Education evolution: An oxymoron

Benson Plaugh-Feddows 14.SEP.07

The following paragraph was excerpted from the NDP’s column in the local newspapers this past week: “As the country advances, so too will its people. The development of E-learning through the internet and the availability of scholarships from organizations and other nations there will be more and more Vincentians accessing tertiary education than are at present doing so.{{more}} Therefore, when the PM gets on his high horse and believes that what is happening in terms of educational advancement of our people is due to his doing he better come again.”

How does the saying go? “All that’s necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”? So according to that premise, in terms of educational advancement of a country and people, I guess the following holds true: “All that’s necessary for academic advancement is that governments do nothing.” A preposterous postulation predicated on a presumptuous premise. It doesn’t hold water. It is tantamount to intellectual bunk! Scholastic bosh! The epitome of poppycock! Duh! Leave everything up to chance? Huh?

Poor “Ralph”! Blame him for everything that goes wrong; while at the same time discredit him for everything that goes right. They grudgingly acknowledge that something positive is happening in education. “… what is happening in terms of educational advancement of our people …” Yet they contend it has nothing to do with the government’s programs and policies. I understand the opposition’s misinformation and disinformation machinery has to function, but this borders on the ridiculous. Posit logical and sensible arguments. Do not seek to insult the intelligence of the populace.

I have observed in recent times the slogan by some opposition acolytes: “Education is evolutionary”. I did not understand what that meant. Now the party’s official line spelled it out – educational advancement by spontaneous generation and academic progress by osmosis – Whaw!! It begs the question, though. Does the NDPs column go through a vetting process before it is submitted for print? Surely, sensible members of the party must be embarrassed by such illogical and nonsensical pronouncements.

The column lamented the poor showing in this year’s Community College’s A level results in Science, Math and English. Certainly, there is room for improvement in these areas. I believe the government and the Ministry of Education recognized this fact. The Prime Minister has commented on it. But to discredit and disparage Universal Secondary Education and the Education Revolution after only four short years of implementation is not wise. History shows that a renaissance takes a least a generation. Why the rush to judgment? As with any experimentation, mistakes would be made. It is how and what we do to rectify them that matters. We certainly do not throw out the baby with the bath water.

This “gotcha” attitude regarding the challenges and misfortunes in our children’s education is very unhealthy. It does not bode well for the political fortunes of those who seem take pleasure and relish in the misfortunes of our children’s academic pursuits. We are and ought to be in this together. If we spend half as much time mentoring and tutoring our young people and adults who need our guidance – “Each one teach one”, we’d be a whole lot better off. “Light a candle instead of cursing the darkness”. The African proverb: “It takes a village to raise a child” is absolutely true.

The phenomenon of children either shying away from Math and Science subjects or taking them and disproportionately failing is not unique to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It is a worldwide phenomenon. With the possible exception of the Asian and Indian sub-continent.

Consider the following excerpt from the Texas Science Technology Engineering, and Math Initiative (TSTEM): “Governor Rick Perry has made economic development, especially growth in high-tech fields and the innovation economy, one of the key focuses of his administration. While economic development efforts have become more dependent on workers with greater scientific and technological expertise, a number of reports have revealed that our education system is not producing enough graduates with strong backgrounds in math, science, technology, and engineering to sustain job growth in these key businesses of the future. To ensure that Texas will continue to grow its economy, land more job expansions than any other state, and remain at the forefront in the battle for 21st century jobs, Texas is launching a bold and forward-thinking education program-the Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Initiative.

The Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Initiative will build on state and local efforts to improve math and science achievement among Texas students. The Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Initiative will pilot innovative ways of delivering science, engineering, and math education and will focus on increasing the number of students who study and enter science, technology, engineering, and math careers.”

Or this from the Kansas City Business Journal regarding the recruitment of high-skilled workers by United States firms: “Business groups praised the Senate for increasing the caps on high-skilled workers as part of its immigration reform bill. The bill increases the cap on H-1B visas from 65,000 to 115,000 and allows for additional increases if demand warrants it. The visas are granted to foreigners with specialized skills, and are especially popular among high-tech companies. The legislation also exempts from the cap workers with graduate degrees in science, technology, engineering and math.”

Most of these positions are filled by graduates from Asia and India where students excel in these subjects. I can personally attest to the trend in the United States educational system. As an Enrollment Specialist at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and a Tuition Aid Administrator at Southwestern Bell Corporation (SBC) in Irving Texas, I witnessed the trend. At twelve thousand strong student body SMU in particular, the registration period lasted two to three weeks. A few days into the period it began to be a challenge to get Liberal Arts students registered in their entire course because there were always more students wanting to sign up than there were slots. Some of them resorted to taking electives such as “Wellness” or “Swimming” just to fill out their schedule of classes.

On the contrary, students who were registering for science and mathematics were able to stroll in the enrollment office on virtually the last day of registration and enroll in all their required classes in a matter of five minutes. Why? There were always more slots available in these subjects than there were students to fill them. And yes, you guessed it right. The overwhelming majority of these students were Asians and Indians. Next were Caucasians; African-American and Latino students were in the minority. At “Add/Drop” time many student elected to drop math or science classes in which they weren’t doing well to avoid a derogatory “W” (withdrawal) on their transcripts. The point is, students shying away from math and science or failing in these subjects is not a problem unique to St. Vincent and the Grenadines

That is not to say that we should not devise ways and means to get our children interested in math and science. We ought to. And once we do so we ought also to upgrade the teaching profession in these subject areas commensurate and on par with other public service professions. In doing so we’d attract the better and brighter and give them incentive to remain in the profession.

There are some who contend that universal secondary education was implemented too rapidly; that it ought to have been phased in. I agree that a solid elementary foundation is key to a successful secondary academic career. However, why wait? Consider the case of students like Ronnie Richardson a recent graduate of the Barrouallie Secondary School. He was twice unsuccessful at common entrance. At his graduation on July 4th (at which I was present) he received numerous awards, including ‘student of the year’. He did not disappoint when the CXC results were released. He had a 100% pass rate. He sat ten subjects and was successful in all with very creditable grades to boot. Proof that there are no ‘throw-away-kids”.

As for why our children are doing so poorly at English Language? That I’d address in a separate article. I give this caveat; there is a lot of blame to go around and I plan to pull no punches. The gloves will be off because I believe in calling a spade a spade. In the mean time let us do all in our realm of possibility to encourage, tutor and mentor our children. Our future depends on it.