A+ for Education

03.JULY.09

For us in the newspaper business, this is our busy season, not just because of Carnival, but because of the many graduation ceremonies we are invited to cover.{{more}} Unfortunately, we just don’t have the resources to respond positively to all the invitations, but from those we do attend, it is clear that many positive things are happening in Education.

Even the harshest critics of the Unity Labour Party administration will have to admit that it gets an A+ for effort with regard to its education policies. This does not say that there are no shortcomings in the system, but things seem to be moving in the right direction.

Much has already been said about universal access to secondary education, the large numbers accessing tertiary education and the efforts which have been made to ensure that the vast majority of teachers in our schools are certified, with many having specialist training to deal with literacy and numeracy, as well as children with learning disabilities.

To add to all this, we report in this week’s edition that Chief Education Officer Susan Dougan has announced that students at the Division of Technical and Vocational Education of the Community College will now be eligible for national scholarships. This is a positive move which comes just a week after the opening of new primary schools at Fair Hall and in Bequia.

We also heard recently that come September, nine primary schools will have Early Childhood Centres attached to them. This means that quality early years education is now available free of charge to our children, benefitting mainly those from disadvantaged homes, who may not have otherwise been able to access pre-school education.

The West St. George Secondary School also graduated 43 students this week in that school’s first graduation ceremony. A few years ago, it would have been anyone’s guess what would have become of those students as none of that school’s graduates had passed the Common Entrance Examination. Keeping those 43 young people off the streets and in a classroom for five extra years is certainly a cause for celebration.

What seems common among all the schools, both primary and secondary, is that many of our youngsters seem enthusiastic about learning and grasp at the many opportunities that are being made available to them. There seems to a very high level of competitiveness even among our primary school children, resulting in many very outstanding performances. Imagine a child who scored an average of 76 per cent in the recent Common Entrance Exam has not scored enough to earn entrance into the Girls’ High School, having been outperformed by 135 other girls. A few years ago, 76 per cent would have been good enough.

We congratulate the policy makers and the Ministry of Education for all the strides being made and the young people and their teachers for their achievements.

Play it Safe

We are in the midst of our premier national festival, and we urge one and all to play it safe. St. Vincent and the Grenadines is indeed paradise, but locals and visitors alike should not let their guard down, but take all the precautions they usually would to safeguard their health, property and life.

From what we have seen so far, Carnival is gearing up to be a good one. The Carnival Development Corporation (CDC) has been sticking to its promise of having shorter, more tightly packed shows and our mas bands, soca artistes, musicians and calypsonians have been delivering. All in all, a recipe for a great weekend. Happy Carnival everyone.