Ministry of Education launches web portal dubbed SVG eNET

Described as the only one of its kind in the Caribbean, local educators welcomed the launch of the SVG eNET, the Ministry of Education’s very own web portal.{{more}}

The project, which is estimated to cost over 150,000 Euros, was launched at the conference room of the Telecommunications Department in Kingstown on Tuesday, March 27, with a number of principals, administrators and education officials in attendance.

It gives the various educational institutions, which include primary and secondary schools, postsecondary institutions, early childhood and adult education centres, a direct link with administrators in the Ministry of Education, and also allows students and parents limited access to information on the site.

The site will be managed by the Media Unit of the Ministry of Education.

Chief Education Officer Lou-Anne Gilchrist said the launch of the portal is a landmark event on the calendar of the Ministry of Education, which seeks to produce the development of education through the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT).

“It marries all of the activities in which the Ministry of Education engaged under the (9th EDF) project over the course of the last five years… (and) unites the functions of information, management and those of curriculum and research.”

“It is, therefore, a resource which holds utility for those persons involved in the management of information, and for those who wish to have access to curricular material and additional support.”

Also addressing the launching ceremony was Senior Assistant Secretary Catherine Joyette, who was at the time acting as Permanent Secretary.

Speaking on behalf of the Minister of Education, Joyette said that the Ministry of Education is not operating in a vacuum with the initiatives that are being implemented, but rather within the framework of national strategies, which have emerged from regional and global developmental trends.

“The provision of quality education must be based on the principle that our children and youth are being educated for the present and future in order to compete meaningfully in an increasingly dynamic and diverse global economy, typified by limited financial resources and an unlimited supply of creative genius.”

“In order to gain and retain a place on the global scene, small island developing states such as St. Vincent and the Grenadines must position themselves to be productive and be a part of the knowledge economy.”

Joyette called the SVG eNET project a valuable resource for administrators at all levels in the education system (parents, teachers and students) and a tool which will enable the Ministry to manage its information and data in a more effective and efficient manner.

“The ultimate objective of this, as with all undertakings of the Ministry of Education, is an improvement in the output of education practitioners, which is translated into improved outcomes among our more than twenty five thousand students.”

Consultants who worked on the development of the web portal, Mark Ernest and Rodney Browne, gave an indepth outline of the project, as well as a demonstration of the site.