Key issues in the design, delivery
and management of education
in Barbados took centre stage
on April 30 when The University of the
West Indies, in association with the
Ministry of Education, brought together
key stakeholders for the first Barbados
National Summit on Education.
The day-long event, held at the Lloyd Erskine
Sandiford Conference Centre, began with
addresses by Minister of Education, Ronald
Jones, Principal of the Cave Hill Campus,
Sir Hilary Beckles, Director of the School of
Education at Cave Hill, Professor Alan Cobley
and President of the Barbados Association
of Principals of Public Secondary Schools, Jeff
Broomes during the official opening ceremony.
However, it was the presentation by Deputy
Chief Education Officer, Dr Idamay Denny,
who looked at the performance of students
in the Barbados Secondary Schools’ Entrance
Examination (more commonly known as
the 11-Plus Exam) between 2004 and 2008
that ignited participants and set the tone
for the day’s deliberations. She presented
telling exam statistics in maths and English to
demonstrate that “children do not have the
level of development in those critical-thinking
and problem-solving skills that we would
want them to have… .”
Following Dr Denny’s presentation and others
by Anthony Haynes of CXC, Dr. Joyce Stewart
of UWI’s Faculty of Humanities and Education,
Dr Tane Ray of the Faculty of Pure and Applied
Sciences, teachers, school administrators and
other stakeholders met in breakout groups
to look at specific issues concerning English,
mathematics, science and education at the
primary school level generally. They formulated
a number of proposals for improvements in
education delivery which included:
English
-
Develop flexible programmes that consider
the various learning styles of students;
-
Devote more time to actual teaching (fewer
competing events during school hours);
-
Develop more diagnostic testing
programmes;
-
Implement more teacher training
(continuous education);
-
Encourage teachers to research and publish
their research;
-
Encourage closer links between the
UWI School of Education and classroom
practitioners;
-
Expose teachers to more special-needs
training;
-
Make better teaching resources available to
schools;
-
Reduce the volume of work done by English
teachers.
Mathematics
-
Resolve the problem of the examination
“tail” wagging the instruction “dog”
(teaching that is determined only by the
need to pass an exam);
- Teach children to think critically;
- Review the scope of the mathematics
curriculum;
- Revive the Mathematics Association;
- Employ specialist teachers to teach
mathematics in primary schools (too many
maths teachers in primary schools who are
not qualified in the subject and do not even
like it);
- Implement continual training of maths
teachers;
- Make technology (often available in schools)
accessible to the teachers and students;
- Provide adequate (more) time for the
teaching of mathematics;
- Make maths relevant to every-day life;
- Pay greater attention to issues of indiscipline
in the classroom.
Science
- Expose teachers and students to the many
career opportunities a science education
presents;
- Highlight the linkages between science and
entrepreneurship;
- Expose students to the scientists in the
Caribbean in order to show the practicality
of a science education;
- Adopt a more hands-on approach to
classroom teaching;
- Establish an interactive science museum in
Barbados;
- Streamline the School Based Assessment
(SBA) component of CXC examinations
to make them less burdensome, especially
when students are doing more than one
science exam;
- Streamline the system of subject choices by
students so they are not forced to choose
(and drop science subjects) early in their
secondary school life;
- Improve teacher training in the teaching of
science;
- Increase the time given for the teaching of
science, especially at the fourth and fifth
form levels;
- Encourage students to use technology for
recreational/entertainment purposes as a
way of encouraging them to utilise these
same tools for education;
- Teach the students time-management
skills.
Primary School Education
- Make teacher training mandatory for
teachers entering the teaching service;
- Re-examine the role and approaches of
Erdiston Teacher Training College ;
- Make retraining after ten years mandatory;
- Introduce mentorship programmes for
teachers at all levels, including principals;
- Provide equal facilities at all schools;
- Examine gender issues in relation to
teaching;
- Encourage teachers to see children as
persons who can achieve;
- Appoint counsellors to primary schools
and speech and language therapists to the
Ministry of Education;
- Allow teachers access to the research
findings of The University of the West
Indies;
- Determine and establish minimum
standards of competence for teachers and
put a programme in place to assist those
who do not meet the standard;
- Use more interactive technology to
enhance students’ learning experiences.
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