of the policies that they are being asked to execute,” he said.
He noted that he feels he can rely on the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) to give the kind of support to the ministry that is needed.
Roopnaraine stressed that under his tenure teachers will be offered real incentives to remain within the education system. These incentives will include adequate remuneration, debugging of the ministry bureaucracy so that new teachers are paid promptly and a re-evaluation of other agreed upon benefits, such as duty-free concessions, which some eligible teachers have been waiting years to access.
“Real incentives should be widely available,” Roopnaraine said. “We need to look at the bottlenecks correctly stagnating the system so that persons who qualify for incentives are able to access them as quickly as possible,” he added.
Roopnaraine also said critics should not be worried about his experience within the classroom and as a minister since he has ample experience in teaching and crafting policy and intends to work with experts in the field to ensure the development of Guyana’s education sector.
He said he is aware of the concerns but not worried about them. “People are free to express concerns and they should be concerned because of the importance of the ministry. They are right to make very high demands. I, myself, have had a lot of classroom experience; I taught in Canada, in the United States, in England at the Leeds School and at the University of Guyana. To the people who are worried about my experience in the classroom and elsewhere. That is not something they need to worry about,” Roopnaraine assured, before adding, “insofar as I have had a profession it has been teaching.”
The new minister believes that what persons may be justified in worrying about is the complexity and size of the ministry, which would challenge anyone. “It challenges me,” he declared as he explained his ongoing attempts to recruit people who will assist him in successfully running the ministry.
“I want to establish a small, select advisory group of people who are real experts in the field to work with me and to ensure that together we pull the ministry,” he said.
Before Roopnaraine’s appointment, GTU President Mark Lyte had told Stabroek News that he was hoping the new administration would appoint a “minister who understands education, who has come through the ranks and therefore understands the challenges teachers face and in so doing will work towards improving the education system.
Someone who will work to improve the quality of education in Guyana from the facilities to teacher training to teacher remuneration.”
Other senior educators contacted by Stabroek News had shared Lyte’s desire for a minister who has a “thorough understanding of the education system” and who will be committed to making it one in which they can function productively.
